2015–16 New Jersey Devils season explained

League:NHL
Season:2015–16
Year:2015
Team:New Jersey Devils
Division:Metropolitan
Divisionrank:7th
Conference:Eastern
Conferencerank:12th
Record:38–36–8
Homerecord:19–17–5
Roadrecord:19–19–3
Goalsfor:184
Goalsagainst:208
Generalmanager:Ray Shero
Coach:John Hynes
Captain:Andy Greene
Altcaptain:Michael Cammalleri
Patrik Elias
Adam Henrique
Travis Zajac
Arena:Prudential Center
Attendance:15,073[1]
Minorleague:Albany Devils (AHL)
Goalsleader:Adam Henrique
Kyle Palmieri (30)
Assistsleader:Travis Zajac (28)
Pointsleader:Kyle Palmieri (57)
Plusminusleader:Michael Cammalleri
Adam Larsson (+15)
Pimleader:Jordin Tootoo (102)
Winsleader:Cory Schneider (27)
Gaaleader:Scott Wedgewood (1.24)

The 2015–16 New Jersey Devils season was the 42nd season for the National Hockey League franchise that was established on June 11, 1974, and 34th season since the franchise relocated from Colorado prior to the 1982–83 NHL season.[2] The team's regular season began on October 9, 2015, against the Winnipeg Jets.[3] The Devils once again missed the playoffs.

Schedule and results

Pre-season

Regular season

2015–16 Game Log
Legend:

Player statistics

Final stats[4]

Skaters
Regular season
Playerdata-sort-type="number"
82 30 27 57 3 39
80 30 20 50 10 23
74 14 28 42 3 25
63 16 25 41 3 34
42 14 24 38 15 18
72 1 20 21 −8 32
39 8 11 19 −13 6
67 6 13 19 −22 16
73 4 15 19 −12 28
82 3 15 18 15 77
41 5 12 17 −14 34
50 3 13 16 −14 14
78 8 7 15 −9 33
58 4 10 14 −21 20
18 8 5 13 −1 8
82 4 9 13 7 26
82 1 10 11 −13 43
50 8 2 10 −2 92
66 4 5 9 −26 102
16 2 6 8 5 10
34 1 5 6 −8 16
47 1 4 5 −15 28
18 3 1 4 −2 4
30 2 2 4 −1 6
7 1 1 2 0 2
22 0 2 2 −3 8
1 0 2 2 4 0
20 1 0 1 −9 13
33 0 1 1 −7 8
10 0 1 1 −3 2
19 0 1 1 −5 17
4 0 0 0 −2 2
4 0 0 0 −4 2
3 0 0 0 0 2
1 0 0 0 0 0
1 0 0 0 2 2
7 0 0 0 0 4
Goaltenders
Regular season
Player
style=white-space:nowrap58 58 3,412 27 25 6 122 2.15 1597 0.924 4 0 0 0
style=white-space:nowrap23 20 1240 9 9 1 58 2.81 605 0.904 2 0 0 2
style=white-space:nowrap4 4 241 2 1 1 5 1.24 116 0.957 1 0 0 0
style=white-space:nowrap2 0 51 0 1 0 4 4.71 18 0.778 0 0 0 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.

Suspensions/fines

PlayerExplanationLengthSalaryDate issued
Dangerous trip on Nashville Predators defenseman Seth Jones during NHL Game No. 37 in Newark on Tuesday, October 13, 2015, at 7:55 of the third period. $2,217.74 October 15, 2015[5]
Spearing Ottawa Senators defenseman Mark Borowiecki during NHL Game No. 94 in Ottawa on Thursday, October 22, 2015, at 18:18 of the second period. $2,284.95 October 23, 2015[6]
Diving/Embellishment during NHL Game No. 553 in Ottawa on Wednesday, December 30, 2015. $2,000.00 January 7, 2016[7]
Interference against St. Louis Blues forward Dmitrij Jaskin during NHL Game No. 636 in St. Louis on Tuesday, January 12, 2016, at 11:50 of the third period. 4 games $12,365.60 January 13, 2016[8]
Diving/Embellishment during NHL Game No. 583 in Detroit on Monday, January 4, 2016, at 9:39 of the third period. $2,000.00 January 14, 2016[9]

Awards and honours

Awards

Regular Season
PlayerAwardAwarded
NHL Third Star of the Week[10] December 7, 2015
NHL All-Star game selection[11] January 6, 2016
NHL Second Star of the Week[12] January 25, 2016

Milestones

Regular season
PlayerMilestoneReached
1st career NHL game October 9, 2015
1st career NHL game October 10, 2015
100th career NHL win October 22, 2015
200th career NHL game October 24, 2015
Segei Kalinin 1st career NHL assist
1st career NHL point
October 24, 2015
1st career NHL goal
1st career NHL assist
1st career NHL point
October 31, 2015
200th career NHL game November 3, 2015
Segei Kalinin 1st career NHL goal November 8, 2015
100th career NHL point November 8, 2015
200th career NHL game November 22, 2015
200th career NHL point December 3, 2015

Transactions

The Devils have been involved in the following transactions during the 2015–16 season.

