3 Things To Know For New Jersey Devils Ahead of NHL Trade Deadline

3. Defense Doesn’t Seem To Be A Priority

The Devils have needed a defenseman since December, when Dougie Hamilton got hurt. We learned again that his situation is still considered serious, and we shouldn't expect to see him for months, if not the rest of the season. Jonas Siegenthaler and John Marino are both having career-worst years at the worst time. Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec were leaned on to save the unit, but now Nemec is watching the game as a healthy scratch.

Yet, the Devils are nowhere in the defensive market. They were tied to Hanifin for a hot minute, but it sounds like he didn't want to re-sign in New Jersey. In fact, it sounds like Hanifin will only re-sign in Tampa Bay (a no-tax state is hard to compete with). Some wanted Tanev, while others wanted Ilya Lyubushkin. Both have since been traded.

Besides Hanifin, some realistic defensive options include Jakob Chychrun of the Ottawa Senators, Sean Walker of the Philadelphia Flyers, and Matt Dumba of the Arizona Coyotes. The Devils might get involved with a player with term, but would they want to spend trade deadline prices for a defender when they could just target someone in the offseason?

It seems like it's goalie or bust as far as buying is concerned. The Devils need a defenseman, but it sounds like the Devils will go to the bottom of the barrel for it. They claimed Nick Desimone from the Flames and traded a seventh-round pick and Zakhar Bardakov for Kurtis MacDermid, formerly of the Colorado Avalanche.