Last week, we looked back at some of the trades general manager Tom Fitzgerald made early in his tenure as head boss of the New Jersey Devils. You can read that piece here. Part II of that series is continued below.
2021 Offseason
Trade No. 1
- Devils Acquire: Ryan Graves
- Avalanche Acquire: Mikhail Maltsev, 2021 second-round pick
As analyzed in Part I, the second-round pick the Devils shipped to Colorado was the same selection they received for Andy Greene from the New York Islanders.
Ryan Graves spent two full seasons in New Jersey following the trade. Over that time, he faired well overall, posting expected goals above replacement (xGAR) figures above 4.9 each season.
Also in the deal for Ryan Graves, Mikhail Maltsev was traded after playing 33 games with the Devils scoring six goals and nine points. After being traded, he played 23 games over two seasons with the Avalanche before signing with the Kings on a two-way deal in 2023. Maltsev played 21 games for Los Angeles’ AHL affiliate before leaving North America altogether, signing with Moscow Spartak.
The second-round pick turned into Sean Behrens who put up solid numbers at University of Denver before going pro following the 2023-24 season. In July, Daily Faceoff ranked Behrens as the Avalanche’s third-best prospect.
Grade: B+
Trade No. 2
- Devils Acquire: Christian Jaros
- Sharks Acquire: Nicholas Merkley
Following his trade to New Jersey, Christian Jaros played the role of depth defenseman for about a quarter of the season, playing 11 games. After denying a demotion to the AHL, Jaros had his contract terminated and signed in the KHL.
Merkley scored 10 points in 27 games with the Devils in 2021 before being moved to San Jose. He scored three points in nine games there prior to another trade sending him to the Rangers. After finishing the 2021-22 season with the Hartford Wolf Pack of the AHL, Merkley left to the KHL signing with Minsk Dynamo.
Grade: D+
Trade No. 3
- Devils Acquire: Future Considerations
- Sabres Acquire: Will Butcher, 2022 fifth-round pick
This was a necessary cap dump in order to sign Dougie Hamilton in the summer of 2021. Butcher played 37 games with the Sabres after the move, spending many games as a healthy scratch. He has bounced around the AHL teams of the Dallas Stars, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Minnesota Wild since then. The once promising top-four Devils defenseman now plays in the KHL at only 29 years old.
The fifth-round pick turned into defenseman Vsevolod Komarov. The 20-year-old defenseman had his breakout season in the QMJHL scoring 50 points in 38 games. He is currently playing in Rochester, the Sabres’ AHL affiliate.
Grade: C-
2022 Trade Deadline
Trade No. 1
- Devils Acquire: Jon Gillies
- Blues Acquire: Future Considerations
Gillies was acquired on the cheap when the Devils were in a goaltending crunch in 2022. He did not fare well at all. Gillies played in 19 games, winning just three of them with an .885 save percentage. He’s played with Arizona and Columbus since, playing poorly in both organizations.
The 30-year-old has played in one ECHL game this year, after not playing professionally last season.
Grade: D
Trade No. 2
- Devils Acquire: Andrew Hammond
- Canadiens Acquire: Nate Schnarr
Andrew Hammond was yet another failure of a goaltending project for the 2021-22 Devils. He was acquired on deadline day and played seven games afterwards. In those games, he went 1-5-1 with an .860 save percentage. The one win was a “Hamburgerler” masterclass in Vegas where he helped spoil their playoff hopes. After his time in New Jersey, he went overseas to Russia for just two games before retiring for good.
Nate Schnarr was acquired in the Taylor Hall deal and after a few so-so seasons with the Devils minor league affiliates, he was moved to Montreal. Schnarr put up 17 points in 47 games for the Laval Rockets before being traded at the 2023 trade deadline. He finished the season with the Kings AHL affiliate before moving to Finland last year. Schnarr was solid for the Pelicans in the Finnish Liiga scoring 50 points in 51 games in 2023-24.
