The Devils and Flyers may be bitter rivals, but New Jersey’s NHL team is deeply intertwined with Philadelphia’s professional sports landscape.

That’s because the Devils owners also run the 76ers. And it was through that connection that Devils head coach John Hynes first met Joe Douglas.

A few summers back, Hynes and some of his staff took a trip down the Jersey Turnpike to shadow Philadelphia Eagles management for the day – watch some practice, observe some meetings and generally be a fly on the wall.

“I wound up meeting with Joe and kind of hit it off and just stayed in touch,” Hynes said. “Then when he got this job, we connected again. He said, ‘Anytime you want to come over.’”

Hynes took Douglas up on that offer Tuesday, sitting with a small handful of fellow Devils staff in the otherwise empty stands.

“I hadn’t had a chance to meet Adam (Gase) yet, so it was nice to see him, just talk a little bit of coaching,” Hynes said. "It’s nice in this area to just create some relationships with guys in the business of professional sports. I think for me, it’s been very beneficial because you can exchange ideas. It could be team rules, how you manage things, different slogans or things in the building. Even how they manage this with all the families, they get all the families to come in and make it a family atmosphere. It’s just you pick up little tidbits.”

Hynes isn’t just exchanging ideas with the Jets; the Devils have paid visits to the Yankees and Giants in the past, too. And Hynes made it clear that his doors are open during the season for area teams that would like to visit the Prudential Center, too.

But Tuesday was Hynes’ first time in Florham Park, and he has Douglas to thank for making that happen.

For what it’s worth, he thinks the Jets found a gem of a GM, too.

“He’s a really great communicator, deep thinker, you can see that he has a real strong foundation of what he believes in – the types of players he wants, how the team wants to play, how the team is going to be run,” Hynes said. “It struck me before he became the GM here, when he was in a different role with the Eagles, that he was a guy that had presence, had a vision – he was really meeting with a hockey coach for a few hours to discuss ideas – his drive to get better is there. I was actually really excited when he wound up getting the job. I think he’s going to do a fantastic job here.”

It’s also interesting that Hynes would visit the Jets now, while the two teams are seemingly on similar paths. After all, both flamed out last season, finishing well outside the playoff picture. But in the months since, the two franchises have stitched together impressive offseasons chock-full of big-name talent and stars – like running back Le’Veon Bell and defenseman P.K. Subban, to name a few.

That flurry of activity has generated a renewed sense of hope around Florham Park. And in Hynes’ eyes, the vibe around the Jets right now feels very similar to the one his team has created in Newark.

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“You can see there’s an excitement level within their team and their group and around their team,” Hynes said. "That’s important. The players can feel that, the organization feels it and hopefully for them and for us, you can have a good training camp and then capitalize on that early in the season.”

Matt Stypulkoski may be reached at mstypulkoski@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @M_Stypulkoski. Find NJ.com Jets on Facebook.