The New Jersey Devils made several splashes on the league’s March 8 trade deadline. Unfortunately, given the position the team finds themselves in (six points back of a playoff spot), profiling more as a seller made sense. The Devils did exactly that, with a hint of buying, setting themselves well for not only this offseason, but also beyond.
So, what exactly did the team do? How did they fare in each deal? Check out everything you may have missed below.
Trade No. 1 – Tyler Toffoli to Winnipeg
The writing was on the wall. With the Devils quickly spiraling out of playoff contention, the sale of their pending unrestricted free agents was likely. The first step in that equation, the movement of the team’s leading goal scorer, Tyler Toffoli.
After the firing of head coach Lindy Ruff, general manager Tom Fitzgerald said in a press conference that he was not shopping Toffoli, which was clearly different than saying he was not listening. Later in that press conference, Fitzgerald also confirmed Toffoli’s representative were chasing after a contract extension with a longer term than the Devils were comfortable with. Add in the previously mentioned dilemma of the Devils being on the outside looking in of a playoff race, not only did a trade make the most sense, but appeared extremely likely.
New Jersey decided pulling the trigger on a deal that sent their leading goal scorer, who performed terrifically for them during the season, to Winnipeg, in exchange for two draft picks; a second-round selection in 2025 and a third-round selection in 2024. Not that this needed to be confirmed, but in his post-deadline press conference Fitzgerald confirmed that this was the best the team was offered. Bottom-line, when you have a pending unrestricted free who an extension was not likely with, you need to move him for something. Fitzgerald did exactly that.
A second-and-third-round pick on the surface may appear underwhelming. However, when you look elsewhere around the league, it makes more sense. Alexander Wennberg, who plays a more valuable position than Toffoli, netted a second and conditional fourth-round pick, while Anthony Mantha also returned a second-and-fourth-round selection. And, to add to this, second-and-third-round picks are not weak assets by any means. Earlier-round picks like such can be repurposed in movable assets for NHL-ready talent in other trades.
Another piece of this equation is the fact Toffoli was just acquired this past offseason. The Devils sent forward Yegor Sharangovich and a 2023 third-round pick to bring in the veteran winger Toffoli. In Calgary, Sharangovich has excelled from a goal-scoring standpoint. However, he is shooting a career-best and likely unsustainable mark of 18.8%. Not to mention, he is doing that with ice time that would not have had been available to him in New Jersey. Additionally, Calgary had to re-sign him after coming over from the Devils. This is something New Jersey did not want to allocate the resources to do. All things considered, the Devils were able to turn the former fifth-round pick into a couple early-round selections.
Lastly, the Devils did retain 50% of Toffoli’s salary in the deal. Given the plentiful of cap space the team had due to the long-term injured reserve, this retention has very little impact on the team’s flexibility. This especially given that the contract is completely off the Devils’ books by season’s end. The most notable impact it has is the occupation of one of the three salary retention slots NHL teams have available to them. However, again, that will replenish at season’s end. So, in reality, there is zero downside to retaining salary in this situation.
Full Trade Details
- New Jersey receives 2024 third-round draft pick and 2025 second-round draft pick.
- Winnipeg receives Tyler Toffoli (50% retained).
Grade: B
Trade No. 2 – Devils Acquire Jake Allen
It has been well documented that the Devils need goaltending help. Arguably the main reason for the team’s demise this season is the fact that the Devils own the league’s second-lowest team save percentage in the NHL at .883. Well, general manager Tom Fitzgerald said enough is enough and made a move to bring in a veteran goaltender who, as a plus, will factor in come next year as well, according to Fitzgerald.
Jake Allen was acquired from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for a 2025 third-round pick that can upgrade to a second if two things occur: Allen plays in 40 or more games next season and the team he is playing for makes the playoffs. Since 2019-20, Allen has appeared in 40-or-more games once over that five-year span. Further, as general manager Tom Fitzgerald confirmed in his post-deadline press conference, the Devils are expected to go “big-game hunting” in the goalie market this offseason. This indicates that Allen will likely be slotted into a backup role come next season, diminishing his chance to hit the 40-game threshold.
As for what the Devils are getting in the 33-year-old Allen, he has posted meager traditional numbers so far this season (.892 save percentage and 3.65 goals against average). However, he has done so behind a woefully bad Montreal defense. The Canadiens’ defense has given up the third-most expected goals per 60 minutes (xGA/60) in the league this season. Despite this, Allen only still owns a positive goals saved above expected (GSAx) of 0.8. Meaning, he is playing a lot better than his season .892 save percentage indicates. For those curious, the three goaltenders to play for the Devils this season own GSAx figures of -2.01 (Akira Schmid), -7.26 (Nico Daws), and -12.09 (Vitek Vanecek).
Expanding more on the porous Canadiens’ defense that Allen has had to play behind, this has been the trend since he arrived before the 2020-21 season. Specifically, the last three seasons, they have given up the second-most, the most, and the third-most xGA/60. Unsurprisingly, Allen has a career .899 save percentage with Montreal, this compared to the .913 mark he posted across seven seasons in St. Louis. With a better defense in front, one should expect Allen is play much better and closer to the league-average goalie he has been over his 11-year NHL career.
The most noteworthy aspect of this deal is Montreal retaining 50% of Allen’s salary. That knocks down the annual average value to an extremely manageable $1.925 million figure for not only the rest of this season, but also next year. Allen is set to be an unrestricted free agent after the 2024-25 season. Paying an established netminder below $2 million is a huge win for the Devils.
