New Jersey Devils must continue to be active in trade market
The New Jersey Devils are officially open for business after trading team captain Andy Greene and one of their best forwards in Blake Coleman. Now they need to stay open.
Back in October, everyone expected the New Jersey Devils to be playoff contenders. They were thought of as a fringe team who would fight for one of the wild card spots in the Eastern Conference after a big summer. However, early struggles forced them to change directions.
On Sunday, the Devils officially opened themselves up for business by trading long-time defenseman and team captain Andy Greene to the New York Islanders. Later that day, they cemented their status as sellers by trading Blake Coleman to the Tampa Bay Lightning for an outstanding haul that included a first-round pick and a very impressive prospect in Nolan Foote.
The Devils currently no fewer than four first-round picks in the next two drafts. Assuming the Coyotes’ first-round pick isn’t in the top three, they’ll have two this year. Should the Vancouver Canucks make the postseason, they’ll have three this year. That’s a great way to rebuild.
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And yes, the Devils are rebuilding. Interim general manager Tom Fitzgerald has admitted that. Greene was an expected trade candidate, but Coleman’s a different story. Coleman’s not a star, but he’s an extremely useful player who was set to be a big part of their team next season. And at $1.8 million, he has one of the best bargain deals in the NHL.
Fitzgerald made his stamp on the Devils on Sunday. Now he needs to continue to make his mark. If the Devils are rebuilding, they need to listen to offers for just about every player not named Jack Hughes or Nico Hischier. They have a unique opportunity to rebuild through the draft, which is how every Stanley Cup champion of the salary cap era was built.
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Who’s Next?
The Devils are going to be a fascinating team to watch from now until the trade deadline. They have some very intriguing pieces and they could be in a position to acquire even more draft picks. Defenseman Sami Vatanen, who will be a UFA after this season, is an obvious trade candidate. He’s currently injured, but he’s expected back soon and he’ll be one the top defenseman on the market.
If the Devils aren’t worried about next season, there’s no reason they shouldn’t listen to offers for Kyle Palmieri, who has a $4.65 million cap hit and has one year left on his deal after this season.
While they’re in no rush to trade him, after seeing the return for Coleman, it would be negligent to hang up the phone if teams are calling about him. The Devils should set the price sky-high for Palmieri, cast out their line, and see if anyone takes the tempting bait. With 22 goals in 54 games, he’s on pace to challenge his career-high of 30 goals set back in the 2015-16 season.
Wayne Simmonds isn’t having a very good year, but he has a very unique skillset. He’s a great leader and he’s tough. Plus Simmonds can still add a lot to any team’s power play. The Devils will probably have to retain some of his $5 million cap hit to facilitate a trade to a contender, but anything they get for him would be worth it.
Miles Wood has two years left on his deal after this one with a $2.75 million cap hit. He’s a decent bottom-six forward, but he’s nothing special. The Devils should see if there’s any kind of market for him.
And then there’s P.K. Subban. The Devils gave up two second-round picks, plus a prospect, for him back at the 2019 NHL Draft. They were banking on Subban bouncing back from an injury-ridden 2018-19 season with the Nashville Predators. To say he hasn’t bounced back is an understatement, as he has just 13 points in 57 games.
That said, Subban is still a very capable top-four defenseman. The Devils would probably need to eat some of his $9 million cap hit, especially since he has two years left on his deal after this season. Subban would be far more tempting at, say, $5 million or $6 million a year. Damon Severson ($4.166 million cap hit until 2023) is another blueliner they could trade, though it would take a king’s ransom to make the Devils get rid of him.
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Clearing out salary now could set the Devils up to be aggressive in the offseason. Or it could allow them to get even more assets by acting as a third-party willing to take on a bad deal or two. The Devils have announced themselves as sellers. It would do them no good to only dip their toes in the pool. As painful as it might be, they’ll be better off if they simply cannonball into it.