For the purposes of this article, I am not going to touch the question: “should Tom Fitzgerald be making trades?” Regardless of what I think of him, he has the job. He should keep doing his job as long as he has it, and it’s entirely on ownership to decide whether or not he should continue in his role today, tomorrow, and in July. The person in the GM chair should have no bearing on what kind of moves the Devils need to become a competitive, contending team.
I am going to break this down into three sections. The first group of players are those who I think are largely uncontroversial. They are not top line players, but they can contribute in the right roles. The second group of players are those who I think are breakout candidates: your “boom or bust” types. The third group of players are those who I expect to inspire some readers to ask me if I recently suffered a head injury (especially with the state the team is in). However, the third group are those who can make a real, guaranteed long-term difference. Regardless, I do not think the Devils cannot go into next season with the same roster, and there are some moves I could support regardless of who is running the show.
Group 1 — A New Supporting Cast
Target #1: Pius Suter, C, St. Louis Blues
The New Jersey Devils faced the St. Louis Blues last night, and Pius Suter did not fare a whole lot better than his teammates at five-on-five as the Blues were dominated in puck possession. However, Suter did have a good night on the penalty kill as their only forward without an on-ice shot attempt allowed (1:04) in their two penalty kills, and he skated away with an assist and no on-ice goals against. But Pius Suter is not meant to be a top-line center (19:51), he is meant to be a second or third-line defensive center.
Last season, for the Vancouver Canucks, Suter had 25 goals and 21 assists playing over 17 minutes per game. Many of these minutes (184:24) came on the penalty kill, where Suter was one of the best penalty killing forwards in the league. With Suter on the ice, the Canucks had 14 power play goals against, or 4.56 GA/60 for a net goal differential of -3.91 GA/60 when accounting for shorthanded goals. Translation: his top-end penalty killing output is nearly twice as good of what you would want from a PK1 center. Even this season, with a much worse St. Louis team, Suter’s penalty killing performance has come out to a net goal differential of -5.49/60, which is still better than:
- Luke Glendening (-7.54/60)
- Nico Hischier (-6.46/60)
- Connor Brown (-6.35/60)
- Dawson Mercer (-5.93/60)
So, Pius Suter would be an expected improvement over all of the Devils’ top four penalty killing forwards by minutes killed this season. I have argued on many occasions that Nico Hischier would be better served killing fewer penalties and playing more offensive situations at five-on-five, and an acquisition like Suter would be perfect for that. He might not be a 50 or 60-point scorer, but he is effective in his minutes and can handle a shutdown role while still contributing 15-25 goals. Suter’s contract runs through 2027, and his cap hit is only $4.13 million. He is extremely affordable and would be able to give the Devils a Hughes-Hischier-Suter-Glass center lineup, perhaps with more of an ability to use Jack Hughes on Hischier’s wing in must-score situations.
Target #2: Morgan Frost, C, Calgary Flames
Like Pius Suter, Morgan Frost is under contract through next season, though his cap hit comes in a bit higher at $4.38 million. However, he is a few years younger and less defensively polished. He wins a lot more in the faceoff dot than Suter, but he does not play the penalty kill and relies a bit too much on the power play for his point production. In 58 games for Calgary this season, Frost has 12 goals and 15 assists, though his career high is 19 goals and 27 assists for 46 points in the 2022-23 season under John Tortorella in Philadelphia. With Frost heading towards unrestricted free agency, I wonder if the Calgary Flames would be willing to part ways with him, as things have not really gone too well for them since acquiring Farabee and Frost.
I would be more on board with acquiring Suter than Frost, but Frost would still be a welcome addition. I think his skillset is more of a winger than that of a center, as his offensive chance generation is weak but he has the skill to score when given the chances. Historically, he has positive defensive impacts, but Calgary has been pretty weak in all three zones this season. Frost might be a good choice as a left wing for a player like Jack Hughes, who benefits from having a winger who can win more than 50% of his faceoff draws and deflect pucks into the net. Over the last three seasons, 10 of Frost’s 39 goals have come by a tip or deflection, per HockeyViz. This season, the Devils are one of the worst teams in the league at deflecting pucks into the net with 17 goals on 23.7 expected deflection goals.
