Expect to See New Jersey Devils Dawson Mercer In More Trade “Rumors”

The New Jersey Devils and Tom Fitzgerald did a masterful job building this roster. Ray Shero set the foundation with the Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier picks, giving this team two superstar centers for at least a decade. Those two signing for under $16 million combined give the Devils a huge advantage over the competition.

This offseason, the Devils used that advantage to sign both Timo Meier and Jesper Bratt to eight-year deals, giving this team a core that’s in their prime for most of their deals. Meier, Bratt, Hughes, and Hischier give the Devils four established offensive stars that will be hard to play against.

Since they have those four players locked up, other teams, and more importantly, other teams’ bloggers, will be looking at the rest of the roster to pick for parts. The Devils are no strangers to terrible offers. We’ve covered this more times than we can count. However, with the Devils now a salary-cap team, its complimentary players will be the target of trade proposals.

The number-one target will be Dawson Mercer. The Devils 21-year-old breakout star is entering the last year of his entry-level contract. He’s due for a big raise. Most teams will assume the Devils can’t afford him, so they’ll try to pry him in all trade proposals. The recent proposal to send Mercer for Flames defenseman Noah Hanifin (not worth linking) is just the tip of the iceberg.

Think about how often William Nylander was in trade rumors. Now, there’s actually a reason to see him in rumors, but that’s years after they started. Most rumors came from those thinking he could be stolen from the Maple Leafs. Now, teams will be looking to steal Mercer.

Let’s just send this PSA now. Mercer is not for sale. The Devils laughed when his name was even mentioned in Timo Meier negotiations. He is untouchable. That won’t stop people from making up rumors. Just watch them and laugh. That’s the best thing we can do.