TAKEAWAY
- Pesce wanted to play for the Devils
- The Devils' talent and location were major factors in his decision to sign
- Pesce is a defensively reliable veteran on the blue line
- Pesce is a consistent plus player that blocks a lot of shots
- Pesce lives 45 minutes from Prudential Center and played youth hockey in New Jersey
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Defenseman Brett Pesce was entering his first summer as an unrestricted free agent having played the previous nine seasons with the Carolina Hurricanes. But when the clock struck noon for the opening of free agency, it was an easy ride for Pesce and his new team, the New Jersey Devils.
“Thankfully, it went smooth to be honest,” he told the media Monday afternoon. “I wanted to be there. They wanted me. It was a pretty smooth interaction between my agent and (Devils general manager) Tom (Fitzgerald).
“Crazy day. At the end of the day, I always knew I wanted to end up here.”
Pesce, who signed a six-year deal with a $5.5 million average annual value with the Devils, spoke with the media from his home in Tarrytown, NY, a 45-minute drive from his new home facility at the Prudential Center.
It’s also a sort of homecoming for Pesce in more ways than mere proximity. He played youth hockey in New Jersey with the New Jersey Avalanche at the triple AAA level and New Jersey Hitmen at the junior level (EJHL).
“Playing close to home for me is something really important,” he said. “To be 45 minutes from the Prudential Center is a dream come true. I played my youth hockey in Hackensack. I can’t ask for anything more.
“The thought of being a New Jersey Devil is hard to describe and hard to put into words how special it is to me.”