On Friday, the New Jersey Devils inked four players to a professional tryout contract (PTO). Among the four players, two forwards and two goaltenders, will attend Devils training camp and compete for a job. Therefore, what are they competing for, and who is their competition?
READ MORE: What’s Really Going on in the Devils, Luke Hughes Standoff
If it wasn’t obvious, none of the players on tryout are defenseman. That’s because the Devils simply don’t need any more blueliners throughout the organization, even at the American Hockey League level.
We’ve talked about, ad nauseam, how the Devils still have voids in their lineup to fill. Well, the two forwards who were inked certainly won’t fill the Tyler Toffoli-sized gap in the lineup. However, there is a path to center depth here, that will be explained a bit later.
Let’s dive into whom the Devils are bringing to training camp.
Kevin Rooney—Forward
Competition: Cody Glass, Kurtis MacDermid, Juho Lammikko, Thomas Bordeleau, AHL Depth, Luke Glendening
Kevin Rooney is returning to the Devils, spending the first four years of his professional hockey career in the organization, this time on a PTO. He played 95 games in the organization between ages 23 & 26, scoring 10 goals and 19 points in that span.
Rooney spent the following five seasons between the New York Rangers and Calgary Flames organizations, and like his time in New Jersey, filtered between the NHL and AHL.
Last season, Rooney played 70 games with the Flames, mostly as a fourth-line center. He scored five goals and 10 points, however, that’s not what kept him in the lineup.
Rooney isn’t the best in the face-off dot. He won 47.2% of draws, which means he lost 218 of 413 face-offs.
In fact, Rooney’s deployment was quite scarce. He played under 10 minutes per night last season, however, specialized in one area.
Rooney was quite the effective penalty killer, spending the third-most minutes on the ice during a Flames PK behind Mikael Backlund and Blake Coleman, and third-best xGA/60 at 7.46.
Rooney’s competitors are the Devils depth and penalty killers. One of Rooney’s drawbacks while trying out for the Devil is his speed, which ranks below the 50th percentile, according to NHL Edge.
If Rooney earns a contract, it’ll be a two-way deal, to work in a depth role in New Jersey, or a veteran forward in Utica.
Luke Glendening—Forward
Competition: Cody Glass, Kurtis MacDermid, Juho Lammikko, Thomas Bordeleau, AHL Depth, Kevin Rooney
Luke Glendening, on the other hand, has a sharper set of skills than Rooney. In the 2024-25 season, Glendening scored four goals and seven points in 77 games.
Like Rooney, scoring won’t be what earns Glendening a spot on the roster. Instead, the former Tampa Bay Lightning forward is best known for his defensive responsibility and center prowess. Playing in a full-time NHL role since the 2013-14 season, Glendening’s face-off percentage has never dipped below 51.9% since 2014-15.
Last season, he won 57% of his draws, 502 victories out of 881. In fact, Glendening is so strong in the dot that his career average is 55.8%, and hasn’t dipped below 56% in the last six seasons.
Face-off draws aside, Glendening was one of the Lightning’s most reliable penalty killers last season, with the third-best xGA/60 (7.68) behind only Anthony Cirelli and Brandon Hagel.
Add Glendening’s above average top skating speed at 22.89 (80th percentile in the NHL), and he’s a perfectly fine candidate to perhaps win the fourth line center spot, if the Devils deem Cody Glass strong enough to play 3C in a full-time capacity. Especially given that this summer’s emphasis when adding players involved speed.
Of the four PTO players, Glendening could, and should, make the strongest case for a contract.
Georgi Romanov & Adam Scheel—Goaltenders
Competition: Nico Daws, Jakub Malek, Tyler Brennan, Jeremy Brodeur
Neither of these goaltenders are going to push for Jacob Markstrom or Jake Allen’s jobs.
Realistically, they’re in training camp to provide depth services, and compete with Jakub Malek—who is said to be given a chance to win the Utica Comets’ job—Nico Daws who has an uncertain future given Allen’s permanent stay, and Tyler Brennan.
The fact of the matter is, Daws ultimately won’t end up on the NHL roster, barring injury, and is a candidate to be claimed on waivers.
They could lose him for nothing, and then the Comets have Malek, Brennan, and Jeremy Brodeur to rely on.
Adam Scheel is an interesting candidate. He’s a career minor leaguer that has seen his fair share of inconsistencies. His numbers were poor in 19 ECHL games last season for the Utah Grizzlies, but at a high level in the AHL, he earned a respectable 2.62 GAA and .907 SV%.
Given the fact that the Grizzlies were 27th in the ECHL out of 29 teams, it’s fair to say Scheel struggles were a result of his surroundings. Especially given the fact that he performed much better on the third-best Eagles team in the AHL.
Yet, the 26-year-old Scheel is going to have to outperform the 25-year-old Georgi Romanov. The Russian netminder at least has a few NHL games under his belt (10 with the San Jose Sharks, right last season), although his AHL numbers are nothing to write home about.
The thing that’s going to set Romanov perhaps above the rest of the competition is his raw skill. According to Sharks GM, Mike Grier, the athleticism can’t be questioned. It’s just a matter of if he can put it all together to get his mind moving as fast as his body.
“Georgi has size, moves very well around the crease and is athletic,” said Sharks GM Mike Grier via San Jose Hockey Now in 2023. “We feel like he has a good package to be successful.”
“You can teach a big goalie with good structure to work in a good, structured [defensive] system,” a scout suggested to SJHN. “Like Pheonix Copley in LA, Akira Schmid in New Jersey, and Adin Hill in Vegas. They won’t be top of the league, but they will get you at least league-average goaltending, maybe slightly better.”
Player advanced stats via NHL Edge and Natural Stat Trick
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