Andreas Johnsson. Ryan Graves. John Marino. Paul Cotter.

What do those names have in common? They were all acquired via trade by Tom Fitzgerald, and more specifically, they were moves that few people saw coming.

That’s only a partial list too. Jonas Siegenthaler probably qualifies as a surprise move, and this past season we could include players like Cody Glass and Daniel Sprong as well. And heck, if you want to go back to Fitzgerald’s time as an Assistant GM for the late Ray Shero, the Taylor Hall trade certainly qualifies as one that came out of nowhere.

Big trades that everyone could see coming a mile away like the ones that brought Timo Meier and Jacob Markstrom to the Garden State are important. But sometimes those unexpected depth moves can make a big difference as well. To go back to the names we led off with at the top, Johnsson had a solid 2021-22 in New Jersey, Graves and Marino combined to form one of the best shutdown pairs this franchise has ever seen (which is saying something) in 2022-23, and Cotter provides speed, physicality, and goal-scoring touch at a league minimum salary, which is massive for a team like the Devils who are close to the salary cap ceiling.

Every team in the league pulls off these trades that few anticipated, and the Devils are no exception. In fact, I feel very confident that Fitzgerald will give us at least one of these types of deals this offseason.

For who? Well that’s what we’ll explore today.

Let’s take a look at some players around the league that might be good trade targets for the Devils. The catch is we’re going to limit ourselves to players that don’t have much, if any, smoke around them when it comes to trade talks. Yes, these are admittedly loose parameters. Rumors swirl around so many players across the league that it can be hard to find ones that have little to no speculation surrounding them. To make it a little more concrete, let’s disqualify players on the following trade target lists from some of the bigger outlets in hockey media:

Frank Seravalli of The Daily Faceoff (Published June 20th)

Nick Kypreos of Sportsnet (Published June 2nd)

Chris Johnston of The Athletic (Published May 29th, Updated May 30th)

Again, just because a player doesn’t wind up on these lists doesn’t mean there aren’t trade winds blowing around them. Guys like William Karlsson, Alex Tuch, and Mason McTavish are good examples of this. But this at least provides a baseline for what I mean by “unexpected trade”, and I’ll do my best to avoid players like Karlsson, Tuch, and McTavish too.

And one last thing: We’ll only be looking at forwards today. The Devils’ defense corps is pretty much all set for next season. Yes they still need to get Luke Hughes’ name on a contract, and there’s even a small chance they trade Dougie Hamilton. But outside of replacing Johnny Kovacevic for presumably a short amount of time to begin the season, there really isn’t any room on the blue line for a trade. Plus the Devils desperately need to upgrade their offense anyway, so we won’t be looking at defensemen.

With all that out of the way, let’s begin:

Centers
Nicolas Roy, Vegas Golden Knights

Age: 28 (turns 29 in February)

Height/Weight: 6’4”, 201lbs

Shoots: Right

Contract Details: Two seasons remaining at $3m AAV

We’ll start with a player that Jared actually mentioned in his article last week. While his teammate William Karlsson has trade rumors floating around him, Roy has remained a little under the radar. He’s been Vegas’ fourth line center for a few years now, and he might just be what the Devils are looking for.

Why The Devils Would Make This Trade: For his cap hit, Roy provides some solid value. Over the last four years, he’s been a shockingly consistent producer, scoring 15, 14, 13, and 15 goals from 2021-22 through this past season. He’s also a big body at 6’4”, 201lbs, which you know Fitzgerald loves to see. He’s also a Cup champion with Vegas, which any team loves to see. Roy doesn’t appear to be a drag on possession either, as according to Natural Stat Trick, he’s got 5-on-5 Corsi For%, Scoring Chances For%, High Danger Corsi For%, and Expected Goals For% numbers all around 50%. His cap hit might be a bit high for a fourth-line center option, but with the salary cap expected to explode over the next two seasons, that $3m AAV will be much more palatable. Especially for a team like New Jersey who is in desperate need of depth scoring.