Trades

DateRef
To Anaheim Ducks
FLA's 2nd-round pick in 2015
Conditional 3rd-round pick in 2016
To New Jersey Devils
Kyle Palmieri
[13]
To Ottawa Senators
2nd-round pick in 2015
To New Jersey Devils
DAL's 2nd-round pick in 2015
4th-round pick in 2016
[14]
To Los Angeles Kings
Conditional 7th-round pick in 2017
To New Jersey Devils
Brian O'Neill
[15]
To Boston Bruins
Lee Stempniak
To New Jersey Devils
4th-round pick in 2016
2nd-round pick in 2017
[16]
To Colorado Avalanche
Eric Gelinas
To New Jersey Devils
3rd-round pick in 2017
To Montreal Canadiens
Stefan Matteau
To New Jersey Devils
Devante Smith-Pelly
To Florida Panthers
Graham Black
Paul Thompson
To New Jersey Devils
Marc Savard
2nd-round pick in 2018
[17]

Free agents acquired

Date Player Former team Contract terms
(in U.S. dollars)
Ref
3 years, $5 million [18]
2 years, $1.15 million [19]
1 year, $575,000 [20]
1 year, $575,000 [21]
1 year, $575,000 [22]
1 year, $575,000 [23]
1 year, $625,000 [24]
1 year, $800,000 [25]
1 year, $850,000 [26]
3 years, entry-level contract [27]
2 years, entry-level contract [28]
1 year [29]

Free agents lost

Date Player New team Contract terms
(in U.S. dollars)
Ref
1 year, $800,000 [30]
1 year, $750,000 [31]
1 year, $750,000 [32]
1 year, $800,000 [33]
1 year, $575,000 [34]
1 year, $600,000 [35]
1 year, $600,000 [36]

Claimed via waivers

Player Previous team Date Ref
October 26, 2015 [37]
Pittsburgh Penguins February 29, 2016 [38]

Players released

Date Player Via Ref
Dainius ZubrusBuyout[39]

Lost via retirement

DatePlayerRef
Scott Clemmensen[40]
Bryce Salvador[41]

Player signings

Date Player Contract terms
(in U.S. dollars)
Ref
2 years, entry-level contract [42]
3 years, entry-level contract [43]
2 years, $3.15 million [44]
2 years, $1.225 million [45]
2 years, $1.175 million [46]
6 years, $25 million [47]
3 years, $2.78 million entry-level contract [48]
3 years, entry-level contract [49]
3 years, entry-level contract [50]
3 years, entry-level contract [51]
3 years, entry-level contract [52]
3 years, entry-level contract [53]

Draft picks

See also: List of New Jersey Devils draft picks. Below are the New Jersey Devils' selections at the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, which was held on June 26–27, 2015, at the BB&T Center in Sunrise, Florida.

RoundPlayerPosNationalityCollege/Junior/Club team (League)
16Pavel ZachaCSarnia Sting (OHL)
242Mackenzie BlackwoodGBarrie Colts (OHL)
367Blake SpeersCSault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL)
497Colton WhiteDSault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL)
6157Brett SeneyLWMerrimack College (Hockey East)
Draft notes[54]

