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Ranking Every New Jersey Devils Trade Deadline Since Ilya Kovalchuk Trade

By Nick Villano

NEWARK, NJ - FEBRUARY 09: Lou Lamoriello addresses the fans during the former New Jersey Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur jersey retirement ceremony before the game between the New Jersey Devils and the Edmonton Oilers on 9, 2016 at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
NEWARK, NJ - FEBRUARY 09: Lou Lamoriello addresses the fans during the former New Jersey Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur jersey retirement ceremony before the game between the New Jersey Devils and the Edmonton Oilers on 9, 2016 at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
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New Jersey Devils
Kyle Palmieri #21 and Travis Zajac #14 of the New York Islanders (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

7. 2021 NHL Trade Deadline

This wasn’t necessarily a bad trade deadline. The Devils got some value out of Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac. Honestly, the Devils went on a really good run of deadline moves, whether it being as a buyer or a seller.

The obvious deal is trading Zajac and Palmieri for a 1st-round pick, a conditional 4th-round pick, and two prospects who won’t do much (AJ Greer has an outside chance of growth). It was sending two fan favorites to the New York Islanders for a run towards the Stanley Cup. It was hard to hold back emotions of the day, but the Devils needed to make a move, and they needed to add both players to get a 1st-round pick in the deal. The Sabres ended up taking Anders Bjork and a 2nd-round pick for Taylor Hall, so there was a possibility of taking a bad deal for Palmieri if they didn’t add Zajac.

The Devils also traded Dmitry Kulikov for a conditional 2022 4th-round pick. He was signed to a one-year deal in the offseason, and he has been much better than advertised. Getting a decent asset for a player you signed for free is a nice move.

Strangely, the Devils actually spent a draft pick to get an asset at this deadline. They gave the Washington Capitals a 3rd-round pick for defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler. It might look like a bad move on paper since he hasn’t been able to get into the lineup this season, but he has a lot of good underlying numbers as a defensive defenseman. It was worth a 3rd-round pick, especially since it’s not their own.

The Devils decided to keep Ryan Murray, and they lost Sami Vatanen through waivers. Those are surprising moves, but the Murray decision could lead to an extension. That might change the way some think of this deadline day in the future. They also cut Nikita Gusev for nothing. That probably has more to do with the market post pandemic than anything, so we won’t take anything from the Devils for not being able to trade him.

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