Why The Golden Knights Would Make This Trade: Vegas is in a bit of a cap crunch. According to Puckpedia, the Knights have just a shade under $10m to work with. But rumors are circling Vegas that they’ll be going all-in for pending free agent Mitch Marner, who alone would probably eat up $13-$14m in cap space. Even if they don’t target Marner specifically, we all know how aggressive Vegas likes to be with their pursuits of star players. Plus they need to extend Jack Eichel after this season, which will cost a pretty penny. With that in mind, the Golden Knights need to shed some salary, and while Karlsson has been a name floated as a possible cap casualty, they’ll probably be much more inclined to deal Roy than one of the most beloved players in their franchise’s history.

What It Might Take To Acquire Roy: Considering he’s a fourth-liner on a team that actively needs to find salary cap space, I would say it’s the Golden Knights that need to throw in a sweetener for the Devils to take him. I wouldn’t expect New Jersey to have to give up more than a 5th-7th round pick in either this year’s or next year’s draft to acquire Roy and a pick.

Sam Steel, Dallas Stars

Age: 27 (turns 28 in February)

Height/Weight: 6’0”, 189lbs

Shoots: Left

Contract Details: Two seasons remaining at $2.1m AAV

Another fourth-line pivot on a top Western Conference team, Sam Steel hasn’t found himself in trade rumors, but his team as a whole sure has.

Why The Devils Would Make This Trade: Steel’s cap hit is very manageable, and while he doesn’t provide a ton of offense (he’s been in the mid to high-20’s the past three seasons), he’s got great defensive impacts according to some of the public evaluation models out there. His puck possession numbers at Natural Stat Trick tell us he’s pushing play forward well for a fourth-liner. And while he isn’t big (though he’s not small either), he’s a terrific skater according to NHL Edge, with a top speed in the 86th percentile while being in the 72nd percentile in speed bursts over 20 mph. If there’s one thing the Devils need more of among their forwards, it’s speed in the bottom six. The Stars have made three straight trips to the Western Conference Final primarily because of their incredible forward depth, and Steel has been a part of that depth for two of those runs. He’s a strong fourth-liner.

Why The Stars Would Make This Trade: Of all the teams in the league, Dallas is by far the one with the tightest cap situation. Puckpedia has them at a miniscule $2.75m in cap space, and that’s after offloading Mason Marchment and his $4.5m AAV last week. Meanwhile they still need to re-sign captain Jamie Benn, along with Evgenii Dadanov and Mikael Granlund. Their cap situation is so bad, it’s even gotten to the point where rumors are flying about them having to trade franchise cornerstone Jason Robertson. Needless to say, I think Dallas would much rather deal a player like Steel than a superstar like Robertson.

What It Might Take To Acquire Steel: The Stars did get assets back in the Marchment trade, but Marchment is a stronger player, plus I think Seattle really blew it by not playing hardball with Dallas considering the cap bind they’re in. I think the Devils could actually get a sweetener in any trade for Steel, say a 3rd or 4th rounder, while only having to give up a 7th round pick or maybe even just “future considerations”. Either way, the acquisition cost should be next to nothing.

Alex Kerfoot, Utah Mammoth

Age: 30 (turns 31 in August)

Height/Weight: 5’11”, 185lbs

Shoots: Left

Contract Details: One season remaining at $3m AAV

Once upon a time, Alex Kerfoot was a New Jersey Devils draft pick (150th overall in 2012). He didn’t end up signing with the franchise, has bounced around the league, and now finds himself in Utah on a young Mammoth squad. Could the Devils bring him home?

Why The Devils Would Make This Trade: Kerfoot has spent the last two seasons with Arizona/Utah putting up respectable numbers (45 points in 2023-24, 28 points last season). While his scoring did drop, he can still chip in some offense while playing in a depth role. He’s excellent defensively, puts up very strong play-driving numbers per Natural Stat Trick, and is a fantastic skater according to NHL Edge (90th percentile in top skating speed, 80th percentile in speed bursts over 20 mph). His $3m cap hit is great value if he’s your third line center, and while it’s a little rich if he’s your fourth line center, he has the potential to be among the best 4C’s in the league. He can also play the wing higher up the depth chart if need be, so he offers versatility as well.

