The New Jersey Devils have a lot of big decisions to make this week. Ahead of Friday’s NHL Trade Deadline, there’s a good chance that GM Tom Fitzgerald will listen on just about everyone. Will he trade someone at the level of Jack Hughes or Nico Hischier? No, there’s no way ownership allows him to make that move. However, everything that’s not bolted down is available for trade.
On paper, the Devils shouldn’t trade Cody Glass. Getting quality centers is so hard, and the team was lucky to acquire him last season from the Pittsburgh Penguins.
However, the Devils have to face some hard facts. For one, Glass has been someone who hasn’t come with incredible value in seasons past. The Devils just traded for him at last year’s trade deadline. All they had to send to Pittsburgh was lower-level prospect Max Graham, former first-round pick Chase Stillman (who has not grown into an NHL-level prospect), and a 2027 third-round pick.
If that’s the offer to the Devils, then Glass isn’t going anywhere. That’s true even though the Devils played with fire and almost lost Glass for free last offseason. According to sources, they were willing to allow him to get to free agency despite him being a restricted free agent. After there was clear interest in his services, the Devils reversed course and qualified him, eventually signing him to a two-year deal worth $2.5 million per season.
There’s also a nonzero chance that Glass is really good under Sheldon Keefe, but it’s very unlikely that the Devils go into next season with the same head coach. Will Glass work the same way with another head coach? We want to think it’s true, but it’s probably not.
So the focus must be on what Glass is worth. Again, the Devils aren’t trading him for peanuts. Yet, we have to see what the market develops into. A few teams are throwing up their hands and letting the market dictate their future rosters. Teams like the Toronto Maple Leafs, Florida Panthers, and New York Rangers could sell the farm.
There are only so many buyers, and some really big names could set the market. Glass might get a surprising return in the next few days, or he’s not going to move.
What’s the piece that would move the needle? Glass getting a contract that’s good for another year at a reasonable rate. Would a late first-round pick get Fitzgerald’s juices going?
Maybe, but we think Fitzgerald would like something with a higher ceiling, even if it comes with a lower floor. We’re looking at prospects in a deal for Cody Glass. Maybe the Devils target a former first-round pick who hasn’t yet lived up to his expectations (which, ironically, is what Glass was before he came to the Devils).
If the Devils can get something like that, plus a second- or third-round pick, we think the Devils pull the trigger. We’re not talking about a Stillman-level first-round pick, but if we’re looking at someone like Quentin Musty, who the Sharks actually drafted with the pick they got from the Devils in the Timo Meier trade, then they’d move Glass for someone like that. He has great upside, but he’s struggled somewhat in his first season in the AHL. Maybe they accept a player like Musty and a fourth-round pick just to round out the addition.
Maybe that’s asking for too much, and that could very much be true, but a team like the San Jose Sharks can risk a prospect at forward with so much young talent already on the roster. They are right on the cusp of a playoff spot, and making it means the world to that franchise.
If someone doesn’t wow Fitzgerald with an offer, he’s holding onto Glass. That’s the beauty of this situation.