# 2017–18 New Jersey Devils season

The 2017–18 New Jersey Devils season was the 44th season for the National Hockey League franchise that was established on June 11, 1974, and 36th season since the franchise relocated from Colorado prior to the 1982–83 NHL season. The Devils received the first overall pick in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft for the first time in franchise history by winning the draft lottery held on April 29, 2017. They used this pick to select Nico Hischier who was also the first Swiss player to be selected first overall. Taylor Hall set a Devils record for the longest point streak at 26 games, which is also the longest point streak in the 2017–18 season. The team also set their best start in franchise history, going 9–2–0 in their first 11 games of the season. This season also saw the team trade Adam Henrique in exchange for Sami Vatanen and also acquired Patrick Maroon and Michael Grabner. The season also saw the franchise successfully make it back to the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since 2012. The Devils would lose to the Tampa Bay Lightning 4–1 in the first round.

## Standings
### Divisional standings

Metropolitan Division :
| Pos | Team v t e | GP | W | L | OTL | ROW | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | y – Washington Capitals | 82 | 49 | 26 | 7 | 46 | 259 | 239 | +20 | 105 |
| 2 | x – Pittsburgh Penguins | 82 | 47 | 29 | 6 | 45 | 272 | 250 | +22 | 100 |
| 3 | x – Philadelphia Flyers | 82 | 42 | 26 | 14 | 40 | 251 | 243 | +8 | 98 |
| 4 | x – Columbus Blue Jackets | 82 | 45 | 30 | 7 | 39 | 242 | 230 | +12 | 97 |
| 5 | x – New Jersey Devils | 82 | 44 | 29 | 9 | 39 | 248 | 244 | +4 | 97 |
| 6 | Carolina Hurricanes | 82 | 36 | 35 | 11 | 33 | 228 | 256 | −28 | 83 |
| 7 | New York Islanders | 82 | 35 | 37 | 10 | 32 | 264 | 296 | −32 | 80 |
| 8 | New York Rangers | 82 | 34 | 39 | 9 | 31 | 231 | 268 | −37 | 77 |

### Conference standings

Eastern Conference Wild Card :
| Pos | Div | Team v t e | GP | W | L | OTL | ROW | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | ME | x – Columbus Blue Jackets | 82 | 45 | 30 | 7 | 39 | 242 | 230 | +12 | 97 |
| 2 | ME | x – New Jersey Devils | 82 | 44 | 29 | 9 | 39 | 248 | 244 | +4 | 97 |
| 3 | AT | Florida Panthers | 82 | 44 | 30 | 8 | 41 | 248 | 246 | +2 | 96 |
| 4 | ME | Carolina Hurricanes | 82 | 36 | 35 | 11 | 33 | 228 | 256 | −28 | 83 |
| 5 | ME | New York Islanders | 82 | 35 | 37 | 10 | 32 | 264 | 296 | −32 | 80 |
| 6 | ME | New York Rangers | 82 | 34 | 39 | 9 | 31 | 231 | 268 | −37 | 77 |
| 7 | AT | Detroit Red Wings | 82 | 30 | 39 | 13 | 25 | 217 | 255 | −38 | 73 |
| 8 | AT | Montreal Canadiens | 82 | 29 | 40 | 13 | 27 | 209 | 264 | −55 | 71 |
| 9 | AT | Ottawa Senators | 82 | 28 | 43 | 11 | 26 | 221 | 291 | −70 | 67 |
| 10 | AT | Buffalo Sabres | 82 | 25 | 45 | 12 | 24 | 199 | 280 | −81 | 62 |

## Schedule and results
### Preseason

The preseason schedule was published on June 11, 2017, which includes seven games (two at home and five as visitors).

### Regular season

The regular season schedule was released on June 22, 2017.
2017–18 game log :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Overtime/shootout loss (1 point) :