In general manager Tom Fitzgerald’s post-deadline press conference, he indicated that Allen will be one of the two goalies relied upon next season. Pairing him with a “big-game” level goaltender such as a Jacob Markström, Juuse Saros, or Linus Ullmark quickly propels a Devils goaltending tandem to the status of the best in the league. Something that would be made possible by the minimal cap hit of Allen.
Note, Allen will wear No. 34 for the Devils.
Full Trade Details:
- New Jersey receives Jake Allen (50% retained).
- Montreal receives conditional* 2025 third-round draft pick.
* – Upgrades to a 2025 second-round draft pick if Allen plays in 40 or more games in 2024-25 and the club that Allen plays for qualifies for the 2024-25 playoffs.
Grade: B
Trade No. 3 – Colin Miller Dealt To Winnipeg
Right before the 3:00 pm ET trade deadline, it was announced that New Jersey and Winnipeg made another deal. This time, the Devils sent defenseman Colin Miller to the Jets for a mid-round draft pick.
Miller fought some early struggles with the Devils, getting injured to begin the year and a couple healthy scratches. However, he finally settled into a steady role and gave New Jersey some really solid minutes in a sheltered, third-pair role. Something that was expected of him when he was traded to the team in the offseason.
That aforementioned trade saw the Devils acquire the 31-year-old veteran right-handed defenseman for a fifth-round pick in 2025. New Jersey was then able to use Miller for an effective 41 games and ship him back out the door for a 2026 fourth-round pick. Nothing flashy, but another unrestricted free agent that likely did not factor into their future plans that the Devils were able to get something for. Not to mention, they were able to get a pick one round better than the one they gave up just 251 days prior.
Full Trade Details:
- New Jersey receives 2026 fourth-round draft pick.
- Winnipeg receives Colin Miller.
Grade: B-plus
Trade No. 4 – Devils Swap Goalies With San Jose
In what was a trade not only announced well after the 3:00 pm ET deadline, but also a shocker, the Devils swapped goaltenders with the 15-win San Jose Sharks. New Jersey sent Vitek Vanecek to San Jose in exchange for fellow netminder Kaapo Kähkönen. The most important aspect of the deal is there is no salary retention by New Jersey. The Devils were able to clear all of Vanecek’s $3.4 million off the books for the remainder of this season and all of next year. The 27-year-old Kähkönen is an unrestricted free agent at year’s end.
After acquiring Vanecek from the Washington Capitals prior to the 2022-23 season for a second-and-third round pick in 2022, he turned in a sensational year posting a 33-win season. Vanecek also posted a career-best in save percentage (.911) and GSAx (13.28) en route to helping the Devils to their best regular season in franchise history. Unfortunately, things unraveled quickly as Vanecek regressed and has turned in one of the worst seasons of any goaltender in the league this season. His .890 save percentage is severely below the league average and his -10.67 GSAx ranks 87th of 88 qualified goalies in the NHL.
Not to mention, he has spent the last couple weeks sidelined with an injury. And, interestingly enough, general manager Tom Fitzgerald confirmed in his post-deadline press conference he is unsure Vanecek will play again this season.
In return, the Devils received pending unrestricted free agent Kaapo Kähkönen. Kähkönen has struggled mightily recently after starting off the year strong. Over his last four games, he owns an .826 save percentage including two games where he allowed seven goals. Prior to that stretch, he owned a .905 save percentage and a 2.57 GSAx. Most notably, his high-danger save percentage ranked fourth among goalies with at least 100 minutes of total ice time prior to his recent four-game struggle stretch. An area the Devils have struggled mightily this season (.766 save percentage, ranking last in the league).
For comparison sake, despite the recent rough stretch, Kähkönen’s -2.98 GSAx is better than each of Daws (-7.26) and Vanecek (-12.09) and just behind Schmid (-2.01).
The most important aspect of this deal is New Jersey got the opportunity to clear $3.4 million in cap space entering next season. This was arguably general manager Tom Fitzgerald’s best move of the day, clearing cap space and giving the team flexibility to go, as he said in his post-deadline press conference, “big-game hunting” this offseason.
Note, Kähkönen will wear No. 31 for the Devils.
Full Trade Details:
- New Jersey receives Kaapo Kähkönen.
- San Jose receives Vitek Vanecek and 2025 seventh-round draft pick.
Grade: A-minus
Final Thoughts
In his post-deadline press conference, general manager Tom Fitzgerald said what everyone was thinking. He was not counting on New Jersey being in the situation they find themselves in with only 19 games left in the season. However, given their status, the team took the right approach to the deadline.
New Jersey immediately improved how they’re set up for the future. They obtained assets for players on expiring contracts (Toffoli and Miller), improved their cap flexibility (clearing Vanecek’s contract off the books), and acquired a half of their projected 2024-25 goaltending duo on an extremely cheap contract (Jake Allen).
Weighing all this, it may not have been a flashy deadline, and while extremely disappointing the position they’re in, Fitzgerald and staff made several moves that improves the team going forward. For that reason, it should be looked upon as an efficient deadline. Specifically, one that should provide value as early as this offseason.
Final Grade: B
Statistics courtesy of Natural Stat Trick and Evolving Hockey. Trade information per CapFriendly.