The New Jersey Devils have a lot to make happen this offseason. One of the main goals of Sunny Mehta’s first seasons as GM is to open up some cap space. There are a few different avenues to do that, but many of them are small, like trading Stefan Noesen. However, when looking at the defense, there is always a bigger deal to be had.
One of the most popular names in trade talks this offseason is Simon Nemec. A report saying he asked for a trade has more evidence of it being untrue than anything else, but it did put him squarely on trade boards across the league. Now, many believe that Nemec’s contract demands are going to make it impossible to keep him on the roster without a major change.
Dougie Hamilton could be a long-time Devils player once again
That change would have to involve Dougie Hamilton. The Devils have paid the big money on Hamilton’s deal, but he still comes with a $9 million cap hit. If Mehta moves Hamilton, then it opens up the money he’d need to sign Nemec and Arseny Gritsyuk.
However, there’s more and more evidence that Hamilton isn’t getting traded. He was great for the Devils after he was benched in January. From January 10th to the end of the season, Hamilton was on the ice for 27 goals. That’s one fewer than Cale Makar and the best of all Devils defensemen. He’s also ninth among NHL defensemen in shots at this time.
Mehta knows the impact Hamilton can have on the ice, but how can he be sure the Devils will get that version of Hamilton all the time? He was legitimately a problem in the first half of the season. Hamilton took too many penalties and was a sieve defensively. Then, he became a legitimately good defenseman, and his offense started to return.
Would Mehta really take Hamilton’s name out of trade rumors after a full year of this saga? It feels like if he’s doing that, it would be really hard to put his name back in trade conversations.
More likely than not, Hamilton’s situation is that Mehta isn’t making calls on Hamilton, but he would take calls on Hamilton. That’s a better situation anyway. Many believe the Devils would either attach a draft pick to get rid of his cap hit, or they would have to retain salary. If they remove the desperation that Tom Fitzgerald clearly brought to this process, it will lead to a higher return.
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