Who would have thought that Paul Cotter would be amongst the New Jersey Devils top point leaders to begin the season? Through eight games, Cotter has recorded six points (five goals and one assist). However, the ability to play anywhere in the lineup makes Cotter a great find by General Manager Tom Fitzgerald.
On the second day of the 2024 NHL Draft, the Devils traded forward Alexander Holtz and goaltender Akira Schmid to the Vegas Golden Knights for Paul Cotter. Fitzgerald had been looking to add size to his lineup. When the Devils went to the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2023, they were big, physical, and fast. That sounds like a player with the Colorado Avalanche in Miles Wood.
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Wood left the Devils after that season via free agency. New Jersey has been looking to replace him ever since. They have also been looking to replace other guys who left via free agency that season. Fitzgerald did that this past off-season. But what makes Cotter such a great find, where Fitzgerald pulled off one of those subtle trades, is that the potential was there in Vegas. He plays a more controlled game than Wood, who was more one-dimensional.
“I was texting with Fitzgerald today, sneaking good hands, Stu Grimson said on NHL Network of the fit of Cotter with the Devils. “That’s the only name I’ll drop on today’s broadcast guys. But you know he says since the departure of Miles Wood, they really haven’t replaced him. But he’s like this really unique mix. He’s got a physical element to his game, he’s got good speed, and he’s really handsy. That’s the part that I don’t think anybody really anticipated. Give the Devils organization. This is a pluck.”
Last season, with the Golden Knights, Paul Cotter recorded 25 points (seven goals and 18 assists) in 76 games. He is already two away from his career high in goals in just eight games with the Devils. And there were times last season with the Golden Knights that head coach Bruce Cassidy put him on the top, like with Jack Eichel and Ivan Barbashev or Jonathan Marchessault, before he signed as a free agent in Nashville this past offseason.
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That is why, despite being shocked by Cotter going to the top line with Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt, sometimes you need a spark to get a line going.
“I mean, I said before we came on air for this segment, would you have ever put Cotter with Hughes and Bratt on the right side and expected him to thrive in this way?” Grimson said later on. “I mean, it’s been brilliant out of the gate. It really looks good on this group.”
That was not the only time head coach Sheldon Keefe decided a line needed a spark. A week ago Wednesday, he put Cotter with Stefan Noesen and Erik Haula and the line combined for six points in a win against the Washington Capitals. These types of players help teams go far in the playoffs.
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When a general manager sees a fit for his team, he will make a run for that player. We saw this from Fitzgerald when he acquired Jonas Siegenthaler from the Washington Capitals. But it is also about fit. Was there going to be an opportunity in Vegas, like in New Jersey, for Paul Cotter to play? Or did the team’s and player’s timelines just not match up? Either way, the Devils have a fantastic player on their team.
Paul Cotter has been one of Tom Fitzgerald’s sneaky good ads during his tenure as President and General Manager of the New Jersey Devils.