### Playoffs

2018 Stanley Cup playoffs :
Legend:
  Win
  Loss :

## Player statistics

As of April 16, 2018

### Skaters

Regular season :
| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | +/− | PIM |
| Taylor Hall | 76 | 39 | 54 | 93 | 14 | 34 |
| Nico Hischier | 82 | 20 | 32 | 52 | 10 | 26 |
| Kyle Palmieri | 62 | 24 | 20 | 44 | −1 | 30 |
| Will Butcher | 81 | 5 | 39 | 44 | 1 | 8 |
| Jesper Bratt | 72 | 13 | 22 | 35 | −16 | 18 |
| Miles Wood | 76 | 19 | 13 | 32 | −6 | 84 |
| Sami Vatanen$^†$ | 57 | 3 | 25 | 28 | −1 | 32 |
| Stefan Noesen | 72 | 13 | 14 | 27 | 12 | 36 |
| Travis Zajac | 62 | 12 | 14 | 26 | −8 | 25 |
| Brian Gibbons | 59 | 12 | 14 | 26 | 10 | 20 |
| Blake Coleman | 79 | 13 | 12 | 25 | 7 | 50 |
| Pavel Zacha | 69 | 8 | 17 | 25 | −3 | 30 |
| Damon Severson | 76 | 9 | 15 | 24 | −8 | 42 |
| Brian Boyle | 69 | 13 | 10 | 23 | −9 | 45 |
| John Moore | 81 | 7 | 11 | 18 | 3 | 47 |
| Drew Stafford | 59 | 8 | 7 | 15 | −20 | 10 |
| Marcus Johansson | 29 | 5 | 9 | 14 | −11 | 14 |
| Adam Henrique$^‡$ | 24 | 4 | 10 | 14 | −5 | 6 |
| Andy Greene | 81 | 3 | 10 | 13 | −9 | 21 |
| Patrick Maroon$^†$ | 17 | 3 | 10 | 13 | −4 | 13 |
| Steven Santini | 36 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 0 | 21 |
| Jimmy Hayes | 33 | 3 | 6 | 9 | −2 | 6 |
| Ben Lovejoy | 57 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 25 |
| Michael Grabner$^†$ | 21 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 4 |
| Mirco Mueller | 28 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 4 |
| Nick Lappin | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| John Quenneville | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −3 | 0 |
| Kevin Rooney | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dalton Prout$^‡$ | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 13 |
Playoffs :
| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | +/− | PIM |
| Taylor Hall | 5 | 2 | 4 | 6 | −1 | 6 |
| Will Butcher | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Kyle Palmieri | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −4 | 6 |
| Blake Coleman | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| Travis Zajac | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Andy Greene | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | −4 | 6 |
| Ben Lovejoy | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Patrick Maroon | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −2 | 0 |
| Nico Hischier | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −4 | 0 |
| Stefan Noesen | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| Sami Vatanen | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −1 | 0 |
| John Moore | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −1 | 12 |
| Brian Boyle | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 14 |
| Miles Wood | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 14 |
| Pavel Zacha | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 6 |
| Damon Severson | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 12 |
| Marcus Johansson | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 0 |
| Mirco Mueller | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 0 |
| Drew Stafford | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 10 |
| Michael Grabner | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Brian Gibbons | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 0 |
| Marcus Johansson | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jesper Bratt | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

### Goaltenders

Regular season :
| Player | GP | GS | TOI | W | L | OT | GA | GAA | SA | SV% | SO | G | A | PIM |
| Cory Schneider | 40 | 40 | 2,333 | 17 | 16 | 6 | 114 | 2.93 | 1,228 | .907 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Keith Kinkaid | 41 | 38 | 2,298 | 26 | 10 | 3 | 106 | 2.77 | 1,214 | .913 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Eddie Lack$^†$ | 4 | 3 | 208 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 3.19 | 102 | .903 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ken Appleby | 3 | 1 | 124 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3.10 | 55 | .945 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Playoffs :
| Player | GP | GS | TOI | W | L | GA | GAA | SA | SV% | SO | G | A | PIM |
| Keith Kinkaid | 2 | 2 | 92 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 5.87 | 46 | .804 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cory Schneider | 4 | 3 | 202 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 1.78 | 113 | .950 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
* $^†$ Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Devils. Stats reflect time with the Devils only.
* $^‡$ Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Devils only.
* Bold/italics denotes franchise record.

## Awards and honors
### Awards

Regular season :
| Player | Award | Date |
| Brian Boyle | Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy | June 20, 2018 |
| Taylor Hall | Hart Memorial Trophy | June 20, 2018 |

## Transactions

The Devils have been involved in the following transactions during the 2017–18 season.

