New Jersey Devils: Value Of Likely Trade Deadline Deals

The New Jersey Devils are bad, and it doesn’t look like anything is going to turn them around. With them being likely sellers at the trade deadline, what are their pieces worth on the open market?

The New Jersey Devils look like they are destined to produce a fire sale of sorts come the end of February. They are currently 12 points out of a playoff spot with five teams in front of them. Unless something miraculous happens in January, which is unlikely with Taylor Hall, Mackenzie Blackwood, Marcus Johansson, Cory Schneider and Joey Anderson still on the injury list, this team will be a seller at the trade deadline.

With that fact in mind, the Devils are in a much better position to sell than they were in previous years. There are much better players that can be given as rentals than in other years the Devils weren’t in contention.

The last time the Devils were selling at the trade deadline, their best pieces were PA Parenteau, Vern Fiddler and Kyle Quincey. Those players got them Dalton Prout, plus a 4th and 6th round draft pick. That’s not exactly something to go home about.

Ray Shero has been very good at most things when it comes to his work with the Devils, but one thing we can be critical of is his work at the deadline. When he was selling, he didn’t get the best value for his players. When he was buying, he seemingly overpaid for players who didn’t produce a ton, outside of the Pat Maroon deal last season. However, like I said before, he never had to pieces he has this season.

So, the question now stands, what are these pieces worth?

Brian Boyle

Brian Boyle is the piece that I would say most of the top contenders will call about. He’s a team-first player who teammates love having around. Not only that, but he’s producing at one of the highest levels of his career.

Boyle is on pace for 21 goals from the fourth line. He added penalty killing to his repertoire this season, playing on one of the best units in the entire league. The Devils penalty kill is ranked second in the league, and a lot of that has to do with Boyle’s ability to use his big body to stop pucks from getting to the net, and his knack to clear the puck at opportune times.

Boyle is also contributing on the power play. He’s once again using that big body to block the net, scoring six power play goals in his cleanup role. It shows that he is able to do just about anything the Devils are asking him to do. Only Kyle Palmieri has more power play goals than Boyle, and yes that includes Hall.

I could see as many as a dozen teams calling about Boyle, but I could see a team like the Tampa Bay Lightning driving hard to bring him back to the other Bay Area. He’s still a fan favorite there, as we saw with his ovation during last year’s All-Star Game. The players in that locker room miss him, as they said on multiple occassions, and that team doesn’t need to add to the top six. However, they could use a guy like Boyle on their bottom line.

Boyle’s Value: 2nd-round pick in 2019, 3rd-round pick in 2020

With so many teams vying for Boyle’s services, one team is bound to overpay. The Lightning don’t have a 2nd-round pick, but they could switch the picks and give up their 2020 pick. A team like the Winnipeg Jets could also make the move to add that veteran presence to the locker room. Shero may decide to keep Boyle and try to re-sign him, but teams will be trying to bring him in.