77. That’s how many days it’s been since New Jersey Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald called re-signing Luke Hughes his top priority, yet Hughes remains unsigned on the day he is first eligible to report to Training Camp.
Related: Jack Hughes’ Recent Comments Don’t Have a Hidden Message for Devils Fans
It goes without saying that the longer this prolongs, the more of a distraction it will become. While it’s not ideal that it has dragged out this long, it’s not as rare of an occurrence as one may think. The Anaheim Ducks are in a similar situation with talented forward Mason McTavish. In fact, the Devils themselves have had a few disputes of their own carry into camp in recent seasons.
Obviously, each situation is unique and what happened previously may not be any inclination of what will happen with Hughes specifically. But still, there should be some solace for Devils fans in knowing that the previous three got settled relatively soon into camp.
2024 – Dawson Mercer (Missed 2 Days)
Mercer had a stellar 2022-23 season (56 points) but followed it up with a career-worst 33 points in 2023-24, leaving some questions on what his value was. Which season was more indicative of what his future would be?
Clearly, the two sides were not in agreement as camp started without a deal being reached. It became a slight distraction as social media anxiously awaited news, but just two days later, they came to an agreement.
The Devils inked Mercer to a three-year, $12 million contract that expires following the 2026-27 season, where he’ll still retain his status as a restricted free agent (RFA). He followed it up with 36 points in 82 games, including the most average ice time (17:53) and most power play goals (6) of his career. He was still able to get into two preseason games despite the holdout.
2021 – Jesper Bratt (Missed 9 Days)
Up until that point, Bratt had exceeded expectations as a sixth-round pick but had not scored more than 35 points in an NHL season. Him and his camp clearly felt there was a higher ceiling to be reached, thus leading to a dispute that extended well into camp, before agreeing to a two-year, $5.5 million deal.
However, this situation was unique in that there was no preseason due to the coronavirus pandemic, but instead, the implications were even worse: Bratt would have to quarantine for seven days after arriving in New Jersey before being eligible to play. This caused him to miss six whole games — over 10% of the shortened season.
Despite this, his 0.65 points-per-game pace was a career-high and that was while shooting a career-worst 6.9%. There were certain signs of a breakout, which followed shortly thereafter, as he’s notched 317 points in 321 games in the four seasons since.
2018 – Miles Wood (Missed 10 Days)
In the season prior, Wood scored a career-high 19 goals while becoming a valuable presence in the Devils’ bottom-six en route to a playoff berth. While that was (by far) his best production to that point, him and his camp certainly felt there was more to come, while the Devils may have needed some convincing.
Eventually, they seemed convinced, as they locked him up for four years and $11 million. However, he missed all but one preseason contest as the holdout caused a very late arrival. While he started strong with two points in the regular season opener, he had just 4 points in the next 25 games as he struggled to find his footing, before eventually settling in. But still today, he has been unable to replicate his 2017-18 success in any other season.
What to Expect with Luke Hughes
History shows us that odds are this will get settled sooner than later, especially given the name value of Hughes and how important he is to the squad. Unlike these other cases, it seems like a pretty sure bet that his best days in the league are ahead of him. He showed glimpses of that as he finished the 2024-25 season with 20 points in his final 22 contests.
A couple weeks ago, NJ.com’s Ryan Novozinsky explained that Luke Hughes’ camp prefers a five-year contract, which would have him reach free agency following the 2029-30 season — the same time as Jack. But Tuesday, TSN insider Pierre LeBrun said on Insider Trading that things are now trending towards a “long-term” contract, which would likely imply 6-8 years.
While the most ideal scenario would be to get it done as quickly as possible, it’s extremely doubtful that this harms Hughes or the Devils in any way, shape or form. The second pen goes to paper, it will be forgotten about quickly.
Given that it’s been a top priority for this long, it’s fair to question why there has still been no agreement. But now that it’s crunch time, it’s a worthy bet that it’ll get done shortly.
