Most NHL teams are in “lounging at a tropical resort” and/or heavy-golfing mode, but at least someone in the New Jersey Devils’ front office has been fairly busy lately.
A couple days after they announced a PTO invite for Jimmy Hayes, the Devils revealed that they signed Drew Stafford to a one-year, $800K contract.
While Hayes fell out of favor with the Boston Bruins, it seems like Stafford’s days with the Bruins ended in part because of uncertainty elsewhere, possibly regarding their negotiations with RFA David Pastrnak.
The Devils, meanwhile, aim to fill out their forward ranks, especially with Travis Zajac expected to miss a considerable chunk of the 2017-18 season.
Stafford, 31, was struggling in his final days with the Winnipeg Jets; he was limited to 13 points in 40 games. Being traded to the Bruins seemed to wake him up, as he generated 8 points in 18 regular-season games while firing 2.28 shots on goal per contest after only averaging a meek 1.7 per night with the Jets.
Perhaps some of that urgency will carry over to New Jersey.