The New Jersey Devils made the move almost everyone expected on February 26, 2023. After years of a rebuild, they finally were on their way to making it back to the playoffs. Their team hit their stride, and the playoffs were close to a lock. They had 81 standings points at the time of the trade, sitting in second place in the Metropolitan Division behind the Carolina Hurricanes.
That's when the announcement came that Timo Meier was heading east. The San Jose Sharks traded the superstar winger to the Devils. However, that wasn't it. There was so much more to this trade.
The trade is still the biggest in terms of total assets in NHL history. There are so many moving parts here. The Devils didn't only receive Meier. They got useful defenseman Santeri Hatakka, and a few other bit pieces. They ended up trading the fifth-round pick they got in the deal to the Utah Hockey Club, along with John Marino, for two second-round picks. They used the first of those picks to take Mikhail Yegorov, who has quickly become the goalie of the future for this franchise.
The Sharks have no complaints about the trade at this point. Fabian Zetterlund has become a good player for the Sharks middle six, scoring 24 goals last year and putting up 15 in 59 games this season. The Sharks will likely sign him to a long-term deal this offseason.
Shakir Mukhamadullin looks like he could be an NHL defenseman. The Devils took a chance on him, overdrafting him at 20th overall in the 2020 NHL Draft. They could have selected Brock Faber with that pick, but that probably just means he would be involved in this deal. The Devils have them Mukhamadullin, and they really don't miss him.
The Sharks did select Quentin Musty with the first-round pick, a player the Devils would have really liked. Luckily, the Devils didn't qualify to make that second pick a first-rounder. It would have been top-10 protected, so they could have still taken Anton Silayev, but that means they couldn't make the trade for Jacob Markstrom. Obviously, they would have dealt with that if they made the Eastern Conference Finals in 2023, but it was a good thing for the long term.
Many were celebrating the trade because the Devils didn't lose any of their top prospects in the deal. Dawson Mercer and Simon Nemec weren't added to the deal. Alexander Holtz felt like a formality that he'd be in the deal, but it turned out the Sharks didn't want him. Some Sharks fans expected an insane return
The main reason people are down on this deal two years later is the play of Meier and the contract that came with him. Meier is making $8.8 million against the salary cap until 2031. That's a hefty number; the most on the Devils this season amongst forwards. All he has to show for it this season at the time of this writing is 15 goals and 23 assists.
The New Jersey Devils still come out the winners on the Timo Meier trade
Meier is playing better than his scoring numbers suggest. He's on the second power-play unit, which is impacting his goal numbers, but he's also facing terrible luck. Yes, sometimes it's as simple as luck. He's now second in the league in individual xG, only trailing Zach Hyman at 5v5 according to Natural Stat Trick. He's getting to high-danger areas and getting shots off, but they are just getting saved in insane ways or he hits the post.
Despite all that's happening, and the success of Zetterlund and the future prospects of Mukhamadullin and Musty, the Devils still win this trade. It's much closer now, but Meier clears it for NJ. He helped the Devils beat the Rangers in the playoffs, adds a physical element to the top six they sorely needed, and provides an energy that comes through, like his shootout winner from a few weeks ago.
Meier hasn't lived up to the hype as of now, but he's been good. Not great, obvious, but he's been really good as a player. The Devils wouldn't reverse the trade if they were given the chance, and that tells you all you need to know. Signing him for the max term also gives him time to turn it around. His scoring will come around in time. They are happy to have this core together.