The owner of the New Jersey Devils has recommended that the head coach’s salary this month not be paid due to misunderstandings with two players.

The owner of the New Jersey Devils has recommended that the head coach’s salary this month not be paid due to misunderstandings with two players.

Lindy Ruff, further organizational assessments, Shakir Mukhamadullin, upcoming free agents, goaltenders, and other topics were discussed by New Jersey Devils General Manager Tom Fitzgerald with the media this morning. This post addresses the main ideas raised at the news conference today.

Tom Fitzgerald had a statement to make today. Andy Marlin/NHLI photo via Getty Images
final media sessions for the New Jersey Devils were held on Sunday and Monday. Head coach Lindy Ruff repeatedly brought up how he and the other staff members were “under evaluation” with regard to his personal status throughout Monday’s session. Word spread that Devils General Manager Tom Fitzgerald would be speaking later in the week. The Devils revealed yesterday that Mark Recchi had been let go and that Alain Nasreddine would be freed from his contract. They obviously finished their evaluations. Fitzgerald spoke with the media at a press conference today at 11 a.m. Let us dissect what Fitzgerald stated and respond to each significant point he made.

The Devils did, by the way, post the entire news conference to their Youtube account.

Fitzgerald on “Evaluations” and Ruff
I’m going to bucket the GM’s remarks by topic rather than going in chronological order during the news conference. Ruff declined to say on Monday if he will be back as head coach. Was Fitzgerald clear at all? Sort of, anyway. Throughout several tweets, Fitzgerald said the following about Ruff:. I will comment on them after the abundance of pertinent ones that have been placed here:

TF about Ruff’s capacity to develop the youthful talent: “I don’t think there’s any doubt Lindy has done that.”

I have to stray before I get into the main point of my piece, which you can deduce from the title. It applies to the New Jersey Devils, I promise you.

Following an extremely dismal first season under a head coach, the second season has been nearly as terrible. Maybe worse because nothing has changed, which is obvious. Any benefits are in the specifics, most definitely not in wins or points. Which is the goal for which all of these players, trainers, analytics specialists, and decision-makers labor?

I must concede that the head coach might be receiving a raw deal. The squad has, to start with, endured a great deal from COVID-19 and injuries both last and this season. Have the squad played even half of their games thus far with their best players even available to play? Besides, the head coach isn’t a player. He isn’t performing plays out there. They cannot have it done for them by him. But when they fall short, he is hurt.

Not to mention the situation of the staff in some of their most crucial roles. They could not be very excellent, to be sure. They may be very awful. At best, though, they’ve been bruised, and at worst, they’re simply too injured to play. They needed to be shut down. Yet, if the second, third, or even sub-third-stringers aren’t that talented, can you really blame the coaches? Should they be any good, they would be starters or at the very least regulars elsewhere. With a less than 100% roster and perhaps-real-bad players at crucial positions, how can anyone honestly assess if the head coach and his staff are doing a decent job?

To be honest, I believe ownership might be out of touch. Indeed, they gave the cash and approved the transactions the general manager wanted to execute. They own the team; hence, of course, they have to have a say. But after just two seasons, they cannot be so impetuous to fire the head coach.

Startled, that is me. That Joe Judge would be fired by the New York Football Giants is incomprehensible. Simply put, I am unable.

Of course, things in East Rutherford were not precisely the same as they are in Newark. (Aside: I can argue a point sarcastically in less than 500 words. Judge and Gettleman deserved to leave, for the record.

It occurred to me, though, because the Devils are still at the bottom of the standings and there were two significant NHL news items last week. Coach Dominique Ducharme was sacked after the Devils routed Montreal 7-1. He served as a bench player for the Canadiens’ Cinderella-like journey to the Stanley Cup Finals earlier this year. Even if everyone could have expected a slump, you would think it would have given him some goodwill for at least this season. A season when Carey Price and Shea Weber were not available. However, that season the general manager who had named and extended him was sacked. Ducharme was dismissed after eight wins in forty-five games. The major story of Wednesday was that firing. They distributed another pink slip on Thursday. Dave Tippett, head coach of Edmonton, resigned. The Oilers have been struggling, and it was conceivable that missing the playoffs would cost Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl another great season. The Oilers’ (at least, what should have been their) goal was to challenge for the Pacific Division championship and the Cup. Under Tippett, their present route was getting burned while depending on 40-year-old Mike Smith in consecutive games just after his injury healed. Edmonton management changed things after realizing, at last, that this was not working.