Nico Hischier Only Wanted To Remain With Devils

Approaching the final season of his seven-year, $50.75MM extension with the New Jersey Devils, few would have faulted captain Nico Hischier for assessing his options and playing out the final year without an extension in place, or even with a new club. However, on his first day of eligibility, Hischier agreed to a five-year, $58.5MM extension to remain in New Jersey.

In a new interview with Chris Johnston of The Athletic (Subscription required), Hischier explained that his heart is set on the Devils. According to Johnston, Hischier said, “For me it was clear: My goal is to give something back to New Jersey. They gave me a chance to play in the NHL. They picked me.”

Unfortunately, it hasn’t been the smoothest path toward success for Hischier. Although he’s become one of the league’s better two-way centers, New Jersey has lagged behind its Eastern Conference counterparts for much of his tenure.

The Devils qualified for the postseason in 2023, but were eliminated in Round Two by the Carolina Hurricanes. Largely due to injuries, New Jersey dropped 31 points in the standings the following year and failed to make the playoffs. The Devils returned to the postseason in 2025, but were again eliminated by the Hurricanes, this time in Round One. Similar to 2024, New Jersey again missed the playoffs this past season.

That inconsistency led to some changes in the spring. On April 16th, the Devils hired Sunny Mehta as the team’s next General Manager, replacing Tom Fitzgerald. That understandably came with questions from Hischier, who was considering his options before signing an extension.

Clearly, those questions were answered to Hischier’s liking. Johnston quoted Hischier again, saying, “We had some changes, and we wanted to know what the plan is. Obviously, there were talks. We discussed some things. And we came to the end, and I want to be part of the plan. I want to be part of this. Obviously, we weren’t really happy with how things have turned out the last few years, but we’ve shown that we can be a team that can be dangerous too. We just have to bring it every night.”

Regardless, the Devils will need to focus on remaining healthy this season, to the best of their ability. Hischier, the team’s captain, has been a model of consistency and availability the past five years, scoring 142 goals and 342 points in 379 games with a +30 rating, averaging 19:52 of ice time per game.