Sunny Mehta shook things up by signing restricted free agent Barrett Hayton, giving the Mammoth just one week to match the one-year, $4.775 million deal. Utah matched the offer on Wednesday, meaning that Hayton will remain with the Mammoth; they will not be able to trade him for one year with the Mammoth.
As for the Devils, nothing really happens except going back to the board and looking at other options. If the Mammoth had declined to match the offer sheet, Hayton would become a Devil, and New Jersey would have sent a 2027 second-round pick as compensation.
Time to Pivot for the New Jersey Devils
After missing out on Barrett Hayton, the Devils currently have $9.6 million in cap space. Sunny Mehta can go in plenty of directions to upgrade the forward group, targeting a player via trade or going for a free agent on a one-year deal since the options aren't too great. New Jersey also currently has six first-round-picks over the next four drafts, potential trade assets to land a top-six forward.
1. Pavel Zacha , Boston Bruins
The Devils could target an old friend in Pavel Zacha. He was drafted sixth overall by New Jersey back in 2015 and later traded away to the Bruins in 2022 for Erik Haula. Zacha is a 29-year-old two-way forward who would bring a ton of versatility for New Jersey. Being able to play both center and left wing gives him a lineup advantage, as well.
In this past season, he had 65 points, which is a career high, topping his previous high of 59 points back in 2023. Pavel Zacha is slated to be an unrestricted free agent after this upcoming season; he is currently making $4.75 million this year. Essentially, his contract aligns almost exactly with what Hayton's was, but he's in a much different age group.
Tomas Hertl, Vegas Golden Knights
With the Golden Knights in a cap situation (what else is new), they're likely going to have to move a player , and that could be 32-year-old Tomas Hertl. Hertl is currently in the middle of an eight-year contract that has him making $8.14 million per season until 2030. However, after he was traded, the Sharks retained 17% of his salary, setting him at $6.75 million per season.
Coming off a productive year yet again with 58 points, Hertl brings a ton of size on the ice, standing at 6'3, which helps his two-way ability as a player. He can play in the middle or as a left wing, two positions of need looking at the Devils' forward group. Hertl also brings a ton of playoff experience coming from a Vegas team that just made the Stanley Cup Final.
The biggest downside would be his cap hit; it would be interesting to see if Vegas would retain some salary on top of the Sharks' money to make this closer to $5 million for the Devils.
Anthony Mantha, Free Agent
With not too many options left when it comes to UFAs available, Anthony Mantha is arguably the best of the bunch. The 31-year-old right winger is coming off a solid season with the Pittsburgh Penguins, putting up 64 points, including 33 goals. At 6'5, Mantha brings a ton of size on the wing, including his scoring ability and net-front presence that the Devils need.
Putting a natural shooter on the top line who doesn't need to drive a line on his own fits perfectly with two players who can already do that, Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt.
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