The New Jersey Devils had a relatively busy offseason. They revamped their bottom six, adding Evan Rodrigues and Jesper Boqvist in the Jacob Markstrom trade and signing Anthony Mantha. Sunny Mehta made massive changes to the front office and worked with Sheldon Keefe to upgrade the coaching staff (in theory). They also traded Simon Nemec to the Calgary Flames, which is where we find ourselves today.Â
Mehta traded Nemec for pieces. Many thought the former second-overall pick was going to be the centerpiece of a trade for a top-line winger to pair with Jack Hughes, or even the trade that would bring Quinn Hughes to New Jersey.Â
Instead, the Devils got two first-round picks, a second-round pick, and defensive prospect Etienne Morin. They turned that second-round pick into two picks by trading down in the draft, taking Matias Vanhanen in the second round and Lavr Gashilov in the fourth round.Â
Many thought the Devils were going to trade the pieces from the Nemec trade to make a huge move. That huge move never came to fruition. Jordan Kyrou went to the Washington Capitals. Jason Robertson re-signed with the Dallas Stars. Quinn Hughes is still in Minnesota, and Shane Wright never got moved, either.Â
The Devils are trying to solidify their top six, and Mantha definitely helps, coming off a 33-goal season with the Pittsburgh Penguins. However, it might not be enough.Â
Today, the Devils still have a question mark in their top six. Either Arseny Gritsyuk, Connor Brown, or Dawson Mercer is most likely to take a spot up top. There are still some trade options that could become available before puck drops on opening night.
One team to check in on is the Montreal Canadiens. They have a dominant group of young stars who are mostly signed to long-term deals. The issue with signing so many guys to long-term deals is that it only takes one guy to throw the whole strategy off.
That player might be Zachary Bolduc. He just revealed how much he wants to stay in Montreal, but in the same quote, he revealed that he understands this process could go south.Â
I'd love to play in Montreal for several seasons. But on the other hand, management has to make their own decisions too. Like I said, I'm not going to get ahead of myself on anything, but I trust my agent on that end, and I'm confident that good things are coming. – Zachary Bolduc
The former first-round pick hasn’t been great in Montreal, but he has a ton of upside. He was traded basically straight up for Logan Mailloux. They wanted to upgrade the forward corps, but some incredible drafting helped rectify that issue. Bolduc is no longer a necessity. He is a nice luxury if he lives up to his draft and prospect hype.
However, if the Canadiens can’t figure out his contract, the Devils might make sense as a trade partner. They have the future cap space to take a chance on his contract. They have openings in the top six if he grows into that role, something the Canadiens can’t offer him.Â
Of course, Bolduc doesn’t solve the Devils’ top-six problem like Kyrou or Robertson would, but he could be a long-term answer if everything works out. The Devils have the assets to make a move, and they also have pieces they could move out. Dawson Mercer is growing into a third-line forward, but he wants a better chance to play top-six minutes. With the Canadiens, he could have an interesting role.Â
If the Devils and Canadiens swapped interesting forwards, it could be good for both parties, and it would accentuate the Devils’ forward logjam.Â
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