HIGHLIGHTS
- The Devils fired president of hockey operations and GM Tom Fitzgerald on Monday after more than five seasons running the front office
- New Jersey is 40-34-3, seventh in the Metropolitan Division and seven points out of a wild card spot with five games left
- Read below for a look at Fitzgerald’s tenure, the moves that defined it, and what the Devils are left with going forward
The Devils have moved on from Tom Fitzgerald.
New Jersey announced Monday that Fitzgerald is out as president of hockey operations and general manager, ending a tenure that stretched back more than a decade in the organization. Managing partner David Blitzer made the call after the team fell to 40-34-3 on the season, sitting seventh in the Metropolitan Division and all but mathematically eliminated from playoff contention.
Fitzgerald first joined the Devils as an assistant GM in July 2015. He was promoted to interim GM in January 2020 after Ray Shero was let go, then got the full-time title that summer. By January 2024, he held the president of hockey operations title on top of the GM role.
His overall record as GM was 218-204-39. The high point came in 2022-23, when New Jersey set a franchise record with 52 wins and 112 points. That team lost to Carolina in five games in the second round. The Hurricanes knocked them out again in the first round the following postseason. This year, the Devils never got close.
The 2025-26 season started well enough. New Jersey went 8-1 out of the gate. Then Jack Hughes broke his hand in a freak accident at a team dinner in Chicago in mid-November, cutting it on a broken glass. He had surgery and missed roughly eight weeks. The team went through four separate four-game losing streaks over the course of the season and never stabilized.
Fitzgerald made several major moves during his tenure. He acquired Timo Meier from San Jose at the 2023 deadline and signed him to an eight-year, $70.4 million extension. He traded for Jacob Markstrom from Calgary ahead of the 2024-25 season and extended him at two years and $12 million. He hired Sheldon Keefe to replace Lindy Ruff behind the bench.
The core he assembled around Nico Hischier, Hughes, and Meier has the talent to compete. But the supporting cast never came together. Depth scoring was a problem all season, and when Hughes went down, the offense dried up. Fitzgerald’s deadline approach this year was passive. He added Cody Glass and Daniel Sprong rather than swing for a higher-impact player.
The Markstrom extension drew criticism at the time and looks worse now, locking in a 36-year-old goaltender at $6 million per year through 2027-28. The roster also carries a wave of no-trade clauses that will limit the next GM’s flexibility.
Blitzer acknowledged what Fitzgerald built in his statement. “Tom changed the trajectory of our team here, including setting a franchise record for points in a season and helping make New Jersey a hockey destination,” he said.
Fitzgerald’s response was brief. “After talking with David Blitzer, it was apparent to everyone that the best course of action is to move on for the benefit of the team.”
He’s the second GM fired in the past week, following Toronto’s Brad Treliving. Nashville also has an opening. Fitzgerald spent four years playing for the Predators, which will fuel speculation about whether he lands there.
The Devils have roughly $12.18 million in projected cap space and 12 players under long-term contracts. There’s no word yet on a replacement, and the team has not commented on Keefe’s future as head coach. New Jersey has five games left in a season that’s already over in every way that matters.
