NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Last season: 42-37-3, missed playoffs.
COACH: Sheldon Keefe (84-70-10 in two seasons, 296-167-50 with two teams overall).
SEASON OPENER: Oct. 1 vs. Philadelphia.
DEPARTURES: General manager Tom Fitzgerald, G Jacob Markstrom, F Paul Cotter, assistant coaches Sergei Brylin and Jeremy Colliton, goaltending coach Dave Rogalski.
ADDITIONS: GM Sunny Mehta, F Anthony Mantha, F Luke Evangelista, F Evan Rodrigues, G David Rittich, assistants Ted Donato and AJ MacLean, goalie coach Dan Stewart.
GOALIES: Jake Allen (17-17-2, 2.74 goals-against average, .904 save percentage), Nico Daws (2-1-0, 2.62, .908), Rittich (14-10-3, 2.76, .894 with Islanders).
Mehta, the poker player-turned-hockey executive who was part of Florida's front office during three trips to the final and two Stanley Cup championships, expects to do the same with the team he grew up rooting for. That's not to say the Devils are title contenders right away, though it's reasonable to set the bar at reaching the playoffs.
Mehta certainly upgraded up front line by signing Mantha and acquiring Evangelista and Rodrigues in separate trades. He is banking on New Jersey's young core led by U.S. Olympic golden-goal scorer Jack Hughes and captain Nico Hischier being a year more experienced and motivated by a disappointing season.
The good: The talent is there, and the blue line is solid with no significant changes.
The not so good: The biggest unknown is in goal. Sending Markstrom to Florida to get Rodrigues and turning the No. 1 job over to Allen is certainly a risk. Mehta and Keefe have talked up Daws, a longtime prospect, and Rittich is there as a fallback plan. Only six teams in the NHL scored fewer goals than the Devils last season and they were in the middle of the pack on special teams.
Hughes is the headliner, with 77 points in 61 games around a couple of injury absences and his rise to national fame by scoring in overtime in Milan to beat Canada. It's unfair to keep asking if Hughes can stay healthy, but the Devils are by far a better team when he is on the ice and producing at an elite level. Defenseman Dougie Hamilton is back after plenty of buzz but no trade, and perhaps the certainty of knowing he will be around will stabilize his play.
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FILE - New Jersey Devils center Jack Hughes (86) before a face off against Pittsburgh Penguins center Noel Acciari (55) during the second period of an NHL hockey game, April 9, 2026, in Newark, N.J. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray, File)
MIAMI (AP) — Hurricane Polo grew increasingly strong Tuesday and was forecast to gain more intensity as it skirted Mexico's southwestern coast as a Category 5 cyclone, weather experts said.
Polo was an “extremely dangerous” storm with maximum sustained winds of 165 mph (266 kph), the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said in an advisory.
It was centered 205 miles (330 kilometers) south of Zihuatanejo, Mexico, and stationary over the Pacific Ocean at midday. The hurricane center said it would send an aircraft into the storm to investigate.
Mexican authorities temporarily suspended classes in a number of areas along the coast as Polo brushed along the coastline. Many residents of the region were on edge this week watching the rapidly intensifying hurricane plow by. In recent years, the Pacific coastal states of Guerrero and Oaxaca have been ravaged by powerful hurricanes walloping the coast, with a number of communities still picking up the pieces.
Heavy rain could produce flash flooding and mudslides. About 3 to 6 inches (8 to 15 centimeters) of rain was forecast for Guerrero and Michoacán states, with smaller amounts possible for coastal portions of Oaxaca, Colima and Jalisco states.
On the forecast track, Polo was expected to remain offshore. Tropical-storm-force winds and rough surf generated by Polo could also affect the coast.
Category 5 is the highest level on the Saffir-Simpson scale, reflecting that the storm’s maximum sustained winds exceed 157 mph (253 kph).
Tropical Storm Odalys was also in the Pacific Ocean but far from land. The cyclone was expected to become a hurricane sometime Tuesday, the hurricane center said. Odalys had maximum sustained winds of 65 mph (105 kph).
In the Atlantic Ocean, Fay weakened to a tropical depression. Maximum sustained winds were down to 35 mph (56 kph) Tuesday and the system was far southwest of the Azores. Forecasters said it would be a remnant low later in the day.
No Atlantic hurricanes have formed yet this year, and this year has set a record for the longest a season has begun without a hurricane. The effects of this year’s El Nino crush storms before they get going.
This photo provided by NOAA shows Hurricane Polo strengthening in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Mexico on Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2026. (NOAA via AP)
This satellite image from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows Tropical Storm Fay, Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026. (NOAA via AP)
This satellite image from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows Tropical Storm Odalys, Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026. (NOAA via AP)
This photo provided by NOAA shows Hurricane Polo intensifying in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Mexico on Monday, Sept. 21, 2026. (NOAA via AP)