Target #3: Morgan Barron, C/LW, Winnipeg Jets
Under contract with the Winnipeg Jets for another season at a cap hit of $1.85 million, Morgan Barron is a great bottom six player who can add a ton of size with positive two-way impacts. He is not going to light the scoresheet up by any means, but he has had an on-ice goals for percentage of 53.14% in his five years in Winnipeg. This season, the 6’4” and 220 pound Barron has picked up some centering duties, winning 200 of 422 draws while putting up seven goals and 10 assists through 49 games, playing about 12 and a half minutes per game.
Barron, 27, is the perfect age to become a fourth-line regular for a team like the New Jersey Devils. He is physical without taking a ton of penalties (104 PIMs in 305 career games), he can win a decent amount of faceoffs (48.0% of 820 career draws), and he can play both center and wing. While I appreciated the Nick Bjugstad trade, the Devils need a younger presence on their fourth line who can still be counted on to be around in 3-5 years. He may not be as established of a penalty killer as Pius Suter, minutes-wise, but he can be relied on for PK2 duties at the very least, and he can still take some of those minutes away from Nico Hischier (especially if Cody Glass also starts to take more of those situations). Last season, Barron killed 89:48 and had a net goal differential of -4.67/60 on the penalty kill, while he has a -5.74/60 net differential in 94:09 this season.
Target #4: Mackie Samoskevich, RW, Florida Panthers
Due a new contract in July 2026, the Florida Panthers might be hard-pressed to convince the 23-year old winger to take less money to continue playing in a bottom six role. After being scratched for all but four games of their 2025 Stanley Cup run, Samoskevich took the league minimum salary to remain with Florida this season. His ice time has not increased much, and he has had an unlucky shot. Now entering an arbitration year, he is going to have to start making a name for himself, and the Florida top nine will be even tougher to crack consistently with Matthew Tkachuk back from LTIR.
This season, Samoskevich has six goals and 15 assists in 57 games. In his career, he has been a very poor finisher, though his two-way impacts are positive and he has drawn a ton of penalties. Samoskevich has the highest CF% on the Florida Panthers (56.93) and the third-best xGF% (55.01), the second-most hits at five-on-five (102), and the second-most penalties drawn (24). I was really disappointed when Samoskevich was selected five spots before Chase Stillman in 2021, but maybe the Devils could afford to give Samoskevich more of a role than the Panthers have been able to.
Group 2 — Under the Radar
Target #1: John Leonard, LW, Detroit Red Wings/Grand Rapids Griffins
Talk about someone who is too good for the AHL.
I first mentioned John Leonard, a native of Westwood, New Jersey, back in June when I wrote about AHLers the Devils should target during the offseason. Leonard, a free agent then, signed with Detroit. With Grand Rapids, Leonard has 26 goals and 14 assists in 32 games this season, with his pace skyrocketing up from his 36-goal, 61-point season from Charlotte last season.
Nobody on the Utica Comets has 26 points. But Leonard, a 27-year old winger, nearly doubles Brian Halonen’s 21 points in similar games played while also having four points in nine NHL games for the Red Wings. In those nine NHL games, Leonard also has six blocked shots and eight hits: he’s trying in all areas. In the AHL, per AHL Tracker, Leonard has an on-ice goals for percentage of 54.3% at five-on-five. He has played some shorthanded minutes, creating two shorthanded goals while only allowing two power play goals against. And with the net empty, Grand Rapids has scored twice and allowed three empty netters with Leonard on the ice.
If you want a “make something happen” third-line winger, John Leonard could be that guy. And shooting 23.2% while getting 3.5 shots on goal per game, with only five of his 40 points being secondary assists, it’s very difficult to argue that his production is not a true sign of his ability.
At 27, if Detroit is not willing to give Leonard regular ice time, I cannot imagine they would ask for a ton in a trade. But every time Leonard has played in the NHL, he has tracked like a middle-six winger. Give him a chance with regular ice time, and the Devils might have their unlikely local native story.
