Sunny Mehta is an analytical, forward-thinking, and young general manager. It’s what made him an attractive hire for the New Jersey Devils, who hope he can take a team that has the talent to contend yet has failed to do so in recent years.
But we’ve heard this about GM hires before. The hockey mind who uses analytics is nothing new and has become a trend. It’s what the New York Islanders wanted when they hired Mathieu Darche. It’s what the Carolina Hurricanes pursued when they promoted Eric Tulsky. Daniel Briere, Kyle Dubas, Julien BriseBois, and many others fit into this category. Analytics and data aren’t a plus in any front office hire; they are a must.
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So, how will Mehta stand out? Obviously, he’s not a carbon copy of the other GMs hired recently, with a unique path that will make his tenure fascinating one way or another. But what does he bring to the table that will turn the Devils into a Cup contender? What will make Mehta a successful GM and keep him in the role for the long term? The future is unpredictable, yet his track record provides optimism.
Every GM has an outside-of-hockey background. No longer are the days when the question centered around whether they played and their on-ice career. Instead, it’s what other skills come with the hire, aside from playing or coaching the game.
For Briere and Darche, two former players, the business background helped. Tulsky was a blogger before entering front office roles. Kent Hughes was an agent before turning the Montreal Canadiens into a success.
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Mehta was well-known for his card-playing days. If a casual fan is asked about him, cards are one of the first things that come to mind, specifically his professional poker playing background.
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Poker made him a risk-taker. It’s a game where winners must take their chances, even if the odds aren’t in their favor. It’s a game where all the data and all the number-crunching can be put to use, and still someone with the right gut reaction might win the set with a lucky hand.
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That’s not what made Mehta a successful poker player. Analytics did. He mentioned it during his introductory presser. “The reason that I ever even cared about analytics, statistics, probability is because it helped me win. It helped me win in poker. It helped me win on the trading floor. And it helped me in hockey.” The data allowed him to enter a hockey career prepared.
To build a long-term contender, a team that can win now and in the future, Mehta must build up the farm system, which was depleted under previous Devils GMs. The Devils need more prospects and a winning culture at the American Hockey League level, along with the NHL team.
The last time the Devils had elite teams at both levels, it led to the dynasty. In 1994-95, both the Devils and their AHL affiliate Albany River Rats pulled off the rare feat of winning the Stanley Cup and Calder Cup title in the same season (it’s only happened three times, and they were the most recent). The culture built in Albany helped fuel the Devils’ future Cup winners in 2000 and 2003. The irony, of course, is that Lou Lamoriello never had the same interest in the AHL team (or the league in general) since then.
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Mehta is looking for those extra prospects. It’s those players who are developed in the AHL and become depth NHLers. It’s the players who can get called up when an injury happens, and the team doesn’t miss a beat. It’s when a young player needs a team to remain patient with them, hoping the prospect turns into a star.
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This offseason, Mehta addressed all of those needs. Riley Tufte is a heavy top-line forward who can score, he can carry the Utica Comets and play on the fourth line for the Devils. Declan Chisholm is a 26-year-old defenseman who can fill in on the second or third pair. Amadeus Lombardi is 23 and starting to hit his stride as a forward who can develop into a key part of the offense. Mehta brought in all three players this summer with the intention of fixing both teams (the Comets, like the Devils, also missed the playoffs last season).
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Mehta saw what happened with the Florida Panthers and their affiliation with the Charlotte Checkers. He saw a team build a winning culture at the NHL level while also instilling it in the AHL team. While the Panthers didn’t have a great farm system, they had the extra help needed to win the back-to-back Cup titles. Mehta wants that extra help in New Jersey, and it starts in Utica.
His latest and most successful stop was with the Panthers. Mehta was the assistant GM and data scientist on a team that relied heavily on its analytics. The time in Florida has a direct influence on how he’ll operate as a GM.
What stood out about Panthers GM Bill Zito, the architect behind it all, was his ability to take every resource and apply it to the team on the ice. The Panthers funneled information to the top, and then Zito was the one who had the final say and called the shots.
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The Panthers had a great analytics department. They had more that separated them from the rest of the league. For example, the Panthers have one of the best scouting departments in the league, deploying extra scouts to games across leagues of all levels.
Expect the Devils to have more scouts at games, not just their games, but throughout North America. Likewise, they’ll have a bigger analytics department and multiple departments helping with the decision-making. At the same time, expect Mehta to make the final decision.
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The Seattle Kraken are also a data-driven team, with many in their front office coming from that background. The problem is that they lack a definitive direction, and there isn’t one person calling the shots (Jason Botterill is their GM, but they also have Ron Francis as president and many people below him).
Another benefit of Mehta’s experience, beyond just his Panthers tenure, is his time in multiple front offices and working under different ownership groups. His time with the Panthers allowed him to see what good ownership looks like. He knows what incompetent ownership is like, working for the Phoenix Coyotes. Plus, Mehta knows how the Devils operate, as he worked for the franchise for four seasons.
The Devils are looking for their next great GM, someone who can lead this team for years to come. At 48, Mehta already has built up a track record that gives them confidence that they have found the right GM.
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