### Trades

| Date | Details | Details |
| July 3, 2017 (2017-07-03) | To Washington CapitalsFLA's 2nd-round pick in 2018 TOR's 3rd-round pick in 2018 | To New Jersey DevilsMarcus Johansson |
| October 28, 2017 (2017-10-28) | To Arizona CoyotesScott Wedgewood | To New Jersey DevilsCGY's 5th-round pick in 2018 |
| November 30, 2017 (2017-11-30) | To Anaheim DucksJoseph Blandisi Adam Henrique NJD's 3rd-round pick in 2018 | To New Jersey DevilsSami Vatanen Conditional 3rd-round pick in 2019 or 2020 |
| December 14, 2017 (2017-12-14) | To Arizona CoyotesRyan Kujawinski | To New Jersey DevilsMichael Latta |
| December 30, 2017 (2017-12-30) | To Calgary FlamesDalton Prout | To New Jersey DevilsEddie Lack |
| February 8, 2018 (2018-02-08) | To Minnesota WildViktor Loov | To New Jersey DevilsChristoph Bertschy Mario Lucia |
| February 22, 2018 (2018-02-22) | To New York RangersYegor Rykov 2nd-round pick in 2018 | To New Jersey DevilsMichael Grabner |
| February 26, 2018 (2018-02-26) | To Edmonton OilersJ. D. Dudek 3rd-round pick in 2019 | To New Jersey DevilsPatrick Maroon |

### Player signings

| Date | Player | Contract terms (in U.S. dollars) |
| June 29, 2017 (2017-06-29) | Keith Kinkaid | 2-year, $1.5 million |
| July 15, 2017 (2017-07-15) | Nico Hischier | 3-year, $2.775 million entry-level contract |
| July 25, 2017 (2017-07-25) | Joseph Blandisi | 2-year, $1.36 million |
| July 25, 2017 (2017-07-25) | Mirco Mueller | 2-year, $1.7 million |
| July 25, 2017 (2017-07-25) | Scott Wedgewood | 1-year, $650,000 |
| July 26, 2017 (2017-07-26) | Blake Coleman | 1-year, $660,000 |
| July 26, 2017 (2017-07-26) | Stefan Noesen | 1-year, $660,000 |
| July 26, 2017 (2017-07-26) | Blake Pietila | 2-year, $667,500 |
| July 26, 2017 (2017-07-26) | Kevin Rooney | 1-year, $650,000 |
| July 26, 2017 (2017-07-26) | Ben Thomson | 1-year, $650,000 |
| September 11, 2017 (2017-09-11) | Damon Severson | 6-year, $25 million |
| March 16, 2018 (2018-03-16) | Brett Seney | 2-year, $1.65 million entry-level contract |
| April 2, 2018 (2018-04-02) | Marian Studenic | 3-year, $2.775 million entry-level contract |
| April 15, 2018 (2018-04-15) | Joey Anderson | 3-year, $2.775 million entry-level contract |
| May 8, 2018 (2018-05-08) | Brian Strait | 2-year, $1.35 million contract extension |

## Draft picks

Below are the New Jersey Devils' selections at the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, which was held on June 23 and 24, 2017, at the United Center in Chicago.
| Round | # | Player | Pos | Nationality | College/junior/club team |
| 1 | 1 | Nico Hischier | C | Switzerland | Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL) |
| 2 | 36 | Jesper Boqvist | C | Sweden | Brynäs IF (SHL) |
| 3 | 63$^1$ | Fabian Zetterlund | LW | Sweden | Färjestad BK (J20 SuperElit) |
| 3 | 81$^2$ | Reilly Walsh | D | United States | Chicago Steel (USHL) |
| 4 | 98 | Nikita Popugaev | RW | Russia | Prince George Cougars (WHL) |
| 5 | 129 | Gilles Senn | G | Switzerland | HC Davos (NLA) |
| 5 | 143$^3$ | Marian Studenic | RW | Slovakia | Hamilton Bulldogs (OHL) |
| 6 | 160 | Aarne Talvitie | C | Finland | Blues U20 (Jr. A SM-liiga) |
| 7 | 191 | Jockton Chainey | D | Canada | Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL) |
| 7 | 205 | Yegor Zaitsev | D | Russia | Dynamo Moscow (KHL) |
| 7 | 214 | Matthew Hellickson | D | United States | Sioux City Musketeers (USHL) |
* The Colorado Avalanche's third-round pick went the New Jersey Devils as the result of a trade on February 29, 2016, that sent Eric Gelinas to Colorado in exchange for this pick.
* The San Jose Sharks' third-round pick went to the New Jersey Devils as compensation for San Jose signing Peter DeBoer as their head coach on May 28, 2015.
* The San Jose Sharks' fifth-round pick went to the New Jersey Devils as the result of a trade on June 17, 2017, that sent Boston's second-round pick and Nashville's fourth-round pick both in 2017 to San Jose in exchange for Mirco Mueller and this pick.