We have just over 24 hours until the NHL trade deadline, and with the New Jersey Devils well outside of a playoff spot, some expect them to sell off parts prior to 3 PM tomorrow. While there are some hurdles in the way (mainly how many NTC and NMCs that are currently on the Devils’ roster), good NHL general managers find ways to make moves at the deadline. It does depend on whether they are trying to load up for a playoff push, or sell pieces to restock for future seasons, but good GMs manage to get
the job done.
Right now though, the consensus appears to be that Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald is not a good GM. And that’s the main reason why I don’t trust him to not bungle things as we get closer to tomorrow’s cut off of any meaningful trades.
Fitz’s tenure in Jersey actually started out well; he made popular moves, signed guys to good deals, and appeared to be building the Devils into a team that could’ve been a contender for an extended period of time. Contrast that with the present day: the team looks lost, appears headed for another high first round draft selection and, as was pointed out on last night’s TV broadcast, the Devils have the highest number of no movement and no trade clauses in the league. For a team that never truly entered a contention window, that’s madness, especially when you see how many of those clauses belong to guys that are complementary pieces.
Then there was the news that came out yesterday that the team is apparently taking calls on Simon Nemec; they are not actively shopping him, but they are listening to offers. There’s two problems I have with this, the first being that whether it turns out to be true or not, I don’t think the Devils should be trading Nemec. He’s come up huge for them in some big situations already at a young age, and I don’t think he’s even really touched his true potential yet. Prime age for defenders usually turns out to be their late 20s, so Nemec still has plenty of time to achieve his. Additionally, if the Devils do make a coaching change next season, I think I would want to see at least one season of Nemec in a different system before deciding on his long term future as a Devil.
The second problem, going back to the subject of this article, is that if Fitz does facilitate a Nemec trade, I don’t trust him to strike a deal that makes the Devils better. While his overall trade history is pretty good, if you look through the past couple of years, there really hasn’t been a high-potential piece (at least not on that still held value round the league) moved out by the Devils. While I feel positively about Fitz’s overall trade history, it’s mainly due to the fact that he was either making moves for smaller pieces/reclamation pieces (which have worked out to varying degrees) or bringing in players such as Timo Meier or Jacob Markstrom. In those deals where he swung for a bigger piece, you could argue that he overpaid, particularly in the case of Markstrom. While the shoe is on the other foot here, I don’t have faith in the negotiation skills of Fitzgerald to bring back what the Devils need. Why not? Well, look at his negotiating skills when it came to the aforementioned contract clauses…
If the Devils don’t make any major moves this trade deadline, I understand it, mainly because once again said contract clauses might prevent the team from making changes if players refuse to waive as per their contractual right. At the same time, I’m frustrated about it because if our GM had not given out all of these clauses, he could attempt to make adjustments to improve a floundering team without having to wait for the offseason. Now, he either needs to hope a player wants out enough to waive their clause, or he has to wait until this summer after another lost season. In that latter case, I also don’t trust him to sign any free agents to contracts without adding a clause to it.
As of this writing, the Devils have not made a trade deadline deal. Unless they plan on making a minor move or two, I would prefer not to see them busy in the next 28 hours. I just don’t trust Tom Fitzgerald to try and reshape this team again after having failed to do so a couple of times already. I also don’t foresee anyone bailing him out of any bad deals either. The hope is that management sees the error of their ways when this season ends and they move on from Fitz (and his front office mates)in favor of someone who has a clear vision for how to surround this Devils core with players that will make the group a success overall.
I also don’t trust that to happen sadly.
What are your thoughts on Tom Fitzgerald leading the Devils into the trade deadline; are you worried about the moves he might make? Do you see it being a relatively quiet deadline for the Devils? Will they move Nemec or one of their other right handed defenders? Are you hoping this is Fitz’s last trade deadline in New Jersey? Leave any and all comments below and thanks as always for reading!