Target #2: Josh Samanski, C/LW, Edmonton Oilers/Bakersfield Condors
Fresh off of a two-point performance in five games for Team Germany at the Winter Olympics, Josh Samanski could use a team with more openings for ice time than the Edmonton Oilers. The undrafted center has two points in five games for Edmonton this season, but his path to the NHL right now is by getting some fourth line minutes as an injury fill-in. Unlike Leonard, though, Samanski is young. At only 23 and under contract through 2027, the Oilers could very well be holding onto him for next season.
That does not mean nobody should be asking about him. Per AHL tracker, Samanski has the 20th-best five-on-five on-ice goals for percentage among centers who have played 15 or more AHL games this season (59.6%). With the Condors, Samanski has 28 points in 39 games, though he has not been much of a goal scorer. Prior to signing with Edmonton, he had 40 points in 52 games for the Straubing Tigers of the DEL last season. In the NHL, he has won 16 of 27 draws, and his 6’2”, 195-pound frame at center is a solid fit for a playmaking or checking role.
Group 3 — Longshots, One Way or Another
Target #1: Matvei Michkov, RW, Philadelphia Flyers
Yeah, yeah, I know. But if Rick Tocchet and the Flyers are going to misuse Matvei Michkov to this extent, I cannot imagine that his representation is particularly happy with his situation and may welcome a trade. Regardless of the state of that relationship, the New Jersey Devils need one thing above all: skill, and Michkov has it.
Would they have to pay Philadelphia a premium to trade for Michkov? Surely.
Would it be worth it?
For a player as skilled as Michkov, at his age, there are not many limits to what I would be okay with the Devils giving up to get him. They could give Philadelphia two first-round picks (with some level of protection for 2026), Briere’s choice of any prospect not in the NHL, and a non-core NHL player, and I would be happy. You get the picture: unless the Devils miss the playoffs and win the Draft Lottery, they are not likely to get a player as talented as Michkov.
It’s a huge bet, undoubtedly. Michkov has well-documented defensive struggles in the NHL, his coach has called him out for being out of shape, and he has regressed in his second season at 21 years old. But with this Devils roster, I am beginning to have a bit of a “go big or go home” sort of attitude. Michkov is still on an ELC, and will still be on it next season. I think the Devils need another source of top-level skill, but they will not be able to add an established top-line winger with their contract situation. They need to go young. Would you not want to see what Jack Hughes could do with a younger winger with as much potential as Matvei Michkov?
I do.
Target #2:Jason Robertson, LW, Dallas Stars
If there’s ever anyone to throw the kitchen sink at in a trade, it’s Jason Robertson.
Robertson is in an arbitration year of restricted free agency this offseason. The Dallas Stars should not trade him in the midst of a season where they are in contention for the Stanley Cup, but I think he is worth mentioning. As of now, Robertson is second on the team in points with 33 goals and 35 assists in 54 games, as he already has about as many shots through 59 games as he had in all of last season. Robertson has not missed a game since 2021-22, when he missed eight games, and he is on track for about 95 points this season. If the Devils had a winger like Robertson next to Jack Hughes, we could see the kind of scoring heights from the team’s top offensive center that fans have been hoping for since the 2022-23 season.
It would be a very high acquisition cost to get Robertson, and there is no guarantee Dallas will even move him. He has been in general rumors and whispers for awhile, though, and I would be happy if any Devils general manager kicked the tires there. Dallas is looking for a right-handed offensive defenseman who can handle top pairing minutes, and the Devils have one in Dougie Hamilton. Right now, Dallas has three lefties playing over 23 minutes a game in Heiskanen, Lindell, and Harley, while their righties all play between 15 and 17 minutes per game, with their leading right-handed scorer on defense being Alex Petrovic with 9 points in 51 games. Pairing Dougie Hamilton with Miro Heiskanen or Esa Lindell could give them ridiculous top four pairings, as Hamilton has recently shown that his goal scoring ways might not be in the rear view mirror. Over his last 16 appearances (i.e. since Keefe stopped using him as a defensive defenseman), Dougie has three goals and 11 assists, which rates to a 15-goal, 72-point pace per 82 games.
