New Jersey
On the Eve of a New Season | 10 TAKEAWAYS | New Jersey Devils
7.
A word I’ve heard a lot over the past three weeks has been ‘responsibility’. Coming into this season, given how last year went, and the amount of integral changes general manager Tom Fitzgerald made this summer, there’s a big sense of responsibility among the players to do right by their general manager and the work he has put in. And it’s not just from the returning players, it’s from those who he brought in to make the difference. They, too, feel that responsibility.
“He’s pushing, he wants to win. Fitzy wants to win,” Jacob Markstrom shared. “I feel like everybody wants the same thing, it’s just how we get there. And I think he, as a GM, has done everything in his power to make sure that’s possible. You’ve got to see that and take responsibility and you’ve got to come together as a group and show your appreciation. It’s not easy.
“You can say a lot of things in life, right?,” newcomer Brenden Dillon added. “Or you can say that you want to get in shape, you can say that you want to eat healthier, you can say that you want to work hard. But until you actually go do it, like, it’s pretty easy to say it. So I think for Fitzy, and of course, I’m just getting to know him, but he’s walked the walk that he said he’s going to do. And I think for all of us as players, when someone shows belief in you and whether they show confidence in you, all the different things like you want to follow through with that.”
8.
I loved Dillon’s hypothetical team when he was summing up Fitzgerald’s off-season pretty well: acquiring assets to make his team better. It was a well-rounded search, and Dillon joins a team now that has a true sense of everything.
“For our group, we know what our identity has been, and there’s a strength of us, and I think we want to continue to have that, but also add to that. For the guys who were brought in, you know, hockey teams need all different types of personalities, they also need different types of skill levels and all different types of just hockey players. You need a mixed bag. If you can have… I’d like to think they’d be good .. but if you have twenty Connor McDavids, it’s like you know, they’ll be good but sometimes you do need a little bit of everything.”
9.
This summer, Jonas Siegenthaler hosted his first hockey camp in Thailand. Siegenthaler is of Thai descent, his mom is Thai, and in fact, his parents recently relocated to live full-time in Thailand. I spoke with Siegenthaler about what the experience was like.
“They’re, they’re really proud of me. I’m the first Thai NHL player,” he said. “I don’t know when the next one is going to be, maybe 10 years? 20 years? The young kids there, they’re pretty good right now and they’re really good skill-wise, skating-wise. They’re actually, I would say better than kids in Switzerland. But their problem is they don’t have any games. That’s their main problem. They practice all week, skills. They don’t understand the game part as well. That’s the part that kind of stops them from developing to the next level.”
Siegenthaler said there are roughly only 600 registered hockey players in Thailand with roughly four junior teams. He’s hoping to find a way over the next few years to continue his camp and help the game grow to better heights but does say it’s ‘a difficult problem to solve’.
He shared this great story about a Q&A he had with the kids at the camp that really touched him.
“Some questions were so cute. It was this one little girl, she was sitting next to me in the locker room and she goes ‘Coach Siegs, one day I want to play in the NHL like you’. I was almost crying, you know it was just so, so nice.”
10.
The time has come for Seamus Casey to make his NHL debut. Head coach Sheldon Keefe confirmed it Thursday morning in Prague. The 20-year-old has done everything that’s been asked of him during this camp and has made his case; heard loud and clear.
And what a way to enter the NHL — on the Global Series stage in Prague. Casey will be just the 5th rookie to make their NHL debut at one of these international games since it was rebranded at the Global Series games in 2010. Overall, 36 players in NHL history have made their NHL debut outside of North America, but since the rebranding, Casey will become just the 5th.
Every year comes with its own personality, but New Jersey doesn’t wait around to see what the rest of the country decides is “in.” We move fast here. We adapt. We complain loudly — and then we make it part of our routine. Somewhere between a jughandle turn and a diner refill, 2026 developed a very Jersey personality. You may not have noticed it happening, but you’re already living it.
Here are 10 things that feel unmistakably so 2026, Garden State edition.
The way New Jersey talks now (and what it really means)
Calling every inconvenience “a situation.”
Traffic? Situation. School drop-off? Situation. The coffee machine acting up? Full-blown situation.
Quietly flexing about not pumping gas.
We don’t brag. We just casually mention it… often.
Errands, routines and the New Jersey sense of time
Planning an entire weekend around one errand.
Costco, Home Depot, or MVC — choose wisely and clear your schedule.
Checking Dan Zarrow’s forecast on the NJ101.5 app religiously.
Because if you’re going to trust the weather, it might as well be someone who knows New Jersey.
Having a “favorite small town” you don’t live in.
You’ve “been a few times.” You “get the vibe.”
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Roads, tolls and the daily traffic psychology of NJ
Treating tolls like a personal betrayal.
Every increase feels targeted, and we all do the same mental math at the booth anyway.
Explaining traffic circles and roundabouts like a survival skill.
Somehow we all know exactly what to do — except when we don’t.
Money stress, comfort food and Garden State coping mechanisms
Treating diners as emotional support buildings.
