New Jersey Devils Trade Partner: Detroit Red Wings
It’s been said before, and it needs to be said again, the New Jersey Devils and Detroit Red Wings need to make a trade. They both have great young players, and the Red Wings need a change.
The New Jersey Devils and Detroit Red Wings can shake things up with a major trade between the two teams. The Red Wings are in an awkward position this offseason. They will have around $20 million in cap space after the cap goes up, but some of their star players need new contracts. The Devils, on the other hand, don’t have much work to do in terms of big contracts, yet have well over $20 million in cap space. These two teams should make a deal that helps both teams.
Dylan Larkin was great in his 21-year-old season. He led the team with 63 points, and is up for a new contract. The Devils will likely not get him, but could make moves for some of the other skilled forwards.
Anthony Mantha is a prospect many thought would be the best of the Red Wings bunch. He proved why this season with 24 goals and 24 assists. The Red Wings have plenty of wing scoring, but what they really need is depth at the center position.
I think the Wings will center on two players (get it?) on the Devils right now. Pavel Zacha and Blake Coleman are in two different places in their career. Zacha was supposed to be a future number-one center. He was the number six overall pick in 2015. After a disappointing first full season, Zacha only added one point to his total last season. That, despite playing much of the season on the Devils second line. He may want a change of scenery.
Coleman, on the other hand, is the perfect player to have as a depth forward. He can score clutch goals and makes great plays. He’s a wonderful penalty killer, something the Red Wings ranked 23rd in the league.
The Red Wings desperately need depth scoring. They need it badly. How a team with Mantha, Larkin and Gustav Nuquist on the roster can rank 28th in the league in scoring is beyond me.
Oh, wait, that’s right they have Nyquist on that team. He signed a big deal paying him $4.75 million per season, and fell off a cliff. He went from a future 30 goal scorer, to a player who had trouble hitting 20. Last season, it looked like he was on the way back up.
So, here’s how a deal can look. The Devils take on the last year of Nyquist’s deal. He’s 28 years old, so he doesn’t have much time to turn it back around, but he has a ton of skill. He just needs the right system to thrive.
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Zacha needs a change of scenery. However, the Devils can’t trade Zacha for Nyquist straight up. Despite Zacha’s struggles, he’s still a top-ten pick that’s 21 years old. Nyquist is seven years his senior and four seasons clear of his best year. The Red Wings will have to sweeten the pot.
It will likely take an extra pick to make this deal happen. Nothing crazy, but the Red Wings do have three third-round picks this season. The Devils have none, but could move one of their two fifth rounders.
So here’s the trade, and it will make people feel a certain kind of way. The Devils trade Pavel Zacha and their own fifth-round pick this season for Gustav Nyquist and a third-round pick. It would give the Devils a huge upgrade at right wing, give Blake Coleman a real shot to take the number two center spot and allow Zacha to try and turn his career around with a new organization.