The New Jersey Devils are rolling right now as they are off to one of their best starts in franchise history. New Jersey just swept their Western Canadian road trip for the first time in a long time. And as this young team starts to jell with new faces replacing older ones, the Devils have a tough decision when it comes to veteran defenceman Damon Severson.
Severson is in the final year of a six-year deal that kicked in during the 2017-18 season that carries a salary cap hit of $4.166 million a season. The 28-year-old defenceman has been with the Devils since being drafted 60th overall in the 2nd round of the 2012 NHL Draft.
Last season, saw Severson take his game to new heights even with the Devils being so bad. He set career numbers with 46 points (including tying his career high with 11 goals and setting a career-high with 35 assists) in 80 games last season. However, this season has been an adjustment as his role has changed with new additions to the roster.
With the addition of John Marino and his ability to be a shutdown defenceman and Dougie Hamilton playing top-line minutes, Severson’s role has diminished on the team. Severson used to play top-four minutes. And a few years ago he was capable of playing those minutes. Especially when he had a partner like Andy Greene. But recently, his play has tailed off and thus general manager Tom Fitzgerald improving an area that was already strong.
Now, Severson did not have the right partners, however, Saturday night against Calgary was a perfect example of what the Devils coaching staff thinks of Severson and his role with the way the Devils are currently made up.
After being on the ice for two of the Flames’ goals and seemingly being caught out of position on both of them, head coach Lindy Ruff benched Severson for the final 4:07 of the second period and all of the third period. It was a message being sent that he needs to play better if he wants to remain in the lineup.
The Devils have depth at the defensive position. It is an area of strength that used to be an area of weakness. Hence why this offseason is a big one for the Devils. We already know Jesper Bratt needs a new deal, but so does Severson.
According to Elliotte Friedman on his 32 Thoughts Podcast, who said, “I think they are going to have a big decision on Severson too. I think the term was always the big issue there for the Devils. Not convinced they wanted to give him as big of term as he can get.”
Once free agency opened on July 13, 2022, the Devils had the right to start negotiating a new contract for Damon Severson. It appears, according to Friedman, they began that process. However, the sticking point is the length of the deal. The question is how many years were the Devils offering and how many years did Severson want?
With Severson now 28 soon to be 29 when his next deal kicks, you have to think the Devils did not want to go more than three of four years. Especially with the depth the Devils have in their system with a player like Simon Nemec, the 2nd overall pick from the 2022 NHL Draft.
If Nemec is ready after playing this season in the AHL, that leaves a log jam on the right side. That is a good problem to have but means Severson is the odd man out.
The key will be where the Devils stand come the NHL Trade Deadline in March. If the Devils are in a playoff race, it will be unlikely the team will try to trade Severson, who has been rumoured to be traded, for quite some time now. If management feels they want to get something for him, the most likely time to trade Severson will be at the draft.
And as Severson has noted in the past, especially after last season, he wants to remain with the Devils but also knows he has to be fit with the team. Only Tom Fitzgerald and Lindy Ruff know what kind of team they want going forward.
Having a veteran presence like Damon Severson only helps the young players develop. But it will come down to what the player wants for term and money and what the team thinks he is worth.