Grade: D
2022 Offseason
Trade No. 1
- Devils Acquire: Vitek Vanecek, 2022 second-round pick
- Capitals Acquire: 2022 second-round pick, 2022 third-round pick
Even with Vanecek’s collapse in 2023-24, this was a great trade for the Devils. Starting with the Capitals side, they got a couple prospects out of the deal. Ryan Chesley is a solid defensive prospect who should be a bottom-four guy one day. He was ranked as the Capitals’ No. 6 prospect in their system by Daily Faceoff. Meanwhile, Alexander Suzdalev had a disappointing 2023-24 season, scoring at under a point per game in the WHL, after putting up 86 points in 66 games the year prior. He was ranked as the No. 9 prospect in the Capital’s system by Daily Faceoff.
For the Devils, Vitek Vanecek was good in year one, and bad in year two. Overall, in his time with the Devils Vanecek went 50-20-7 with a .903 save percentage and a 2.61 goals saved above expected. He was shipped off at the 2024 deadline for Kaapo Kahkonen in a cap dump.
The big piece here, and the reason this trade grades out so highly is who the Devils used the second-round pick on. That pick they got from Washington was used to select defenseman Seamus Casey. Casey broke out as a sophomore for the University of Michigan with 45 points in 40 games. Getting a shot out of camp this year, his offensive upside was on full display, scoring three goals in his first eight NHL games. However, since the Devils got healthy, with the return of Brett Pesce and Luke Hughes, Casey was sent down to Utica (AHL) to develop further.
Grade: A-
Trade No. 2
- Devils Acquire: Erik Haula
- Bruins Acquire: Pavel Zacha
Most people would say the Bruins won this trade, and from the outside they did. One team has a 27 year old budding top-six center, and the other has a 33 year old middle-six center. However, deeper analysis shows both teams got what they needed.
Boston needed a skilled top-six player at the time and that’s exactly what Pavel Zacha has been for them. The former sixth-overall pick has 41 goals and 116 total points in 160 games over the past two seasons. However, he has started out very poorly in 2024-25. His first year in Boston earned him a four-year deal at $4.75 million annually. This is a deal he certainly would not have gotten with New Jersey.
The Devils, at the time, needed the opposite. Specifically a more versatile, middle/bottom-six forward and that’s exactly what they got in Haula. While the veteran center hasn’t been quite as productive as Zacha, he’s been a solid piece to what has been a deep forward group in New Jersey. Similarly to Zacha, after his first year in New Jersey, Haula signed an extension for three-years at just over $3 million per season.
Grade: B-
Trade No. 3
- Devils Acquire: John Marino
- Penguins Acquire: Ty Smith, 2023 third-round pick
This was a great trade at the time and is still a great trade now, even after Marino’s time in New Jersey has ended. Ty Smith was the main piece going back to Pittsburgh here and he has played a total of nine NHL games since the trade. In those nine games, Smith had four points, but it wasn’t enough to keep him in the NHL. At the 2024 trade deadline Smith was flipped to the Hurricanes in the Jake Guentzel trade and was re-signed by Carolina this offseason. The 24-year-old is currently with the Chicago Wolves of the AHL.
The third-round selection was traded to the New York Rangers and used on Drew Fortescue. The-19 year-old defenseman put up eight points in 40 games for Boston College in the 2023-24 season where he is also playing this season.
During his two seasons with New Jersey Marino provided a steady defensive presence on the blueline with flashes of offense as well. In 139 games Marino scored eight goals and 43 total points along with four points in 12 playoff games. He was sent over to the Utah Hockey Club in the offseason but has been shelved after getting surgery.
