New Jersey Devils: 5 Players To Target At Trade Deadline

Erik Haula

The Nashville Predators are a mess. They have been on a terrible run that has them just one point ahead of the Detroit Red Wings for last in the division. It’s way early, but they already find themselves nine points out of the last spot in the Central. Old friend John Hynes is not having a good start with his new franchise. It seems sooner rather than later, the Predators are going to look at tearing it down.

The Predators have a lot of interesting pieces if they are committed to tearing it down completely. Obviously, Roman Josi would be lovely, but the Devils can’t really commit to that kind of money long term with Jack Hughes likely looking for a major raise next offseason. Filip Forsberg has an extra year paying him $6 million. That’s an interesting player the Devils could target. However, a more interesting piece for right now might be Erik Haula.

Haula is going to cost the Devils a whole lot less in assets, so they don’t have to hurt their future to get him. He likely costs a middle-round pick and that’s it. Haula was an offseason acquisition for the Preds. Now, there are rumors he’s already been made available. The Devils should like the flexibility that Haula could bring to the Devils lineup.

The Predators are actually making Haula a healthy scratch. As most Devils fans know, Hynes likes to sit players to get them going. We shouldn’t hold this against him. Haula definitely needs to get away from Nashville, and the Devils could benefit from injecting him into the lineup.