Rod Pelley Re-signs with New Jersey Devils

The first and only action so far from the Devils today has been re-signing restricted free agent center Rod Pelley. Details of the contract have not yet been released. Pelley was qualified on Monday per Tom Gulitti, which is required for potential RFAs or else they become unrestricted. Pelley played in 63 regular season games in 2009-2010, posting 2 goals and 8 assists. His previous deal with the Devils was a 2-year $550k/yr deal. He made $575 last season.

My gut reaction is this is depth move. Pelley has played 58+ games for the Devils the past two seasons. He was deemed by most as the next John Madden, but has not yet played to those expectations. With the signing of Tim Sestito last night and many other prospects getting two way deals this off-season, Pelley's going to have work hard during the camps to secure a roster spot. Most likely, he will have a similar, limited role like the past 2 years have been.

Updates to come later when more details are released.

UPDATE #1: Per Rich Chere's Paul Martin article, Pelley was listed as an unrestricted free agent and was never qualified as reported. Here is Pelley's explanation of the situation from the article:

"All the details, such as the term of the contract and money, haven't been worked out yet," Pelley told me. "I was listed as an unrestricted free agent because I did not get a qualifying offer from the Devils. But I agreed to a contract on the side. It was pre-arranged."