Ottawa previously acquired this pick as the result of a trade on July 1, 2014, that sent Jason Spezza and Ludwig Karlsson to the Stars in exchange for Alex Chiasson, Nick Paul, Alex Guptill and this pick.[55]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2015-2016 NHL Attendance . ESPN.com . May 27, 2020.
  2. Book: National Hockey League . The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book/2011 . 2010 . Triumph Books . 83 . 978-1-60078-422-4.
  3. Web site: 2015-2016 Regular Season Schedule/Results - New Jersey Devils - Schedule. July 17, 2015. Devils.nhl.com.
  4. Web site: 2015-2016 Regular Season Stats - Points - New Jersey Devils - Statistics. New Jersey Devils. January 6, 2016.
  5. Web site: Devils forward Tootoo fined for dangerous trip. NHL. October 15, 2015.
  6. Web site: Devils forward Stephen Gionta fined for spearing. NHL. October 23, 2015.
  7. Web site: The NHL fine Devils' Bobby Farnham and Jets' Nikolaj Ehlers $2,000 each for diving. NHL. January 7, 2016.
  8. Web site: Devils' Farnham suspended four games for interference. NHL. January 13, 2016.
  9. Web site: Devils' Tootoo fined $2,000 for diving/embellishment. NHL. January 4, 2016.
  10. Web site: Gibson, Weber and Cammalleri named stars of week. NHL. December 7, 2015.
  11. Web site: Star-studded Central roster highlights All-Star reveal. NHL. January 6, 2016.
  12. Web site: Varlamov, Stempniak and Elliott named stars of week. NHL. January 25, 2016.
  13. Web site: Devils acquire Palmieri from Anaheim. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
  14. Web site: Devils continue dealing, swap picks with Sens. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
  15. Web site: DEVILS ACQUIRE F BRIAN O'NEILL FROM KINGS. nhl.com. October 7, 2015.
  16. Web site: Devils trade Matteau, Stempniak, Gelinas. nhl.com. March 1, 2016.
  17. Web site: Devils trade for Savard's contract. The Sports Network. June 10, 2016. June 11, 2016.
  18. Web site: Devils sign defenseman John Moore. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
  19. Web site: Thompson inks two-year, two-way deal. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
  20. Web site: Devils sign free agent forward Jim O'Brien. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
  21. Web site: Devils sign defenseman Gragnani. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
  22. Web site: Danis returns to Devils, signs as free agent. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
  23. Web site: DEVILS SIGN F LETOURNEAU-LEBLOND. nhl.com. September 8, 2015.
  24. Web site: NEW JERSEY DEVILS SIGN DEFENSEMAN DAVID SCHLEMKO. nhl.com. September 10, 2015.
  25. Web site: TLUSTY, DEVILS AGREE TO TERMS ON ONE-YEAR CONTRACT. nhl.com. September 17, 2015.
  26. Web site: STEMPNIAK, DEVILS AGREE TO TERMS ON ONE-YEAR CONTRACT. nhl.com. October 7, 2015.
  27. Web site: DEVILS SIGN GOALTENDER KEN APPLEBY. nhl.com. October 5, 2015.
  28. Web site: DEVILS AGREE TO TERMS WITH FORWARD NICK LAPPIN. nhl.com. March 9, 2016.
  29. Web site: DEVILS SIGN DEFENSEMAN YOHANN AUVITU. nhl.com. May 31, 2016.
  30. Web site: Blues Sign Three to One-Year, Two-Way Deals. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
  31. Web site: New York Islanders – Islanders Sign Six To Two-Way Deals. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
  32. Web site: Bernier Agrees to Terms. nhl.com. September 17, 2015.
  33. Web site: Senators sign defenseman Fraser to one-year contract. nhl.com. September 28, 2015.
  34. Web site: Gomez Sigms One-Year Deal with Blues. nhl.com. October 7, 2015.
  35. Web site: Blues Sign Havlat to One-Year Deal. nhl.com. November 12, 2015.
  36. Web site: Sharks Sign Forward Dainius Zubrus to a Two-Way Contract. Sharks.nhl.com. November 30, 2015.
  37. Web site: Devils claim Farnham off waivers [Video] ]. devils.nhl.com . 2015-10-26.
  38. Web site: WARSOFSKY CLAIMED OFF WAIVERS FROM PITTSBURGH . devils.nhl.com . 2016-02-29.
  39. Web site: Zubrus placed on unconditional waivers . nhl.com . July 30, 2015.
  40. Web site: Scott Clemmensen joins Devils' staff as goaltending development coach. NHL.com. June 30, 2015.
  41. Web site: Defenseman Bryce Salvador Retires. New Jersey Devils. September 2, 2015.
  42. Web site: Devils sign forward Blake Coleman. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
  43. Web site: Quenneville signs three-year, entry-level deal. nhl.com. July 13, 2015.
  44. Web site: Devils re-sign Gelinas to two-year deal. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
  45. Web site: Devils re-sign Stefan Matteau. nhl.com. July 22, 2015.
  46. Web site: Devils re-sign defenseman Seth Helgeson. nhl.com. July 22, 2015.
  47. Web site: Devils sign defenseman Larsson to six-year contract. nhl.com. July 28, 2015.
  48. Web site: Devils sign forward Pavel Zacha. nhl.com. August 11, 2015.
  49. Web site: DEVILS SIGN G MACKENZIE BLACKWOOD. nhl.com. December 31, 2015.
  50. Web site: DEVILS SIGN DEFENSEMAN STEVEN SANTINI. nhl.com. April 13, 2016.
  51. Web site: DEVILS SIGN FORWARD MILES WOOD. nhl.com. April 13, 2016.
  52. Web site: DEVILS SIGN DEFENSEMAN JOSH JACOBS. nhl.com. April 13, 2016.
  53. Web site: DEVILS SIGN FORWARD BRANDON BADDOCK. nhl.com. June 3, 2016.
  54. Web site: 2015 NHL Entry Draft Pending Transactions. Pro Sports Transactions. June 3, 2015.
  55. Web site: SENATORS TRADE SPEZZA TO STARS FOR TRIO OF FORWARDS, PICK. TSN. July 1, 2014. July 1, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140706154157/http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=456146. July 6, 2014. dead. mdy-all.
  56. Web site: Devils acquire Blues' D'Agostini. March 22, 2013. May 24, 2013.
  57. Web site: Penguins sign D'Agostini to one-year contract. July 10, 2013. July 10, 2013.
  58. Web site: 2013 NHL Draft - LA Kings Selections. Los Angeles Kings. July 1, 2013. June 30, 2013.