New Jersey Devils: 5 Kyle Palmieri Trades We’d Love To See

This one is going to take some begging, but the Devils and Avalanche were working on a Taylor Hall deal last year that never came to fruition. The bevy of Avalanche prospects being off the table probably got to the then-GM and they moved on to a team in Arizona that was willing to give up some of its best young players. Bowen Byram is off the table. Alex Newhook is off the table. They probably weren’t even trading Connor Timmons.

However, this year is a little different. Palmieri is a good candidate to re-sign if the situation works. The pandemic has teams considering all their options, and the Avalanche went through another postseason where they didn’t come close. This might have the team a little more desperate to make a move to push them over the top. Palmieri is a perfect candidate to get a team over the top.

The Avs will still keep the aforementioned prospects off the table for a rental, but an interesting name is a defenseman they took in the 2nd round last year. Justin Barron fell in the NHL Draft due to issues with blood clots, but they haven’t come up this year. He’s having a really good season in the QMJHL, and none of the injury issues that plagued him have come up. He’s a dynamic skater that could be quite good in the NHL, but it’s hard to see him getting a real shot.

The Avalanche could add a 3rd-round pick, but they might say it makes the deal too rich since they only have one pick between rounds two and four. Maybe the Devils accept a 5th rounder or move the pick to 2022 to keep it in the 3rd round.