It's coming towards the end of August, and the New Jersey Devils still don't have Luke Hughes signed. However, there's been some clarity about the next collective-bargaining agreement that makes one option much more appealing and could push this negotiation to 2026.

The New Jersey Devils aren’t done with the offseason. We’ve talked about the Luke Hughes deal to death, but that’s what happens with such a quiet offseason, and the (as declared by the GM) number-one priority still hasn’t been delivered.