The NHL trade deadline is this Friday, March 6, at 3pm ET. With less than a week to go until such an important league-wide event, the New Jersey Devils have a decision to make. They are built to win now, but have very much not won now. As a result, they face the unenviable reality of being more likely to sell than to buy. Will they actually do it? Debatable. Honestly I lean towards no considering how badly general manager Tom Fitzgerald and head coach Sheldon Keefe need wins in order to keep their
jobs. They should have been relieved of their duties a long time ago, but in this reality, I’m sure they’ll do whatever it takes to win despite the season being a lost one.
But even so, there’s still a real possibility Fitzgerald sells at the deadline. Despite how badly he needs wins, he might be tempted to sell anyway considering the returns he might be able to net on the open market. We just saw Brett Kulak fetch a return of Sam Girard and a second-round pick in 2028, so if defensive-defensemen are netting returns like that, Fitzgerald might look at his armada of defensive-defenseman and decide now is the time to strike.
In any case, if Fitzgerald does sell, it would help to know just what sort of options he has at his disposal. Yesterday, Chris went over some options if the Devils want to buy, but today, we’re going to tier out Devils players based on how I would handle them at the deadline if New Jersey sells. Whether I would be willing to trade them, what I would be willing to trade them for, and so on. I’m not going to go over every single player in the Devils organization, I’ll keep this to the NHL roster and a few notable non-NHL prospects in the pipeline. And I’ll also link the New Jersey Devils’ page on Puckpedia here so everyone can see for themselves what sort of contract AAV’s, lengths, and no-move clauses we have to navigate.
Let’s begin:
The Hang Up The Phone Tier: Nico Hischier, Jack Hughes, Jesper Bratt
Just no. Despite this trio having relatively down years, these are the untouchables. They should not go anywhere.
The Timo Meier Tier: Timo Meier
I put Meier one tier below the other three, as while I consider him to be a big part of this core, I would be willing to move him if someone came along with a Godfather offer. Granted, I don’t think I would be able to move him anyway considering he’s got full no-move protection, but you get my point. Maybe I’m just being stubborn, but I really, truly believe that Meier can flourish in New Jersey with the right coaching. The raw point production was not amazing under Lindy Ruff, but he was playing in a system where he could mostly maximize his strengths as a player, and he consistently tilted the ice even if he wasn’t racking up points. But under Keefe, he’s been stripped of his ability to impact the game in a way that works for him. Give him a competent coach, and I think he can be the guy we all want him to be.
The Youngster I Wouldn’t Trade Tier: Luke Hughes
He’s not in the “untouchable” category due to his current play. But he is in the “untouchable” category for me because of his potential. Hughes has been frustrating because while the raw tools and flashes of brilliance are obvious to anyone who watches him play, his actual on-ice impact has been lacking. He’s not a bad defenseman per se, but he clearly lags behind other high-paid defensemen as far as how he actually impacts any given game. But while it’s been a bumpy ride so far, I still believe in Luke Hughes. Perhaps our expectations need to be recalibrated from “He’s going to be a perennial Norris Trophy contender” to “He can be a solid top pairing guy”, but the ladder is still a valuable player if you ask me. I’m keeping him.
The Youngsters I Would Trade For The Right Price Tier: Simon Nemec, Arseny Gritsyuk, Lenni Hameenaho, Anton Silayev, Seamus Casey, Ethan Edwards
Aside from Luke Hughes, this is the group that makes up the next wave of potential New Jersey Devils impact players. I would be willing to trade any of them for the right price, namely for win-now players on the younger side. Think the Meier trade of 2023. If a trade similar to that came along (these days that would be a player like Jason Robertson or Jordan Kyrou, to name a couple) I would be willing to move any of these folks. And yes, that includes Simon Nemec. I understand there’s a very real possibility he goes somewhere else and blossoms. But I’ve seen enough of him at this point to conclude that I would be willing to take that chance because I think the possibility that he flames out is too great to ignore at this point. As I said, I would not trade him for peanuts, but I would cash out on him if someone blows me away.
The Dougie Hamilton Tier: Dougie Hamilton
Trading Hamilton would be tough because he does something that this team is absolutely desperate for: He provides offense from the blue line. Players like Hughes and Nemec can do that too, but they’re so inconsistent with how they perform on a game-by-game basis. To recap, Hamilton was bizarrely used in a shutdown role this season, performed surprisingly well in that role at the cost of point production, got healthy scratched in anticipation of a trade, got reinserted into the lineup after that went nowhere, stopped being used as a shutdown defender, posted a lengthy point streak, and has since been really good as an offensive weapon from the backend once again. I believe that the number one issue plaguing this roster is a lack of offensive talent from the defensemen, so it would be hard for me to part with the one guy who can provide that day in and day out.
But on the other hand, Hamilton is on the wrong side of the aging curve, he’s had trouble staying healthy through the years, and he eats up a big chunk of the salary cap with his $9m AAV. He’s also got a well-documented 10-team trade list, so options are limited as far as finding a trade partner. All that being said, Hamilton is the one big realistic trade chip that New Jersey has at this point. I would be willing to make a hockey trade for Hamilton. Perhaps targeting a strong 3C or a second-line scoring winger. Something like that.
