The New Jersey Devils are a really good team, but it's still a team with holes. Tom Fitzgerald did a really good job this offseason with upgrading the defense and bringing toughness to the roster. He added Brett Pesce, Johnathan Kovacevic, and Brenden Dillon, which combined with the coaching of Sheldon Keefe and a new system with Ryan McGill would lead to a dominant six-person unit. However, the offense is not as complete as we thought coming into the season.
It's clear as day the Devils need someone to supplement the scoring. The top-six feels like it definitely could use one more body. Looking around the league, there are some interesting forward options. The Chicago Blackhawks are in a ton of rumors right now. They just fired head coach Luke Richardson, so it's clear the tank is in full force. Connor Bedard isn't getting the help he needs, and the strategy to add veterans to the roster hasn't worked. So, the Blackhawks will be looking to make trades.
Which players make sense for the Devils? There are a few, but these three seem to be the ones that can help the Devils the most.
1. Taylor Hall
We'll start with the low-hanging fruit. The Devils saw the best of Taylor Hall. He dragged this team to the playoffs in 2018 en route to winning the Hart Trophy, still the only regular-season MVP in Devils franchise history. However, nothing has been the same for Hall since he was traded to the Arizona Coyotes in December 2019.
Since Hall was made a healthy scratch, he has been good. He just had a goal and an assist in a 2-1 victory over the New York Rangers. We love to see a guy who performs against the Rangers. The Devils aren't getting former MVP Hall, but they could get a guy who would fit right into their top six. If the trade doesn't cost a lot, and the two teams could figure out the salaries, this could make a lot of sense for the Devils.