The New Jersey Devils aim to revamp their team’s appearance for the upcoming season. Team President and General Manager Tom Fitzgerald has stated that the group that was on the ice last season will not be the same group that will take the ice this season. We have seen the Devils already move Erik Haula. There could be other players on the move, like Dawson Mercer and Ondrej Palat.
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Could Dawson Mercer Be on the Move?
The New Jersey Devils have a decision to make with Dawson Mercer. He has two years left at $4 million. While he is a valuable depth piece, the expectation was that he would be a top-six forward. While he can kill penalties and is good in the faceoff dot, his numbers have dipped.
Here is the clip I mentioned about the Devils off-season and Dawson Mercer when I joined @VictoriaMatiash and @RyanMPaton on Pucks in 7 last week.
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Full Episode:https://t.co/zGRohGfDgW
Clip: pic.twitter.com/ZSvm0QsDew
— Jim Biringer (@JimBiringer) May 8, 2025
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As documented by DevilsNation.com, RG Media, and Full Press Hockey, Mercer’s name continues to be brought up in trade talks. He was a piece that teams like the Nashville Predators and St. Louis Blues wanted in potential deals for Jordan Kyrou and Ryan O’Reilly. Not to mention, Juuse Saros before he signed his extension.
Hmmm oh really if #njdevils fans have been following along you know I have reported Mercer has been brought up in trade talks going back to last year.
As mentioned with @VictoriaMatiash & @RyanMPaton on Pucks in 7 and @SiriusXMNHL with @DennisTFP @TheFourthPeriod he is name the… https://t.co/c3emz20suW
— Jim Biringer (@JimBiringer) June 27, 2025
When the Devils were going after Brayden Schenn at the trade deadline, the Blues also asked for Mercer as part of the return. As we can see around us, to achieve something, a team has to give up something. There were trades to be made with the Buffalo Sabres before Dylan Cozens and JJ Peterka were traded. But is Tom Fitzgerald hesitant to give up on the player? At some point, as one person close to DevilsNation.com said, “you can’t be afraid to trade players you drafted. That is how you improve.”
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In addition to Mercer, the Devils will look to trade Ondrej Palat as well. Similar to Dougie Hamilton, Palat has a no-movement clause that kicks over to a 10-team no-trade clause on July 1. Palat has two years left at $6 million. As much as Fitzgerald and the Devils like him, he is not a top-six forward anymore. Therefore, paying a third-line player that much is expensive.
Expectations were that the Devils would be further along by now, as Palat came in to help this team win. As Fitzgerald stated, he has tough decisions to make with the roster this offseason. Dawson Mercer and Ondrej Palat could be part of those tough decisions.
If the New Jersey Devils are going to make a significant trade, Dawson Mercer will be a part of it. So he is a player to keep an eye on moving forward.
