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.