The New Jersey Devils haven’t made a trade since the end of the Olympic break. Their last deal was when they added Nick Bjugstad from the St. Louis Blues for Thomas Bordeleau and a fourth-round pick. Prior to that, they traded Ondrej Palat to the New York Islanders. Despite the quiet last few weeks, the Devils have been in rumors, targeting so many players and being targeted for so many teammates.
With so many rumors floating around, we wanted to get caught up to what is really happening. Where are the Devils finding themselves with mere hours to go before the trade deadline?
Simon Nemec has a new agent and a fresh set of rumors
Simon Nemec has been the most prominent name in trade rumors for the New Jersey Devils. Things got worse when we learned that he hired a new agent, showing there’s some sort of issue with the Devils’ negotiations for his new contract. Nemec is a restricted free agent this offseason.
Right now, the rumors from multiple sources say the Devils are not calling on Nemec, but they are accepting calls and willing to negotiate. If Tom Fitzgerald is going to move Nemec, it would have to be a high-impact forward coming to the Devils. So far, we haven’t heard of any real rumors about what the return could be, but that might not come until late.
Dougie Hamilton, Jonas Siegenthaler, Johnny Kovacevic, and Brenden Dillon are available
Elliotte Friedman claims that the Devils are listening on every defenseman not named Luke Hughes or Brett Pesce. That’s not a huge surprise. What is a surprise is our need to lump Dougie Hamilton with the others. He was the biggest name on the market for a long time, but nothing has moved since he was benched back in January. Yet, if we had to guess, we’d say that Hamilton is more likely to stay with the Devils than he is to get traded. Some rumors say that teams might be more willing to trade for Hamilton after his bonus is paid in July.
As for Siegenthaler, Kovacevic, and Dillon, there are teams circling the Devils' defensemen. Siegenthaler’s name was out there for the Buffalo Sabres, but they just traded for Logan Stanley. Other players have been thrown out there, but nothing concrete has come from it.
Dawson Mercer trail has gone cold
Dawson Mercer was very prominently named in rumors last month, but it’s gone cold for a while. We have heard his name mentioned as a player the Pittsburgh Penguins could target, and that might be even more important after Evgeni Malkin hit a player in the head and is heading towards a suspension. We’ll see what happens here.
Cody Glass seems likely to stay
Cody Glass was a name that was out there earlier this week, but the Devils have seemed to quell the rumors. They did put Evgenii Dadonov, Luke Glendening, and Maxim Tsyplakov on waivers on Thursday, but those are the only moves at the forward position we expect. Glass would be valuable, but he’s just as valuable to the future of the Devils. Will a team move the needle for the Devils to get Glass? That’s definitely a possibility.
Conor Garland was mentioned, but he seems like a long shot
Pierre LeBrun said that the Vancouver Canucks are getting a ton of interest in forward Conor Garland. The Devils are one of the teams tagged in LeBrun’s tweet, but they seem like the least likely team to make the move. It just doesn’t make much sense right now. Other teams are going to make a bigger move for the $6 million forward. He only has seven goals this season, so it wouldn’t help the Devils’ offensive woes anyway.
Paul Cotter is out there
Lastly, we have Paul Cotter, who has been inconsistent for the Devils since he was traded by the Vegas Golden Knights. He has great qualities, but he doesn’t have a ton of upside. There is something there with a physical forward who creates havoc and scores a ton in the shootout. What is that worth on the trade market? The Devils don’t have to trade him for nothing. They can still keep him, but the Devils have to add something to this team in terms of assets. Many could say that Cotter is a playoff-type forward who has value. We’ll see what that value is if he’s traded.