New Jersey Devils: 3 Trade Deadline Deals With Vancouver Canucks
The New Jersey Devils are embroiled in some of the biggest trade rumors in the league. It all started with Timo Meier, who quickly became the biggest trade piece on the market. Meier is a game-changer who comes with control as he will be a restricted free agent this offseason. However, the price for Meier is going to be astronomical. Maybe the Devils will look at a different trade option, with Meier’s cost going off the charts.
The Vancouver Canucks are always the next option on the board. We’ve heard about players like J.T. Miller and Bo Horvat in the past, but they are both off the table and signed to insane deals (one with the New York Islanders). The Canucks still have a ton of assets, although they are not fitting into a winning culture. At one point, the Canucks looked like they were going to be a Stanley Cup contender with their incredible core. It never worked out, and the bottom fell out.
There are some insane trade options between the Devils and Canucks. However, there’s one that seems to be a little more normal. Let’s start with that one.
Brock Boeser has been tied to the Devils for years. It’s hit a fever pitch the past few weeks. Boeser and the Devils make some sense, but Boeser hasn’t been the same player since his injuries. He isn’t the scorer he once was. Still, he is just 25 years old, he has more than 20 goals in most of his seasons, and he’s signed for two more years beyond this one. That would be a detriment in most cases, but the Canucks must retain salary to make it work anyway. If they can make this contract closer to $4 million per season, that would be closer to Boeser’s value.
The Canucks could add Ethan Bear, who the team traded for as a Hail Mary earlier this season. He’s actually been good for the Canucks. He leads the entire team (of players who have at least five games played) in high-danger chances percentage. Bear has been a really good bottom-of-the-lineup defenseman.
The Devils are sending their version of Bear in Kevin Bahl. Bahl has had trouble sticking in the lineup this season, but now the Canucks can give him a little more rope. Nolan Foote is a decent prospect who can definitely be a middle-six forward with a little more seasoning. Miles Wood helps make the contracts work, and he’s an intriguing player that teams want. It’s a trade that makes a lot of sense if the Devils miss out on Meier.
This one is a weird one. What is Thatcher Demko’s value? He was, at one point, one of the best young goalies in the game. Now, he’s an injury-prone mess. On top of that, the Devils are reportedly one of the few teams even asking about goalies this trade deadline season. The Canucks don’t have to trade Demko since they don’t really have anything else who can take over in net. However, that’s why this trade might make sense.
The Devils have reportedly been shopping Mackenzie Blackwood. He looked good since his return from injury. He was actually great against the Seattle Kraken on Thursday night. Are these performances going to help build a trade value for him?
The big issue with this trade is it blocks both Nico Daws and Akira Schmid from making the NHL (barring injury) for two years after this one. Schmid looked like he was NHL-ready earlier this season, but we’ve seen how finicky goalies can be.
The Canucks will add an AHL player in Tristan Nielsen, and the Devils will add a second-round pick in the NHL Draft. It seems like the most unlikely trade, but a Demko trade is still possible.
This one is more of a message than anything. What would it take to get Quinn Hughes, the Canucks best defenseman, who is just 23 years old with four more years of term? It would take three premium assets. We’re not talking about premium assets like other teams. They would need two players already taken in the top ten of the draft and another draft pick the Canucks would get to use.
Here’s the thing, this trade isn’t even necessary from a team standpoint. The Devils have a really good defense from top to bottom. Next season, the Devils want to give Jesper Bratt a huge raise and add another top forward. Turning Nemec’s entry-level deal into Quinn Hughes’ $7.85 million contract would put the Devils into perpetual cap hell.
Putting all three Hughes brothers together is a nice dream. The Canucks tried to make that happen with terrible trade proposals when the Devils had the first-overall pick in 2019. Watching the Sedin Twins for so long had Canucks fans dreaming it could happen again.
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Now, the Devils are dreaming the same thing. Unfortunately, dreams cost a lot to come true. The Devils already inexplicably got two Hughes brothers. Let’s celebrate that.