Why The Mammoth Would Make This Trade: This one is a little trickier than the previous options, as the Mammoth aren’t under a cap crunch. Utah extended Kerfoot back in March, and everyone seemed quite happy about it. Then again if the Mammoth really love Kerfoot that much, they probably would have given him more than a one-year extension. If Utah is inclined to deal Kerfoot, it will probably be to make room for the many youngsters they have coming through their system. The Mammoth hold the fourth overall pick in this year’s draft, where they are most likely going to take a center to go with emerging star Logan Cooley and former top pick Barrett Hayton. A log jam is emerging, and while Kerfoot being in Utah for one more year might not be a huge deal in this regard, if the right offer comes along, I think the Mammoth could be persuaded to let Kerfoot go.

What It Might Take To Acquire Kerfoot: Let’s assume that if Utah does have an appetite to trade Kerfoot, it will be for either a young player or two who is close to NHL-ready, or for a slight overpay in draft capital, or both. As mentioned, Kerfoot only has one more season under team control, so I don’t think we’re talking about an A-level prospect and/or a first round pick here. But let’s say a package of Shane Lachance, a 3rd round pick, and a 5th round pick gets the job done. Maybe Utah could even retain a little on Kerfoot’s AAV for that package. That’s probably a bit of an overpay, but it really isn’t much to give up for a player that can be a very strong depth contributor.

Kirby Dach, Montreal Canadiens

Age: 24 (turns 25 in January)

Height/Weight: 6’4”, 221lbs

Shoots: Right

Contract Details: One season remaining at $3,362,500 AAV

We’re already a little out there with these players, but let’s get really out there with this one. Dach’s career has certainly not gone as planned after being selected third overall by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2019 draft. After three seasons with Montreal, is there still a high-end player left in there?

Why The Devils Would Make This Trade: A former top prospect, Dach’s career has been derailed by a number of things, including the pandemic, playing on a woeful Blackhawks team to start his career and a bad Canadiens team the last few years, and injuries. But despite all that, Dach has posted 121 points in 269 career games, which is an 82-game pace of roughly 37 points. That’s solid production in a depth role, which Dach would find himself in behind Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier. Dach is also massive at 6’4” and 221lbs, so that would be a huge plus for Fitzgerald. He’s not just a lumbering giant though, as NHL Edge has him in the 72nd percentile in top skating speed and the 73rd percentile in speed bursts over 20 mph. His underlying numbers are pretty bad according to Natural Stat Trick, which is of course a warning sign. But considering Montreal was one of the worst puck possession teams in the NHL, Dach really doesn’t look so bad compared to what he was surrounded with. Getting him onto a team like the Devils with a better supporting cast and system could do wonders for him. If Fitzgerald and the Devils are looking for a potential buy-low reclamation project that they’re confident they can fix, Dach might be a good target.

Why The Canadiens Would Make This Trade: Montreal is another team that is brushing right up against the salary cap ceiling. According to Puckpedia, they only have about $6.1m of room left to work with. Their big UFA’s they need to focus on are Christian Dvorak, Joel Armia, and David Savard. Even if they don’t bring back any of them, they would still need to be replaced on the roster, and $6.1m is not a lot to work with at all. Trading Dach, who might be fourth on the depth chart behind Nick Suzuki, Dvorak, and Jake Evans (and maybe even behind Alex Newhook), would give them some cap relief while also helping ease a log jam at center. I don’t think they would be looking to ship Dach out for a bag of pucks, but I don’t think they would ask for the moon and the stars either. Especially considering Dach missed almost all of 2023-24 with a knee injury, and then had his 2024-25 cut short again in February due to another injury in that same knee.

