"Look in the mirror": Devils’ failed Quinn Hughes pursuit sparks harsh warning from ex-Penguins executive about accountability and direction

Brian Burke did not need flashy words to sum up where the New Jersey Devils stand right now. One game, one missed opportunity, and one pointed comment were enough. As the Pittsburgh Penguins skated away with a 4-1 win and a sixth straight victory, the contrast between the two teams felt hard to ignore.

Pittsburgh looks settled and confident again. New Jersey looks restless, searching for answers that are not coming easily.That unease only grew louder once Quinn Hughes officially landed elsewhere. For months, the Devils were seen as a natural destination, a place where talent and family could align. Instead, they watched that door close while losses continued to mount. The result is a familiar shift in focus, away from the ice and toward the front office, where patience is wearing thin and every decision now carries heavier weight.

Brian Burke addresses Devils pressure as Quinn Hughes slips away

If any team appeared positioned to make a serious push for Hughes, it was New Jersey. The appeal was obvious. Family ties, elite talent, and a roster still searching for stability. Yet Hughes landed in Minnesota, leaving the Devils to explain why a moment that felt attainable never materialized. That silence fueled outside scrutiny, including a pointed observation from Jeff Marek.

“When you have one of the players in the game, who is pretty much indicating that he is ready to come to your team, and you can’t make it happen, you have a problem,” Marek said on his podcast, “The Sheet.”

The remark echoed a frustration many sensed but could not quite frame. It was less about one missed player and more about what it revealed.Burke offered a measured counterpoint. “…so to me, the fact that Fitzy couldn’t pull that off, that alone is not enough to sink him for me,” he said. In isolation, Burke argued, one failed pursuit does not define a general manager. Context matters, and so does time.But Burke did not stop there. He pointed to the broader pattern that now surrounds the Devils’ front office.

“It’s a cumulative thing. He has gone through a couple of coaches, so at some point, you run out of coaching changes. At some point, you have to look in the mirror. At some point, the ownership is going to look at Fitzy and say, ‘You have one chance to fix this. Try and make something happen.”That assessment cuts deeper than a single transaction. It speaks to accountability, direction, and urgency. If questions keep coming, they will not be about Quinn Hughes alone. They will be about whether the Devils can finally turn promise into progress, and who will be trusted to make that call.Also Read: 9 years in, Auston Matthews has already altered Maple Leafs history and raised the bar for Toronto’s next generation