New Jersey Devils History of Trading First Round Picks

2002: 20th-overall pick Daniel Paille

In 2001-02, the Devils needed a change in the eyes of Lou Lamoriello. They had been to the Stanley Cup Finals the past two seasons and just did not have the same game this season. He made one of the biggest trades in franchise history at the trade deadline, trading Jason Arnott, Randy McKay, and a 2002 first-round pick to the Dallas Stars for Jamie Langenbrunner and Joe Nieuwendyk. The Stars traded the pick, it was traded again and ended up in the hands of the Buffalo Sabres. The Sabres chose Daniel Paille from the Guelph Storm with the 20th-overall selection.

How did the trade affect the Devils? The Devils did not fare any better with Langenbrunner and Nieuwendyk than they did with Arnott and McKay as the 2001-02 season continued. The team fell to the eventual Eastern Conference Champion Carolina Hurricanes in six games. However, the following season with the help of Langenbrunner and Nieuwendyk, the Devils won their third Stanley Cup in franchise history. Nieuwendyk left in free agency in the offseason while Langenbrunner eventually became the Devils’ captain. In all, the trade worked out very nicely for New Jersey.

How Daniel Paille turned out: Paille made his NHL debut during the 2005-06 season with the Sabres. He remained in Buffalo until he was traded to the Boston Bruins during the 2009-10 season. With the Bruins, he carved himself a solid bottom-six role. He spent six total seasons with the Bruins, including two trips to the Final, before playing one final year with the New York Rangers in 2015-16. He finished with 582 career games played, 85 goals, and 87 assists for 135 career points. Mostly known as a penalty killer and defensive forward, he made a pretty good career for himself.