If the New Jersey Devils ever had the thought of trading Dougie Hamilton, there may not ever be a better time than right now.
Why? The 2025 NHL free agent market is shaping up to be one of the worst in recent memory, and the prices of defensemen, even ones that aren't very good, are sky-high.
Hamilton, 32, will submit a 10-team no-trade list to the Devils on Tuesday as his four years of having a full no-move clause are now up.
A flurry of moves on Sunday and Monday saw players like Ivan Provorov rake in $8.5 million annually, while even a bottom-pair defenseman like Nicolas Hague fetched $5.5 million after being traded to Nashville.
On top of supply and demand with defensemen inevitably becoming an issue this week, Hamilton's $9 million cap hit would be a major steal for any inquiring teams, and there are a few salary quirks that may also be beneficial.
Hamilton has a base salary of just $1 million for the upcoming season, with $10.55 million being paid to him in signing bonuses. The Devils' No. 1 defenseman will see his salary drop from $11.55 million this upcoming season to $8.4 million next year, to $5.25 million after that.
In layman's terms, most of Hamilton's contract has already been paid, even though the $9 million cap hit remains the same.
From an on-ice perspective, the Devils trading their 32-year-old affable blueliner comes with both risks and rewards.
New Jersey Devils may be smart to assess Dougie Hamilton's value with a rising market
The risks, of course, hinge on how ready the team believes youngsters Simon Nemec and Seamus Casey are for the NHL spotlight. Nemec had a brutal season last year, but finished strongly and earned Sheldon Keefe's trust in the playoffs, though some of that was out of pure necessity.
Casey made the Devils outright last season but spent most of his season in the AHL. With Johnny Kovacevic set to miss the start of the 2025-26 season due to a knee injury, would the Devils dare throw Nemec and Casey to the wolves, knowing how bad their defensive depth ultimately became just a few months ago?
Freeing up Hamilton's $9 million cap hit, as well as, potentially, Ondrej Palat's $6 million, allows the Devils to pursue some replacements and make upgrades elsewhere, but the market thus far is not lending itself kindly to that idea.
The bulk of those replacements and/or upgrades would have to come via Hamilton's trade return, which would work in the Devils' favor given the market.
Given his age, how many teams need defense, and his cap hit relative to production, there has never been a better time for the Devils to entertain trading Dougie Hamilton, even if they're vehemently against it like many fans invariably will be.