{"id":499427,"date":"2026-03-12T11:28:29","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T11:28:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/499427\/"},"modified":"2026-03-12T11:28:29","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T11:28:29","slug":"nhl-rumors-surprising-development-on-dougie-hamilton-trade-talks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/499427\/","title":{"rendered":"NHL Rumors: Surprising Development On Dougie Hamilton Trade Talks"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"New<\/a>
For all the trade noise surrounding Dougie Hamilton before the deadline, the New Jersey Devils<\/a> reportedly were not actually pushing him out the door.\u00a0That was the big takeaway from James Nichols of New Jersey Hockey Now<\/a> after a chaotic few weeks of speculation, because despite Hamilton\u2019s name showing up on trade boards and in league chatter, Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald said he did not have the veteran defenseman on the market at all.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Fitzgerald said teams called assuming Hamilton was available, but insisted there was \u201cno shopping\u201d on New Jersey\u2019s end.<\/p>\n

James Nichols Says Devils Never Put Dougie Hamilton Out There<\/p>\n

Nichols reported that Fitzgerald flatly denied shopping Hamilton, even after the defenseman became one of the most talked-about names in New Jersey\u2019s rumor mill.\u00a0<\/p>\n

On deadline day, Fitzgerald said, \u201cI did not have Dougie Hamilton\u2019s name out there,\u201d while adding that a couple of teams did call because they believed otherwise.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Friedman on 32TP: “I kind of wondered if there was a chance Dougie Hamilton would end up in Toronto with the Maple Leafs taking a sweetener to do it”<\/p>\n

\u2014 NHL Watcher (@NHL_Watcher) March 7, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Hamilton had already been dragged into controversy earlier this season after a January healthy scratch, which Fitzgerald called performance-related, while Hamilton\u2019s camp believed there had been efforts to move him dating back to last summer.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Dougie Hamilton Trade Rumors Could Return This Summer<\/p>\n

What changed the conversation was Hamilton\u2019s play. After that January flashpoint, he responded with strong production, and Nichols noted that the veteran\u2019s form improved significantly down the stretch.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Fitzgerald pointed to that resurgence as a reason the Devils never seriously explored moving him, and the club\u2019s official site repeated that there was \u201cmore noise out there than there actually was.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Hamilton, 32, is signed through 2027-28 at a $9 million cap hit, and one reason a trade would have been difficult this season is the $7.4 million signing bonus due on July 1.<\/p>\n

That financial structure, along with his 10-team trade protection, made a deadline move much tougher than the rumor cycle suggested. <\/p>\n

Requested to speak with Dougie Hamilton who politely declined. #NJDevils<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 James Nichols (@JamesNicholsNHL) March 6, 2026<\/a> <\/p>\n

Fitzgerald also said after the deadline that the Devils have seven everyday NHL defensemen and that trying to \u201cshake one of those loose in the offseason\u201d to improve the forward group will be a goal.\u00a0<\/p>\n

So even if Hamilton was not being shopped in March, New Jersey\u2019s blue line still looks like the most obvious area for a summer move.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Photo Credit:\u00a0Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images<\/p>\n