If the Stars preferred a younger return, Robertson is one of the few players in the league I would also include Simon Nemec in a trade for. Likewise, I would have no issue with including players such as Anton Silayev, Lenni Hameenaho, Seamus Casey, or any other prospect the Stars would want in return for a player as good as Robertson. But, since Dallas is in Cup contention mode, I imagine they would like to add more players who can contribute to them in a playoff run. On the other end of things, Robertson would command a lot of money (I imagine $12-13 million) from 2026-27 and beyond, and the Devils may even need to look for a way to shed salary on top of Hamilton if they were to acquire him.
Final Words and Your Thoughts
I know this an awkward time to suggest any sort of “buying” moves, but it is clear that the Devils do not just have a coaching problem, they have a roster problem. Aside from a few players who have the ability to score and impact the game on both ends of the ice, the roster has far too many offensive passengers and players paid to pay defense who are apparently not quite good enough at doing so consistently. Unfortunately, I do not have a lot of faith in the 2026 unrestricted free agency class, and I question how much the Devils can actually improve there. Trades are the best path this team has out of their issues, but not necessarily in the sense that they should sell players like Dougie off for low returns and draft picks. I still have not recovered from the Devils only getting second and third-round picks for Tyler Toffoli when I argued beforehand that I would prefer re-signing Toffoli to taking a late first-rounder for him. Fitzgerald didn’t even get that much for him. I said then:
Making a rash move like trading Tyler Toffoli for the shiny object of a first-round pick, which could very well turn into the next Chase Stillman — just because the Devils are only hanging around in striking distance of a playoff spot with their top offensive player out of the lineup — would be an insane way to let the team’s stars know that management is serious about winning a Stanley Cup.
Tyler Toffoli might be past the age of a max-length extension, but that does not mean the team’s top scorer would presently be better utilized in a trade for futures. Toffoli has struggled at times, but trading him would be punting the season. At that point, you might as well tell Jack and Jonas not to bother returning from their injury. You might as well fire Lindy Ruff and let Travis Green hack around the bench for 35 games and not do a better job.
Do you think Nico Hischier or Jack Hughes would find it acceptable that management gave up on the season? How long would it be until they gave up on management and requested trades? These guys are in the primes of their lives and careers — and the Eastern Conference Stanley Cup Finalist in 2023 had 92 standings points, getting in on the last game of the season.
A pure teardown and rebuild is still not appropriate for this roster. Jack Hughes was just the best skater at the best-on-best Olympics, in my opinion, on a minute-per-minute basis. Shift in, shift out, he generally looked like the best player on the ice. Nico Hischier and Timo Meier just looked good for Switzerland and Meier has looked like the monster they traded for since returning to New Jersey. Simon Nemec looked awesome at the Olympics in top pairing minutes all the way to an unlikely path to the Bronze Medal Game and Luke Hughes looked great in his first game back last night in St. Louis.
This is not about making the playoffs this season. The team is so far out of it that they would probably need to win 18 of their remaining 22 games to make the playoffs. It’s a one-in-one-thousand shot at this point, so there is not much need to waste ink about whether the Devils are keeping pace with wins and losses among teams above them. It doesn’t matter what other teams do, the Devils need to win games. On the other hand, I am starting to look at top-10 prospects in the 2026 Draft. It’s just where they’ve ended up.
This is about making an honest effort to the core players on the roster that the team is serious about winning. Even if they do not finish this regular season in a playoff spot, wasting hockey games not caring about putting the team into a position to contend is a bad message. Whether that means coaching changes or switching out some of the supporting players for different ones, the team should continue to try fixes that do not involve trading those core players away until they get into a run of good hockey that can either pull off the impossible or get something better going into next season.
I will say that I think the Devils should look for young players. The supporting cast on the current roster skews on the older side, and it may be that too many different guys are aging and can maybe still succeed on another team, but not on one with so many teammates on the older side of 30. I have seen the Steven Stamkos rumor surface again, but it would be a risk. It is not necessarily a move I would recommend now, but I was not against it when it was first talked about a few months ago, when the Devils were winning games. He is a goal scorer and the Devils need more of them, but I would not be looking for more players any older than Pius Suter in this year’s trade deadline. Maybe, after shaking out their offseason cap situation and seeing where the roster stands then, it would make more sense.
But what do you think of these trade option ideas? Are there any more you can think of? What do you think of the resurfacing Stamkos rumor? Leave your thoughts in the comments below, and thanks for reading.
