There was an anticipation that the New Jersey Devils would be adding superstar defenseman Quinn Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks. However, the Devils’ package of Anton Silayev, Dawson Mercer, Simon Nemec, and a first-round pick was not going to cut it. The Vancouver Canucks wanted Nico Hischier, and they weren’t getting him. But realistically, the Devils weren’t getting the third Hughes Brother.
New Jersey Devils Failed To Get Cap Space To Get Quinn Hughes
Thus, the Canucks made the deal with the Wild for Zeev Buium, Marco Rossi, Liam Ohgren, and a 2026 first-round pick, which leaves the Devils looking elsewhere. The question is: where will New Jersey turn to make deals and add players?
One of the most significant issues right now is the cap space. The Devils don’t have much to work with. As DevilsNation.com has been documenting, New Jersey had to put Johnathan Kovacevic ($3.8 million of his $4 million) on LTIR to get cap compliant to begin the season. This has been an issue since the summer, as we saw in the Luke Hughes contract negotiation.
As we saw in the Quinn Hughes saga, the Devils had a lot of irons in the fire. Do they revisit them after the holiday trade freeze? You would have to think so. One of the players they will continue to monitor is center Ryan O’Reilly of the Nashville Predators. He is the ideal third-line center or second-line center for New Jersey, if a player goes down. This will allow Dawson Mercer to switch to the wing.
NHL Rumors: New Jersey Devils Want a Depth Center With Physicality
As Elliotte Friedman noted on his 32 Thoughts Podcast on Monday, New Jersey is circling O’Reilly. They have been looking at him since last year, but are waiting for the right time to make the move.
“I know New Jersey has liked Ryan O’Reilly for some time. Let’s see whether it’s him or someone else, because I thought it was interesting,” Friedman said. “I got that call on Sunday from someone who said they backed away from some other things once they knew they weren’t getting Hughes.”
So the New Jersey Devils are going to be active. The team is getting help internally with the return of Brett Pesce on Wednesday and Jack Hughes sometime after the Holiday Break. So it is about meeting the Devils wants and needs.
Devils Rumors: A Top Six Winger Will Cost the New Jersey Devils a Hefty Price
Again, Quinn Hughes would have been great, but they need more help up front than on the backend. A top-six forward and a center are the priorities. Again, the asking prices for O’Reilly, Steven Stamkos, Brayden Schenn, and others are high.
But New Jersey is a team to watch, as Tom Fitzgerald knows he needs to make a significant move to help the Devils take the next step.