What It Might Take To Acquire Dach: I have to admit, I’m having a hard time settling on Dach’s theoretical value in a trade. There are plenty of negatives: The lengthy injury history, the poor play driving numbers, and the relative lack of production. But there are plenty of positives too: The potential of a former top prospect, the production isn’t that bad, and the fact that he’s still quite young and would still be under team control as an RFA after his contract expires. If I’m the Devils, I would be careful about overpaying, but I think I could live with giving up a 4th or 5th rounder and a middle tier prospect like Topias Vilen. Again, it all depends on if Fitzgerald thinks he could unlock something in Dach, perhaps even giving him a chance on the wing with play drivers like Hughes or Hischier. It wouldn’t be the first time we see a former top pick get out of the gate slowly and eventually become a quality player thanks in part to a change of scenery. Just look at guys like Sam Bennett, Dylan Strome, or (sigh) Pavel Zacha.

Wingers
Evan Rodrigues, Florida Panthers

Age: 31 (turns 32 in July)

Height/Weight: 5’11”, 182lbs

Shoots: Right

Contract Details: Two seasons remaining at $3m AAV

We’ll begin our list of wingers with a player from the two-time defending champs. Rodrigues could be an interesting option if Florida is inclined to deal him.

Why The Devils Would Make This Trade: Rodrigues has spent the last two seasons with the Panthers riding shotgun with Aleksander Barkov and Sam Reinhart. Obviously it’s Barkov and Reinhart driving the bus on that line, but Rodrigues has provided proof of concept that he’s a player who can be an effective third fiddle on the top line of a championship caliber team. He won’t provide a huge amount of offense, with 39 and 32 points in his two years with Florida, but he could be what the Devils hoped Ondrej Palat could be: A utility player with some skill that can compliment a top line and put up strong play driving numbers. And he can do it at literally half the cap hit of Palat as well. He also provides speed, with NHL Edge ranking him in the 82nd percentile in top speed, and the 68th percentile in speed bursts over 20 mph.

Why The Panthers Would Make This Trade: At exactly $19m in cap space according to Puckpedia, Florida might not seem to be in cap trouble at first glance. But they have three major UFA’s to bring back: Sam Bennett, Aaron Ekblad, and Brad Marchand. If you believe the numbers being thrown out there about Bennett and Marchand, they might only be able to bring back two of those three, and even that might be tough to do. Heck, they were only able to afford Marchand (and Seth Jones) in the first place because Ekblad got caught using PED’s back in March, got suspended for 20 games, and conveniently had his cap hit taken off the books until he returned just in time for the playoffs where cap hits don’t count. Teams circumvent the cap all the time, but I don’t think Florida can count on something like that happening again next year. The margins are thin in Florida, and they might have to shed some cap to bring their big guns back. Rodrigues is a prime candidate to be a salary cap casualty.

What It Might Take To Acquire Rodrigues: Probably not much. Rodrigues is a useful player for sure, but considering Florida might have to find a taker for his contract to keep the band together, they’re not exactly negotiating from a position of strength. They might not have to throw in a sweetener, but I don’t think it would cost the Devils more than a 4th-6th round pick.

Warren Foegele, Los Angeles Kings

Age: 29 (turns 30 in April)

Height/Weight: 6’2”, 204lbs

Shoots: Left

Contract Details: Two seasons remaining at $3.5m AAV

Of all the players we’re looking at today, Foegele is probably the best one. He’s not a household name, but he could provide a huge boost to the middle of New Jersey’s lineup.

Why The Devils Would Make This Trade: Because Foegele is really, really good, that’s why. This past season was his first in Los Angeles, where he put up 24 goals and 46 points (the second year in a row he’s hit the 20-goal and 40-point plateaus). He did that in 16:10 of ice time per game too, so he’s proven to be a very efficient producer. Give him a few more minutes of ice time per game and he might be able to hit the 60-70 point marks. Aside from the counting stats, Foegele is an analytics darling. His offensive and defensive impacts are borderline elite, and he’s a play driving monster per his NST numbers, To top it all off, he’s a rare mix of size and speed, coming in at a whopping 6’2”, 204lbs while being in the 92nd percentile in top speed and 83rd percentile in speed bursts over 20 mph according to NHL Edge. All this for a paltry cap hit of $3.5m over two more seasons for a player in his prime. Adding Foegele to the mix would be massive for a Devils team starved for forward talent outside of the core.