Coffee refills fix things. It’s science.
Complaining about taxes while never actually leaving.
Because deep down, we know better.
Comparing energy bills like it’s a competitive sport.
Nobody likes the numbers, but everyone wants to know if theirs is worse.
The truth is, 2026 in New Jersey isn’t about trends you see online. It’s about habits, shortcuts, shared frustrations, and small victories we all pretend are normal. And if you read this nodding along, congratulations — you’re not behind the times. You’re just right on schedule… in New Jersey.
Best New Jersey Diners For Breakfast and Lunch
Thank you to our New Jersey listeners for these recommendations.
Gallery Credit: Bill Spadea
New Jersey
Though down from previous month, New Jersey online casinos post November revenue record in 2025
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While online casinos in New Jersey fell short of another revenue record, November was still the state’s second-best month ever with over $253 million.
They’ve been around for over 12 years, yet online casinos in New Jersey continue to find ways to set revenue records. After posting the industry’s largest single-month total in October, NJ online casinos last month combined for $253 million to set a November record and ranks as the second-biggest single-month total in Garden State history.
NJ online casinos set single-year record with one month left
Since launching in 2013, NJ online casinos have continually set high-water marks – even now, a dozen years later.
With $253 million in November revenue, as reported by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement, casino apps in the Garden State now sit at just over $2.64 billion for the year, leading to $455 million in state tax revenue. With one month left in 2025, the industry has already set a single-year record, which previously stood at around $2.4 billion.
To further put into perspective the growth of online gambling in New Jersey, the industry is over 22% ahead of the 11-month pace it set in 2024. Consider the first 14 months of online casinos in NJ, during which time operators combined for a mere $131.2 million in revenue.
While it’s unlikely that NJ online casinos will reach the $3 billion mark by the end of the year, iGaming has proven it can continue to grow after more than 10 years of existence.
FanDuel Casino, DraftKings Casino continue to set pace
While the monthly total is one for the books, the standard brands set themselves apart from the rest of the market.
For example, FanDuel Casino – which new users can sign up with and claim the FanDuel casino bonus – reported $60.2 million. That was well ahead of the second-place DraftKings Casino bonus, which helped drive $49.6 million in November.
Along with the BetMGM Casino app ($30.6 million), Borgata Casino ($20.6 million) and Caesars Palace Online Casino ($19.3 million), the top five revenue-earners in November accounted for more than 71% of the total online casino total in November.
New Jersey
Ice, freezing rain alerts expand to 10 N.J. counties. Wind advisory issued for 50 mph gusts Monday.
Winter weather advisories have been expanded to 10 New Jersey counties with freezing rain that could cause a dangerous layer of ice tonight.
The National Weather Service has also issued a wind advisory for 16 counties Monday with up to 50 mph gusts possible.
The more immediate concern is freezing rain already hitting the state Sunday evening.
Winter weather advisories for Bergen, Essex, Hudson Passaic and Union counties expire between 10 p.m. and midnight.
Winter weather advisories for Hunterdon, Morris, Somerset, Sussex and Warren counties take effect at 6 p.m. and run through 2 a.m.
As temperatures remain near or below freezing across northern New Jersey this evening, precipitation will fall as freezing rain, particularly in Warren and Morris counties where a glaze to one-tenth of an inch of ice accumulation is possible.
The National Weather Service warns that even areas outside the advisory that remain near freezing at the onset of precipitation could experience localized icing, especially on shaded surfaces that have remained below freezing for more than 36 hours.
Temperatures will rise above freezing areawide during the pre-dawn hours Monday as a warm front lifts through the region, changing any remaining freezing rain to plain rain.
A brief break in the rain is likely prior to daybreak Monday.
The warm front will be quickly followed by a strong cold front Monday afternoon, bringing another period of rain that may be moderate in intensity at times.
High temperatures Monday will reach the upper 40s along the coast before the cold front passes, bringing high winds to the area.
The wind advisory for 16 counties runs from 10 a.m. Monday to 1 p.m. Tuesday. Just Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Passaic and Union counties are not under wind advisories.
“Strong westerly winds develop Monday with wind gusts up to 50 mph and a wind advisory has been issued,” the weather service said Sunday evening. “Some tree damage and power outages possible.”
Tuesday will be markedly colder with high temperatures struggling to rise above freezing even at the Jersey Shore.
Wind chills in the teens and low 20s are expected during the day.
Skies will be partly cloudy with continued gusty winds of 20 to 30 mph.
Wednesday brings slightly milder conditions with highs in the mid 30s to near 40 degrees, though it remains well below normal for late December.
The extended forecast shows below-normal temperatures continuing through the end of the week and into the New Year.
Thursday may bring a chance of snow showers as a weak cold front passes through, though accumulations are expected to be light.
Friday looks dry with highs in the low to mid 30s.
Another weather system may impact the area late next weekend, potentially bringing a mix of rain and snow, though forecast confidence remains low for that timeframe.
Current weather radar
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