Oct. 9th: Friedman confirmed that Noesen has successfully cleared waivers. New Jersey can now reassign Noesen to AHL Utica, which will open $1.225MM in cap space.

Oct. 8th: Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that the New Jersey Devils have placed veteran forward Stefan Noesen on waivers. It’s the first time Noesen has been placed on waivers since his time with the San Jose Sharks in the 2020-21 season.

Simply put, Noesen has become the odd man out in New Jersey. The Devils are evaluating defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler for an undisclosed injury. With only five other defensemen on the roster, New Jersey needs to add another blue liner before their upcoming contest on Saturday. Even if  Siegenthaler is cleared to play, it’s better to be safe than sorry.

Regardless, it’s an unsurprising transaction. After two quality campaigns with the Carolina Hurricanes, Noesen returned to the Devils as an unrestricted free agent, signing a three-year, $8.25MM ($2.75MM AAV) contract with the club in 2024.

His first year back in New Jersey couldn’t have gone much better. Noesen finished the 2024-25 season with the fourth-most goals on the Devils, registering 22 goals and 41 points in 78 games with a -8 rating. Given how much New Jersey has sought out secondary scoring over the past few years, Noesen became a perfect fit who could also offer physicality.

Unfortunately, an injury-plagued 2025-26 campaign halted any of Noesen’s momentum. It became one of the worst seasons of his 13-year career, finishing with three goals and seven points in 38 games with a -7 rating, averaging 11:45 of ice time per game. Because they couldn’t rely on him, the Devils essentially replaced Noesen in the lineup this past offseason.

That’s been made clear at the start of the 2026-27 campaign. Noesen has appeared in two games for New Jersey, going scoreless while averaging 7:24 of ice time per game. Because he’s earning a relatively high salary for his recent production, Noesen will likely pass through waivers unscathed.