Why The Kings Would Make This Trade: Ok, so if Foegele is really that good, why would the Kings want to trade him? Well much like the Vegas Golden Knights, Los Angeles has been linked to pending free agent Mitch Marner. They currently have about $21.7m in cap space according to Puckpedia, but they also need to find a way to bring back Vladislav Gavrikov, who is set to become a UFA himself. AFP Analytics currently has Gavrikov projected to sign a seven-year, $7.6m AAV contract, but there has been talk around the league that Gavrikov could get a number as high as $9m AAV. He’s an elite shutdown defenseman who, while far from an elite offensive force, did score a respectable 30 points this past season. Teams pay through the nose for a player like that. Even if he signs back in LA for around $7.6m, if the Kings really want to go after Marner, that would take up just about all of their remaining cap space, with still more holes to fill. Los Angeles was a very strong defensive team this past season, arguably the best in the league, but word is they’re desperate to add more offense to the mix. Hence the Marner discussion. If the Kings really do want to sign Marner and keep Gavrikov, they’ll need to shed some salary. Looking at their roster, Foegele is probably one of two players (hold that thought) who they can realistically move to make room for a big time UFA signing.

What It Might Take To Acquire Foegele: Unlike every other player we’ve looked at so far, Foegele does have a partial no-trade clause. But it’s only a five-team no-trade list according to Puckpedia, so unless Foegele really hates The Sopranos or Bruce Springsteen, I think it’s a safe bet that New Jersey is not on the list. But I do want to mention it just in case. With that out of the way, it will take a decent amount to acquire Foegele. He provides so much value for his cap hit. If the reason Los Angeles is dealing him is to get some cap space, then the return is going to have to be picks and/or prospects, not NHL players. It might not cost something like multiple first round picks or a prospect like Anton Silayev, but I would say something along the lines of a 2nd and 3rd rounder this year, plus a prospect like Cam Squires or Matyas Melovsky. Maybe throw in Nolan Foote or Shane Lachance as well.

Trevor Moore, Los Angeles Kings

Age: 30 (turns 31 in March)

Height/Weight: 5’11”, 195lbs

Shoots: Left

Contract Details: Three seasons remaining at $4.2m AAV

Remember when I said Warren Foegele is one of two players who the Kings could realistically move for salary cap relief. Well, here’s the other player.

Why The Devils Would Make This Trade: Because Moore is sort of like diet-Foegele. Moore has spent the last five-plus seasons with the Kings after being traded there by Toronto in the middle of the Covid-shortened 2019-20 season. In 364 games with Los Angeles since 2020, Moore has posted 89 goals and 202 total points (an 82-game pace of roughly 46 points). In addition to good production in a middle-six role, Moore has great offensive and defensive impacts while being able to drive play well according to Natural Stat Trick. He isn’t a burner, but his speed is still above average per NHL Edge. He’s in the 55th percentile in top skating speed and the 64th percentile in speed bursts over 20 mph. His cap hit is a little steep, and for a team like the Devils who aren’t exactly in a position to take on bigger contracts, that could be problematic. But Moore provides enough value to make his cap hit worth it, and the Devils certainly need more talent among their forward ranks.

Why The Kings Would Make This Trade: You can pretty much take everything I wrote in this section for Foegele and apply it here. The Kings will need cap space if they want to bring Gavrikov back and go after Marner (or another big time free agent forward), and Moore is probably the number one candidate to get moved if the Kings go that route, even ahead of Foegele.

