New Jersey Devils: Vancouver Would Be Perfect For Wayne Simmonds

The New Jersey Devils and Vancouver Canucks would be perfect trade partners for Wayne Simmonds at this year’s trade deadline.

The New Jersey Devils are in full sell mode. They have already traded away Blake Coleman and Andy Greene to the Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Islanders respectfully. It has been a tough week for Devils fans, but the returns have been pretty good for these two players. The next name that might be sent away is Wayne Simmonds. He is on an expiring contract after signing a one-year deal with the Devils over the summer.

Simmonds would be a perfect fit for the Vancouver Canucks. These two teams have been tied together by credible sources involving Simmonds. There are a few pieces Vancouver has that would be smart for the Devils to add in place of Simmonds as Vancouver could use him for the stretch run to the playoffs.

Not many people predicted Vancouver to be in buyer mode at this time, so making the playoffs this season would be a pretty big win for them. They already gave a huge haul to the Los Angeles Kings for Tyler Toffoli, but that was before the news came out that one of their stars in Brock Boeser is probably out for the season. Toffoli is a decent replacement for Boeser, but not quite as good.

They wouldn’t be adding Simmonds for his offense anymore, as he only has seven goals and 16 assists for 23 points in 59 games. That isn’t terrible production for a third-liner on a good team, however. He also brings a sense of toughness and leadership that Vancouver might see as a necessary fit for their young group.

They don’t have their 1st or 2nd-round picks in this upcoming draft. In fact, if they make the playoffs, their 1st rounder belongs to the Devils. If the Devils wanted a pick from them, it would have to be in rounds 3-6. They also might be looking at a prospect like Jett Woo. That would be a great haul in a trade for Simmonds. All in all, these two teams make a ton of sense to pull off a trade like this.