The New Jersey Devils are preparing to win the offseason once again. They already made their move to get a goalie, trading for Jacob Markstrom last week. After goaltending literally cost them last season, Markstrom is a name that will solidify the position.
After the most obvious move was made, the Devils are now looking to upgrade the roster up and down. There are rumors they want a top-six forward, a bottom six forward, a top defenseman, and a depth defenseman. So, basically every possible position you could target.
It's not hard to understand why. After thinking their youth would propel the losses of the 2023 offseason, the Devils found that's not the case. They had one of their most disappointing seasons in 2023-24, missing the playoffs by 10 points despite nobody in the Eastern Conference wanting to actually earn that spot.
The Devils seemed to find a target for the blue line, with ties to Brett Pesce. There are rumors they are going to pay him around $6 million per season, which is odd. They already have three quality right-handed defensemen in Dougie Hamilton, John Marino, and Simon Nemec. Then, out of nowhere, another Carolina star was tied to the Devils in trade rumors.
As mentioned in Trade Targets, league sources suggest #njdevils potentially willing to part with No. 10 overall pick to #Canes as part of a deal for Martin Necas.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) June 26, 2024
Carolina working through a few scenarios of teams with legitimate interest.
Story: https://t.co/G6KVUCdMtz pic.twitter.com/eWgbgyvS1R
This is a WILD rumor. The Devils are tied to one of the biggest trade pieces on the market, and they were the only team that was named specifically in the rumor. We also saw Alexander Holtz put on the Chris Johnston NHL Big Board for The Athletic, which can't be a coincidence.
The player would be amazing to add. Adding him to either Nico Hischier's or Jack Hughes's line would make this one of the deadliest top six units in the league. However, it would cost at such a price that it likely won't be worth it.
The rumors say that the trade package starts with the 10th-overall pick in Friday's NHL Draft. The important part of that is "starts with." It's going to take a major package beyond the pick to make Necas a New Jersey Devil.
Then, there's the contract demands. Necas is a restricted free agent. He apprarently wants $9 million per season. With Timo Meier, Jesper Bratt, Dougie Hamilton, and Jack Hughes making what they make and Nico Hischier's contract coming up relatively soon (on top of Luke Hughes extension possibily being signed this offseason), adding a flawed $9 million player is not smart.
And yes, we said flawed. We hate +/- unless it tells a compelling story. Necas' +/- is straight up compelling. The Hurricanes finished the season +63 in goal differential. Yet, somehow, Necas was a -9. That tells the story of a player that failed to stop goals going in while scoring at a much lower rate.
Then, there's how his stats don't hit the numbers that really impress analysts. He has never hit 30 goals in a season. He hit 70+ points once, and his career high beyond that is 53. This isn't a $9 million player. This feels like a mistake waiting to happen.