What It Might Take To Acquire Moore: Certainly not as much as Foegele. He’s not quite as good of a player as Foegele is, he’s got a higher cap hit, he’s one year older, and he’s got one more year on his contract than Foegele does. That being said, $4.2m is not a massive hit, especially with the cap rising dramatically over the next few seasons. Think of it this way: This past season, the cap ceiling was $88m. Two seasons from now, in 2026-27, the cap ceiling is projected to be $104m. This year, Moore’s contract took up around 4.8% of the cap, whereas in 2026-27, he will take up around 4% of the cap, the equivalent of $3.52m today. That’s still not nothing, but it’s perfectly acceptable for a solid middle six winger, and the cap will only increase from there. At the end of the day, I don’t think it would take a lot to pry Moore out of Los Angeles. Maybe something like a 3rd round pick this year and a 4th round pick next year.

Jason Zucker, Buffalo Sabres

Age: 33 (turns 34 in January)

Height/Weight: 5’11”, 195lbs

Shoots: Left

Contract Details: Two seasons remaining at $4.75m AAV

There are lots of trade rumors surrounding the Buffalo Sabres. Players like JJ Peterka, Ryan McLeod, Jack Quinn, Bowen Byram, and Alex Tuch seem to be popular trade targets this offseason. But Zucker is not a name I’m seeing get brought up much, if at all. Could he be on the block, and if so, what can be provide?

Why The Devils Would Make This Trade: Zucker is getting on in years, but he proved this past season that he can still be effective. On a terrible Sabres team, Zucker posted 21 goals and 53 points in 73 games. His underlying numbers aren’t great (though his offensive impact is quite strong), but this could simply be a case of Zucker getting dragged down by the complete chaos of the Buffalo Sabres organization. If New Jersey were to acquire Zucker, I think he could be very effective as the third-best player on one of the top two lines. Think Evan Rodrigues, but with less defensive upside and more offensive upside. It’s possible he could thrive on a sheltered third line as well. His cap hit is the highest we’ve seen so far at $4.75m AAV though, which might be a little too rich for Fitzgerald.

Why The Sabres Would Make This Trade: Buffalo has a ton of RFA’s to re-sign, so while their roughly $23.2m in cap space might seem like a lot at first glance, there isn’t actually that much to go around. Plus it’s reasonable to expect Buffalo to want to retool, as they endured yet another miserable, playoff-less season in 2024-25. They’re not going to tear it down and start over from scratch, but a player like Zucker, who doesn’t exactly fit their window, might become expendable.

What It Might Take To Acquire Zucker: Zucker does have a five-team no-trade clause like Foegele does, but I doubt New Jersey is on it. Assuming that’s the case, I think the Sabres might be interested in a package of an NHL-ready prospect or two as opposed to draft picks. Maybe Shane Lachance and Nolan Foote get the job done. And maybe the Devils can throw in a 3rd or 4th round pick to get the Sabres to retain some of Zucker’s cap hit.

Final Thoughts

Outside of maybe Foegele, none of the players we’ve looked at today are a perfect match for New Jersey. Whether it be cap hit, offensive production (or lack thereof), acquisition cost, or some other factor, each one has a downside. But that’s the reality of the NHL, and when you’re talking about unexpected trades involving middle-to-bottom of the lineup players, there are always going to be flaws.

But as detailed, these sorts of trades have the potential to be the biggest heists in the world. Ryan Graves and John Marino didn’t cost much, and while they didn’t maintain their 2022-23 peaks, their 2022-23 peaks were something special. They were a huge part of the Devils setting a franchise record in regular season points and winning a playoff round against the rival New York Rangers. Jonas Siegenthaler, acquired for next to nothing, has had his ups and downs in New Jersey, but does anyone really question whether that was a good trade or not? It was an unquestioned home run for Tom Fitzgerald.

Maybe none of these players get moved, there’s little to no smoke around them after all. But as fans of a team that has seen surprising trades occur on pretty much a yearly basis, I do think it’s worthwhile to take a look at some under the radar players around the league and see who might be next. There are always diamonds in the rough, and it’s Tom Fitzgerald’s job to mine them.

Your Take

Of the players listed above, who would you be most in favor of acquiring? What about the player you would most want to avoid? Would these trades fit your definition of unexpected, or have you seen a lot of rumors around any of them? Aside from these players, who else around the league do you think has been flying under the radar that might be a good trade candidate? As always, thanks for reading!