The Hockey Trade Tier: Dawson Mercer, Cody Glass, Connor Brown, Brett Pesce
These are the players that I’m not terribly interested in moving, but I could absolutely part with them in a hockey trade, similar to Hamilton. Mercer is the one I’d most be willing to part with, especially since he has zero no-move protection. He’s obviously shown flashes, and the value of his durability must be acknowledged. But I think he is what he is at this point: A decent middle six winger who can moonlight at center in a pinch but should not play there for extended periods of time. If the right hockey trade was presented to me, say for a defenseman with strong puck-moving skills, I would do it.
Brown has full no-move protection, and while I might be able to put enough pressure on him to waive it, the juice probably isn’t worth the squeeze. He’s a decent player on a reasonable deal and can absolutely contribute in a bottom six and special teams role. Plus he’s probably not fetching me much on the trade market anyway.
Glass is someone I really don’t want to trade, simply because the Devils have been absolutely starved for quality center depth for a long time now. Since coming over to New Jersey, Glass has provided excellent value down the middle. He projected as a 4C that would have to play over his head as a 3C until the Devils could get another center into the organization, but he has exceeded all expectations with his play-driving ability (which mostly comes from his defensive skill) and his surprising goal-scoring touch. I’m still not ready to pencil him in as the Devils’ long-term 3C, but I would need to be really impressed with an offer if I’m going to trade Glass.
As far as Pesce, he’s not getting traded. Let’s just get that out of the way now. He’s in year two of a six-year contract, and he’s got full no-move protection. Even if I wanted to, I would not be able to trade Pesce. Besides, he’s good enough to where I can talk myself into him being part of the solution, not the problem. Still, in a theoretical world where Pesce would be willing to go somewhere else, I would be willing to ship him out for a middle-six scoring winger or more center depth.
The Brett Kulak Tier: Brenden Dillon, Johnny Kovacevic, Jonas Siegenthaler
I referenced the Brett Kulak trade earlier on, and would you look at that, the Devils have a handful of defensemen that resemble the exact sort of player Kulak is.
Jonas Siegenthaler has a 10-team no-trade list, which makes it a little harder but far from impossible to find a trade for him. He’s also got a very reasonable $3.4m AAV cap hit for the rest of this season plus two more seasons left on his contract. I love Siegenthaler, and I admire him for taking a bit of a pay cut as a show of loyalty to the Devils back when he signed his deal. But his play has been far too up and down the past few seasons for me to trust him anymore, plus he provides absolutely zero offense. If he could fetch a similar return as Kulak did, I would take it.
Dillon and Kovacevic both inexplicably have full no-move protection themselves, but I don’t think they would be as tough to move as someone like Pesce or even Hamilton. I could probably convince Dillon that he would be better off chasing a Cup somewhere else and agree to trade him to a contender. I’m sure there are plenty of contenders who would want a player like Dillon, he still provides value as a defensive ace and locker room leader. As for Kovacevic, his play since returning from injury has been awful, and while he might return to form if given some more time, his form before his injury was still a player who brought absolutely no offensive value. Once again, the Devils need way, way, WAY more offensive talent from their defensemen, something Kovacevic does not provide on his best day. I would try to put enough pressure on him to waive his no-trade clause by telling him that we are going to revamp our blueline for next season and if you’re still here, your playing time will dry up in a huge way.
The Just Get Me Some Draft Picks Tier: Stefan Noesen, Maxim Tsyplakov, Nick Bjugstad, Evgenii Dadonov, Luke Glendening, Paul Cotter, Zack MacEwen
Here we have the rest of the depth forwards. I could make a case that some of these guys can still be useful, but for the most part, I’d be fine just selling them off for some draft picks or prospect dart throws. The only players here who have any sort of no-move protection are Noesen (10-team no-trade list) and Dadonov (whose full no-move clause just switched to a 10-team no-trade list once the calendar flipped to March). You’re not getting much for any of these players, but if there’s anything to be had, trade them to make room for some of the younger forwards in the organization and see what you have in them down the stretch.
The Goaltenders Tier: Jacob Markstrom, Jake Allen
You will be shocked to find the two goaltenders in the goaltenders tier. I’ll be honest, I’m not quite sure what to do with them. For Markstrom, I would absolutely trade him if given the right deal. The problem is, because he’s been horrible since returning from injury last season (aside from the first round against Carolina), you’d probably need to attach hefty sweeteners for someone to take him now that he comes with two more years at $6m AAV thanks to Fitzgerald’s idiocy. So I really don’t think a trade for Markstrom would be worth it considering what you’d have to give up. As for Allen, he’s performed well as this team’s 1B, and his cap hit is incredible for the value he provides. I’d keep him, especially considering the goaltending position would be a disaster if you traded him. Mikhail Yegorov is not yet ready, and while Nico Daws is still in the organization, I don’t know if I trust him to be The Guy just yet.
Final Thoughts And Your Take
I’m sure many of you are weary of all the pessimism surrounding the team right now. Believe me, I absolutely despise the fact that I am writing about potential options for selling at the deadline. I would MUCH rather be writing about pieces the Devils could add to lift them to a division title instead. But the fact is, this team raced out to an incredible start, and since then has devolved into one of the worst teams in the league. And because this is the reality of the situation, we have to at least confront the possibility of selling at the deadline.
The question of whether Fitzgerald should actually be allowed to make significant moves at the trade deadline is another thing, but for now, this is how I see each player on the roster as far as their trade value/potential. Whether you agree or disagree with any of these tiers, let me know in the comments section below. As always, thanks for reading!
