Devils’ GM Tom Fitzgerald Speaks to Local Media

On plans to add: “I’d like to add up front. Continue to give more depth.“

On frequency of contact with ownership/concerns about job security: “I don’t worry about that. Like Life’s too short to worry about things like that. I’ve been Listen, sitting in this position is a privilege, and I’ve never taken that for granted. I’m constantly in communication with ownership, my CEO, Tad Brown, Bob, Myers, we all work together … We’re all trying to find solutions, and we’re all pulling the same way.“

On Jacob Markstrom contract: “I don’t think I rushed into it. I it was something I’ve talked about with him and his agent since the day I traded for him. When I traded for him, the goal was to extend him, and that’s that never changed. When you go back and look at Mark, he’d be the first to tell you about his ups and downs this year, but when you go back and evaluate him at that point, you look at his playoffs and how well he played in the Carolina series, and felt he gives us a chance to win every game … And I just felt working with Jake Allen, the tandem they had, gave us the best opportunity to win hockey games.”

On if the number of no move clauses hampered his ability to make any moves: “No.”

On head coach Sheldon Keefe’s job security: “We are in lockstep.“

On the validity of the reports that the Devils couldn’t clear the space needed to acquire Quinn Hughes: “No, not true.”

On team’s struggles when Jack Hughes is absent from the lineup: “You can’t replace Jack. It doesn’t matter.“

On how the team — who is 24-32-2 without Hughes since 2023-24, could better prepare for his absences: “I think it’s playing differently. It’s playing above pucks, you know, clearing out in front of our net. Be okay with winning 2-1, you know, lower score games … You can still win games by playing the proper way.“

On if/how the Quinn situation impacted the locker room: “I would have to say, of course it affected people. You know, ‘Does my phone ring and it’s Tom Fitzgerald, you know?’ And you live on pins and knees a little bit. That’s, I think, natural and human.“

On bottom-six: “When we set out to do this, adding a Connor Brown and [Evgenii] Dadonov, and you felt that they were going to be able to add some pop, along with [Stefan] Noesen and [Paul] Cotter kind of playing the same type of hockey they played for us last year, production wise. And felt that we had added, enough. We added a 20-goal scorer Dadonov. I really want to see this team where it’s at healthy … You know, when Dadonov’s on your fourth line, it gives you more depth, right? And it gives you a deeper roster. So you got to see where this goes, because this was our vision from the start. … So that’s what excites me moving forward, like I do think what we saw the other night wasn’t afflicted. I think you know, when we put our mindset mind together and commit to playing away from the puck, offense seems to generate more.”

On belief in the core: “I believe in the core. We as an organization believe in this core. We’ve seen them at the top of their game, and we all like it.“

On a report that Hamilton wouldn’t waive his no-movement clause to go to San Jose: “I can’t comment on that situation. I don’t really want to go there, because Dougie is here. He played really well the other night.“

On if Keefe is running a different system than he is in Toronto: “I’m not really sure if it’s exact, because a lot of teams now are switching to man-on-man after lost face-offs. I would have to go back and check actually to see exactly what changed. If I had to guess, he’s continuing to evolve his system and where it can get better to make these small, subtle adjustments, but overall, I would guess it’s very similar.”

On if the team has moved away from what made them successful in 2022-23: “What made us successful in 22-23 was how good we were off the rush, right? We were very good rush team, a very quick strike type of team, and that’s still how we want to play. But the reality is other teams don’t want to get into these track meets, we call them, so they know when they play us, if they get into a track meet, it’s probably not going to look good [when] they’re committed to playing on top of the puck and on top of our guys to limit those. And now it’s how we adjust. You know, are we comfortable in those uncomfortable situations, grinding it out down low and having to chip pucks in at certain times? So that’s development and growth. How does an individual take on something that may be a little bit less comfortable than they’re used to … I love watching our team play off the rush, but when it’s not there, how do we win? We gotta find a different way.“

On if there’s anything he attributes to the lack of production from core players (Timo Meier, Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, and Jesper Bratt’s numbers are all down offensively from last season): “I really don’t. I really don’t.”

On if there’s any question that playoffs are still the goal: “Oh, f--- yeah. Listen, I don’t even look at standings, but I know that we’re, we’re one streak away from being where we were at the start, where we really liked what we had and thought we were. We’re a good team.”

On if a run doesn’t follow, how does he work his way out of this: “I’m just going day to day here. Today’s a new day. I want to build on the lasy day … When it comes to getting out of something, you take it one day at a time, and that’s all we’re doing here as a group.”

On if an Arseny Gritsyuk extension is something he plans on visiting: “Yeah, we do plan on that … When a player like that comes in, and you feel he can pop and he can tell you he can still be better, you feel very lucky.”

On the plan for Lenni Hameenaho: “We feel very fortunate. He’s a dip your toe in the pool kind of player. Got to get a little comfortable to feel better about his game. And we’ve actually talked about bringing him up, even just to practice with us so he’s comfortable here. It’s a meritocracy and he’s playing well and we want to give him an opportunity. But we want to make sure he feels very comfortable in a situation that we can get the best out of him at that time.”

On struggles in Utica over past couple seasons: “When it comes to our American League, I don’t look at winning a Calder Cup as a barometer of success. When I look at their daily numbers and see where they’ve been at and how much better they’re getting, their production and their underlying numbers have been really good. Wins should follow, and I think we’re seeing that right now, but you’re right to start: It wasn’t good enough. And you know, it hasn’t hindered player development.”

On the large cap hits of Hamilton, Markstrom and Ondrej Palat, coupled with restrictive clauses: “Well at that time, that was what the numbers were negotiating with their agents and other teams helped them set that market.”

Further confirmation on whether he would have been able to move money to make a Quinn Hughes deal work: “Yeah.”

On passionate fanbase: “I keep myself accountable to the fans and I know that they’re unhappy right now. They’re a passionate fanbase. And that’s what I love about being here, because of that fanbase and what their expectations are. So, we’re working to find ways to improve our team.”

Quick Analysis

At the end of the day, all fans want are results. The Devils have won just one single playoff series since 2012-13 and are rightfully frustrated.

It’s a huge failure that the 2025-26 Devils are in this position after winning a franchise record 52 games in 2022-23. These next few weeks leading up to the Olympic break will be very interesting to see if they can shake things up and get back on track.

While the roster, as constructed, may not be championship-caliber, they are certainly better than they’ve played as of late. What are your thoughts?