When you own the first overall pick in the draft, there are plenty of holes to fill. The only team below them in the standings in the Eastern Conference was the Ottawa Senators. Thus, the sky is the limit on how much the New Jersey Devils can improve and will be a challenging opponent for the Washington Capitals.
The Devils started by taking Jack Hughes first overall in the 2019 Amateur Player Draft. They immediately used the trade route to improve in adding P.K. Subban by trading their second round pick along with a 2020 second round pick, defenseman Steven Santini, and prospect Jeremy Davies.