The New Jersey Devils open training camp as veterans report for their physicals, but for the second year in a row, a key piece of their lineup will not be there. Luke Hughes and the team remain locked in a contract negotiation.
Many people did not expect it to get this far when Devils President and GM Tom Fitzgerald stated in July that Luke Hughes was his top priority. This continues to be a battle on both sides. Not only does the organization know the cap is rising, but the player knows it as well. In addition, the Devils are up against the cap when it comes to how much they can give the restricted free agent defenseman.
However, as DevilsNation.com has been reporting, the Devils have been pushing for a long-term extension for Luke Hughes. The organization does not want to walk him into free agency the same time as his brother, Jack Hughes, nor do they want to walk him into a scenario as an RFA where he has arbitration rights and becomes eligible for an offer sheet.
A lot is going on behind the scenes as the two parties continue to grind away at trying to make a deal happen, as Pierre LeBrun confirmed on Tuesday’s edition of Insider Trading.
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Pierre LeBrun: “I checked in on this day and both sides are still grinding away.
That’s the word that both sides used to describe the negotiations. The RFA of the Devils put up a lot of power-play points the last few years, 41 in total. He’s looking to be a big part of their future.
What’s interesting is if and when he signs, we expect that to be a long-term deal. What does that mean for the future of Dougie Hamilton? How many power-play quarterbacks do you need in the modern NHL?
Hamilton has three years left on his deal at $9 million per season and has a modified no-trade clause with 10 teams he can be traded to.
I’m not saying that’s an imminent conversation, but something to file away, perhaps closer to the March 6 trade deadline.”
The New Jersey Devils Should Not Trade Dougie Hamilton Just to Clear Cap Space
As previously mentioned, an area of concern for the Devils is the salary cap. They have $6.1 million in cap space. They don’t have the money without moving out a player. Most likely, Johnathan Kovacevic will see $3.8 million of his $4 million go on LTIR to begin the season. That will open some cap space, but that only solves the problem for the first several months of the season.
Though Dougie Hamilton’s name continues to be brought up as a player who will be moved at some point, he has a 10-team no-trade list, and Tom Fitzgerald is not going to move out one of his better defenseman with the standard and expectations being high this season for the New Jersey Devils. There are no plans in the works to move him.
There could be conversations at the trade deadline and even next summer about moving him, and teams will call gauging interest, but it does not make the Devils a better team. While Hamilton will be a hot commodity as a right-handed shot defenseman. The Devils, as we have been reporting, need to get a right-handed shot defenseman back in return. They don’t grow on trees, or as Craig Button of TSN says, “There is no 7-11 hockey store where you can walk down an aisle and pick up a right-handed shot defenseman.”
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Plus, the team, if they were to move Hamilton, would be doing it for money reasons, and that is not smart. Simon Nemec and Seamus Casey need to show significant progress for that to happen. And even then, it is a big IF given the team’s window to win.
While numbers have been thrown around, the Devils would like to get it under Brock Faber’s deal of 8x$8.5 million and maybe even Jake Sanderson’s deal of 8x$8.05 million a season, knowing Jacob Markstrom still needs a new deal, the addition of a top-six winger sometime this season and other needs that always pop up.
Luke Hughes and the New Jersey Devils continue to work on a deal that will pay him fairly, but also allows the team to add along the way. It is now a holdout, and deadlines usually make deals, so let’s see how long this one lasts.
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