PUBLICATION
Sam Walker
January 11, 2026Â Â (3:05 PM)
Photo credit: John Jones-Imagn Images
The New Jersey Devils’ behind-the-scenes trade chatter went public this past weekend regarding defenseman Dougie Hamilton, his agent, and team general manager Tom Fitzgerald.
On Saturday, the Devils benched Dougie Hamilton as a healthy scratch once Johnathan Kovacevic was ready to return.
Agent J.P. Barry called it business, not hockey, and that wording landed like a slap.
“Dougie was informed today that he will be not be playing now that Kovacevic is back in the lineup. In our view, this decision is all about business rather than his game right now,” said Hamilton’s agent J.P. Barry. “Singling him out seems very calculated at this stage.Dougie has a 10-team trade list and there have been efforts to trade him going back to the draft last year. We have made it clear to the Devils that we will consider teams outside our list and other creative ways to get to a team that is mutually acceptable.”
– J.P Barry
Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald pushed back, calling it lineup business with Simon Nemec and Brett Pesce set and Johnathan Kovacevic returning. He said Hamilton was simply the odd man out.
“As you know, we just put Nemec back in the lineup on Thursday,” said Fitzgerald in a statement. “He’s a young guy who we want getting his game back, where he had been easily our best defensemen before his injury. Pesce’s play speaks for itself, he isn’t going anywhere. And Kovacevic coming back, gives our roster a spark we are looking for, and he was our best defensive defenseman all of last year. And that’s what we want with our lineup now. This is simply Dougie being the odd-man out with where our right-side is- fully healthy for the first time all year. This is business. Business of our lineup!”
– Tom Fitzgerald
Dougie Hamilton drama meets in jersey Chicago Blackhawks opportunity
According to insider Elliotte Friedman, the New Jersey Devils tried to trade Dougie Hamilton to the San Jose Sharks this summer, but he blocked it with his trade protection (a 10 team trade list).
Given the current circumstances of his time out of the lineup time in New Jersey, and with how the Blackhawks have been playing as of late, Hamilton and the Hawks would be an ideal fit.
Hamilton is 32, a 2011 ninth overall pick, and a longtime power-play driver. He’s tallied 511 points in 875 NHL games, numbers you do not bench lightly.
His contract carries a $9,000,000 cap hit plus a 10-team trade list. That is why most contenders blink, but Chicago can absorb the deal without contortions. Cap trackers keep the Blackhawks among the roomiest teams, and that matters in any Hamilton conversation.
What better mentor for Artyom Levshunov and Wyatt Kaiser than a veteran who has lived top-pair minutes? Even if Chicago is not ready to win, that calm still matters.
If this Devils rift keeps fraying, Kyle Davidson should at least check the price. Cap space is an asset, and messy situations can make veterans cheap.
Previously on Chicago Hockey Insider