New Jersey Devils History of Trading First Round Picks

Matthew Tkachuk is worth a first-round pick. We all know this. He had over 100 points last season, is only 24 years old, and brings something every team needs in their lineup. Tkachuk notified the Calgary Flames that he would not be re-signing with them long-term earlier this week. With that, the Flames have two options. Option one is to keep him for one year and try and make another deep playoff run and lose him for nothing. Option two is to trade him to the highest bidder and try and gain as many assets as they can.

Losing Johnny Gaudreau to the Columbus Blue Jackets is a good indicator that they may not be able to replicate their success from last season, meaning option two is the more likely outcome. Enter the New Jersey Devils.

Now the main question for the Devils and Matthew Tkachuk. Will he sign in New Jersey long-term? The reports there are murky as there was a reported list of teams he would be okay with signing with and those same reports were refuted. So if the Devils somehow pull off a deal for Tkachuk to play with Jack Hughes for the next decade or more, it will cost them a pretty penny. The 2023 first-round pick is gone. That much is for certain. Whether or not there are protections for that pick remains to be seen.

But how often do the Devils trade their first-round picks?

We’re only looking at the deals where the Devils gave up their only first-round pick. Trade downs don’t count. For example, the Devils traded their first-round pick in 1990 to move back and take Martin Brodeur later. So drafts in which the Devils moved their first-round pick and traded back will not count on this list.

Since1982, there have only been four drafts in which the Devils did not make a first-round pick. To have a first-round pick in 36 of 40 drafts is pretty remarkable, especially the volume of trades Lou Lamoriello pulled off in the 1990s during their Stanley Cup Years.

If the Devils were to trade for Tkachuk, a first-round pick is going to be in the price tag. So when did the Devils not make their pick in the first round and who was taken in those drafts? Did the four players used with the Devils’ original picks pan out? Let’s take a look at the risk the Devils would be taking if they trade their first-round pick.

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.

2010: 24th overall pick Kevin Hayes

Lou Lamoriello and the Devils were one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference during the 2009-10 season. Lamoriello thought that the team needed a spark, that once difference maker that would put them over the top. The Devils traded Nicklas Bergfors, Patrice Cormier, Johnny Oduya, and their 2010 first-round pick to the Atlanta Thrashers for Ilya Kovalchuk and Anssi Salmela. The Thrashers traded the first-round pick to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for Dustin Byfuglien and other parts. With the 24th pick, the Blackhawks selected Kevin Hayes from Noble and Greenough School in Massachusetts.

How did the trade affect the Devils? Do we really have to get into it? We all know what happened. Devils lose to the Flyers in round one, Kovalchuk re-signs, rejected contract due to cap circumvention, re-signs again, one Final trip, retires to go home to Russia. Did not work out well in the long run. Enough said.

Hayes chose not to sign with the Blackhawks after attending Boston College. The Blackhawks traded his rights to the New York Rangers where he spent a better part of five seasons scoring 216 points in 361 games. He became a thorn in the Devils’ side and a household name in Rangers fans’ homes. When the Rangers announced they were going to rebuild, they traded Hayes to the Winnipeg Jets. After one half season with the Jets, he signed a long-term deal with the Philadelphia Flyers where he has struggled to stay healthy. When healthy, Hayes is a solid middle-six player that provides solid leadership and hard work. Once again, a player the Devils could have really used in the 2010s.

2013: 9th overall pick Bo Horvat

Martin Brodeur was not getting any younger. The backup goalie was Johan Hedberg. There were no goalies in the pipeline that were even remotely good enough to step in and become the next number one. The Vancouver Canucks were at a loss for what they would be doing with their all-star goalie tandem of Roberto Luongo and Cory Schneider.

At the 2013 draft in Newark, the Devils and Lou Lamoriello traded the ninth overall pick to the Canucks for Schneider. The Canucks decided to keep the pick, even though they had better offers on the table for Schneider, and selected Bo Horvat from the London Knights.

How did the trade affect the Devils: Cory Schneider became one of the best goalies in the NHL during his stint with the Devils. However, his talent was wasted in the below-average years. The aging roster could not score for Schneider and they made the playoffs only once in Schneider’s tenure. However, it was Keith Kinkaid who was the prime goalie for the Devils on their run to the postseason. The Devils frankly did not take advantage of their all-world goalie in Schneider and have since been scrambling to find someone in the same league.

Bo Horvat made his debut in the 2014-15 season and has since become a regular in the Canucks lineup. In fact, on October 9th, 2019, Horvat was named captain of the Canucks. Horvat scored 61 points in 2018-19, and has played 572 games. Horvat is slated to become an unrestricted free agent after next season. So his future in Vancouver is a little murky due to their cap space problems, however, he has made his statement on the Vancouver market and the Canucks franchise.

To summarize: If the Devils are trading their first-round pick for Matthew Tkachuk or anyone for that matter, you can bet that whoever is taken with that pick will play at least 500 games played. With the Devils’ recent track record of standings placement and the amount of talent in the 2023 draft class, the Devils should think twice before departing with such a valuable asset. If you know Tkachuk will sign long-term, then it is a good move. Tom Fitzgerald needs to recognize that this may be a move he has to think twice about.