Grade: A-
2023 Trade Deadline
Trade No. 1
- Devils Acquire: Timo Meier, Scott Harrington, Timur Ibragimov, Santeri Hatakka, Zachary Emond, 2024 fifth-round pick
- Sharks Acquire: Andreas Johnsson, Shakir Mukhamadullin, Fabian Zetterlund, Nikita Okhotiuk, 2023 first-round pick, 2024 second-round pick, 2024 seventh-round pick
That’s right, a lucky 13 assets were exchanged in the Timo Meier trade. Even despite Meier’s slow start to 2023-24, the early returns on this deal have been strong. Of course the main piece you get here is Timo Meier who is one of the better power forwards in the NHL. Over 82 games, Meier was on pace to score 33 goals and 62 points last season after starting with just 11 points in his first 23 games. A healthy Meier has excelled out of the gate in 2024-25, posting 11 points in 12 games.
Below are some of the other minor pieces the Devils received:
- Scott Harrington was waived right after being traded then he was claimed by Anaheim. Harrington played 17 games with the Ducks scoring three goals and an assist before leaving for Switzerland.
- Timur Ibragimov split time this past season between the ECHL and AHL for the Devils. For Utica he scored 13 points in 35 games. He since left North America and is playing in the Russian minor league.
- Zachary Emond never cracked the AHL level with the Devils and was released following the 2022-23 season.
- The fifth-round pick was traded along with John Marino for two second-round picks. With that pick, the Utah Hockey Club selected Ales Cech. The over-aged Czech defenseman scored seven points in 40 games last season in the top league in Czechia.
The last piece the Devils received is Santeri Hatakka who is a very intriguing piece. Hatakka played 12 games in New Jersey last season scoring a couple assists. In 48 games in Utica (AHL) he notched 20 points. The Fin could have a future as a bottom-pair or extra defenseman one day in New Jersey. Unfortunately, he was injured in preseason and is currently on the shelf.
Now to move onto San Jose’s pieces. Shakir Mukhamadullin was the centerpiece for the Sharks. He had a very successful first full season North American professional season. The former first-round pick was an AHL All-Star and made his NHL debut, playing three games for the Sharks. He began this season injured, but has since been sent back down to the AHL.
Fabian Zetterlund got a ton of ice time on a bad Sharks team last season and made the most of it scoring 24 goals and 44 total points. He has quickly become a fan-favorite there and is a lock for their top-six this upcoming season. On most teams, he profiles as bottom-six point producer.
Nikita Okhotiuk got consistent playing time for the Sharks before being traded to Calgary at the 2024 deadline. As a restricted-free agent the Russian defender opted to return home, signing in the KHL.
The 2023 first-round pick was 26th overall and ended up being used to select Quentin Musty who dominated the OHL in his draft plus-one. According to the Athletic, Musty is the 10th-ranked prospect in the Sharks’ strong system. The second-round pick in 2024 was flipped to Buffalo in a trade-up who then selected defenseman Adam Kleber. Kleber scored at a decent clip in the USHL during his draft year. The seventh-round pick was moved along with Radim Simek to the Red Wings for young power forward Klim Kostin. Detroit used the pick on winger Austin Baker who scored 14 points in 25 games for the US national team. Baker is set to attend Michigan State this season.
The last of the pieces shipped to San Jose was the most minor. Andreas Johnsson was the played 11 games in San Jose where he failed to score a goal before going back to Sweden last season.
Grade: B+
Trade No. 2
- Devils Acquire: Curtis Lazar
- Canucks Acquire: 2024 fourth-round pick
From an insanely complicated trade to a very simple one. Curtis Lazar played six playoff games for New Jersey in 2022-23 scoring a goal. However, his real impact came this past season where he nearly matched his career high in goals and surpassed his career high in points while playing rock solid defense on a not-so-great Devils team.
The fourth-round pick was swapped around a couple of times before eventually ending up in the hands of Philadelphia. The Flyers used the pick on center Heikki Ruohonen out of Finland. Ruohonen is playing in the USHL this season.
Grade: A
Up Next
The final part of this mini-series will be released in the coming weeks. Reminder, Part I can be read here.