Keep an eye on the Devils as the NHL Trade Deadline approaches

The New Jersey Devils have had an excellent bounce-back season so far and are second in the Metropolitan Division with a 25-15-3 record. They may not have the playoff experience like other teams in the East, but they even feel like one of the biggest contenders to make it out of the Eastern Conference come playoff time, so as the trade deadline approaches, they should make moves like they are that team.

Frank Seravalli and Tyler Yaremchuk talked about the Devils and how big they should go at the trade deadline, as well as who might be a possible target.

Frank Seravalli: I wonder about New Jersey and how aggressive they’ll be. I think the one thing that stands out is this team hasn’t been through the playoff grind. They had a couple years ago with a slightly different and younger team, and they were able to topple the New York Rangers. But when you look at this situation now, is now the time or is New Jersey just entering their window?

I think it’s a really interesting question and I would say that when you think back to some other teams that maybe didn’t recognize the opportunity in front of them, thinking, “Oh yeah, we’re going to be here for the next eight years,” or whatever it might be. You never know with health, you never know with contractual status and the salary cap and everything else that happens that you might want to take your shot while you can.

I think Tom Fitzgerald has been certainly one of the more aggressive GMs in understanding the market. He did make some moves last year at the deadline and obviously had a big summer to improve this team, could the New Jersey Devils be one of those teams that steps up now before March 7th?

Tyler Yaremchuk: Yeah, that was actually going to be the Ask DFO question I threw you later, because I thought it was a good one. They have three big right-handed defense prospects, and they need a winger for Jack Hughes and bottom six scoring. If they don’t want to spend big, maybe a guy like Taylor Hall’s a decent fit there.

Frank Seravalli: Potentially. He already has some familiarity being in New Jersey. And also I saw a lot of Devils fans saying, “Why not just bring back Kyle Palmieri?”

You can watch the full episode here…