Pucks and Pitchforks
Fansided

New Jersey Devils: 5 Huge Offseason Moves To Get Jack Hughes A Winger

By Nick Villano

Feb 21, 2021; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; New Jersey Devils center Jack Hughes (86) celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal against the Washington Capitals in the second period at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 21, 2021; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; New Jersey Devils center Jack Hughes (86) celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal against the Washington Capitals in the second period at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 6
Next
New Jersey Devils
Patrick Laine #29 of the Columbus Blue Jackets (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images) /

Patrik Laine

Let’s just start with the huge get. The New Jersey Devils have always made a lot of sense for Patrik Laine. He’s an incredible scorer who is frustrating on defense, but the Devils have enough really good two-way forwards across all levels that they can afford to go all in on scoring. Laine is capable of scoring 40 goals in a season.

The Devils haven’t had someone with that much ability since Ilya Kovalchuk retired. Even Taylor Hall wasn’t expected to be a consistent 40-goal scorer (even if he scored 39 in his MVP season). Adding Laine to the team would change the outlook for the offense immediately.

Laine is currently on the Columbus Blue Jackets after he was traded for Pierre Luc Dubois. It always felt they made that trade to keep Jack Roslovic and get assets for Laine. The Devils have a ton of assets to trade for Laine, although his value is hard to peg.

John Tortorella has benched Laine in the past, so it’s hard for the Blue Jackets to demand the world for Laine. The coach said he wants Laine to be a power forward, which seems like he is trying to make him something that he is not. If he realized that by the offseason, the Devils could make a deal happen. It would cost something significant, but it’s not likely going to cost an uncomfortable package. The Blue Jackets could probably ask for Dawson Mercer or the Devils 1st-round pick, but asking for both would be a no.

Home/Editorials