Ondrej Palat: Did Devils make mistake signing him?
Only two summers ago, the New Jersey Devils signed veteran forward Ondrej Palat; a move that left many scratching their heads. Now with a year-and-a-half under his belt in a Devils jersey, was it really worth signing the former Tampa Bay forward?
The Devils have gone all out these past few seasons. Signing numerous high-level free agents to lengthy contracts, one of those being Palat. Back in July 2022, the Devils signed him to a five-year, $30 million contract. Palat carries a cap hit of $6 million each season until 2027-28, per Spotrac.
Last season, in his Devils debut, Palat failed to play over 50 games after undergoing successful groin surgery. In those 49 games, the 32-year-old scored eight goals and 23 points. In the midst of the 2023-24 campaign, Palat is holding a lower-scoring trend than his debut season with New Jersey. The former longtime lightning forward has scored four goals and 13 points in 32 games this season, with eight of those points coming in 13 December games, the best stretch during his tenure with the Devils.
Palat has been an extremely underwhelming signing for the Devils, only scoring 36 points in 81 games. The Czechoslovakian native holds a $6 million cap hit. A pricey hit for a young Devils’ team in need of depth.
Palat has certainly been underwhelming for a highly-rated Devils team. Paying him $6 million a season is downright outrageous; especially when he is already aging quickly. Combining that with his injury history, the Palat signing wasn’t the best move by Tom Fitzgerald. Palat could certainly be moved at the trade deadline if his production continues to underwhelm.
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