New Jersey Devils: 3 Insane Trade Packages For Connor Hellebuyck

The New Jersey Devils were one of the best teams in the National Hockey League last season. Of course, they are expected to be once again in 2023-24. One thing that has been a discussion this summer has been goaltending. The Devils used Vitek Vanecek, Mackenzie Blackwood, and Akira Schmid last year.

Blackwood is now a member of the San Jose Sharks, so only Vanecek and Schmid remain. It is a very interesting situation right now.

They were both great during the regular season. Schmid was outstanding against the New York Rangers in the playoffs. However, Vanecek struggled in the playoffs as a whole, and Schmid fell off against the Carolina Hurricanes.

The New Jersey Devils may consider making a goalie change this offseason.

A lot of people wonder if they are going to make an upgrade. A popular name out there right now is Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets. After he made it clear he doesn’t want to be part of a rebuild, he’s been assumed to be on the trade block. If the Devils could add an elite goalie like that to the mix, they should do it right away.

They were one of the best teams in the league last year with average goaltending. They would have to be considered Stanley Cup favorites if they added a Vezina Trophy-caliber goaltender to the mix.

The hope is that trading for him would also lead to him signing a team-friendly extension at some point. There are a lot of variables to consider when making a trade like that. Connor Hellebuyck comes to the New Jersey Devils from the Winnipeg Jets in one of these three trade packages:

Trade One

The New Jersey Devils may get Connor Hellebuyck on the cheaper side.

The New Jersey Devils have a lot of things they can offer the Winnipeg Jets in exchange for Connor Hellebuyck. He is an elite goalie that gives you a chance to win every night. The fact that the Devils can score tons of goals makes adding a goalie like that much more exciting. He would change everything for this team.

Alexander Holtz is a very nice young prospect that the Devils haven’t found a way to get in the lineup yet. He might have a much easier time developing in the NHL with the Jets as opposed to the Devils, who have so much more pressure on them now.

Nolan Foote is another prospect that is seen as a goal scorer with a great shot. He’d love to get a full-time NHL job. That may be possible in New Jersey for him but it is even more likely in Winnipeg these days.

Vitek Vanecek is also included in this trade. That would mean that Akira Schmid is the backup to Hellebuyck and Vanecek still gets to start in the NHL with a team like the Jets. In the regular season, Vanecek gives you a chance to win. Once the playoffs come around, that’s when you’d like to have a guy like Hellebuyck.

Trade Three

There is a great possibility that the Winnipeg Jets want draft selections to be included in a trade for Connor Hellebuyck. Nobody would question that. The Devils could include lower-ranked prospects and include their 2024 first-round pick. Obviously, if they traded that for Hellebuyck, they’d be hoping it becomes pick 32.

The fourth-round pick would be an added selection to push Winnipeg to make such a trade. That’s not a bad idea at all.

Seamus Casey is a very good young defenseman. He played last season with Luke Hughes at the University of Michigan. He clearly focused his game on his skills, while Luke Hughes worked on his two-way game a lot more (and still racked up the points).

This year at Michigan, Casey will be doing what Luke did last year as their number-one defenseman. It should be so fun to watch. Winnipeg would love to get a guy like that for Hellebuyck.

Cam Squires was drafted in the fourth round of the 2023 NHL Draft and made an impression at the prospect showcase a few weeks ago. It should be fun to see his development over the next few years.

Of course, getting a trade done doesn’t guarantee anything in terms of winning but it would give them a greater chance.