NEWARK -- The Devils' decision to cut forwards Joseph Blandisi and John Quenneville on Tuesday came down to roster construction.

Coach John Hynes said the two players had strong camps and remain vital part of the organization, but when the Devils looked at the players they could use to start the season, Blandisi and Quenneville would have started farther down on the list potential power-play options.

Instead of just limiting Quenneville and Blandisi's time to 5-on-5, the Devils opted for forwards such as Blake Coleman and Brian Gibbons -- two strong penalty killers -- to round out the team.

Blandisi and Quenneville will likely return to the NHL at some point, and Hynes didn't rule out the chance of the roster changing again before opening night.

Here is how Hynes fully explained the decision to send Blandisi and Quenneville to Binghamton on Tuesday.

"It's a credit to John and Joe. Both guys have played well. As we said all along, it's been very competitive up front," Hynes said. "Both guys came in in better shape than they had a year ago, so that was a step in the right direction for them. But when you look at the lineup, those guys that are pretty strong 5-on-5. Their element on special teams is on the power play.

"We feel right now with the group we have, they wouldn't get much time on the power play or beyond the power play. They're two younger guys in our organization who, one of the reasons we kept them all the way through, till basically 1:00 p.m. on (Tuesday), they did make strong cases for themselves. We value them as players. They're a big part of our team. But it's important for guys to be able to play.

"If they're playing the fourth-line role, no special teams, if they're rotating in and out as a 13th or 14th forward, that's not good for their development. We feel like they're going to be guys who will help impact our team and be important players, but we haven't even played a game yet in the year.

"It's important for them in Binghamton to play in roles where' they're key contributors to their team, they're driving the team in Binghamton, they're playing in the special situations and having themselves sharp. If we need to make a decision early next week or before game one, we want those guys to be ready to come in and contribute.

"They're still young players in our organization. We feel like we have lots of young players in our lineup right now. We had to make a couple decisions, and those are the ones we made, and we feel like it's what's best for our team, our organization and the players."

Chris Ryan may be reached at cryan@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @ChrisRyan_NJ. Find NJ.com Devils on Facebook.