Although most fans knew it was coming, it’s never easy seeing a fan-favorite walk out the door. Yesterday, the report dropped that the New Jersey Devils traded Brian Boyle to the Nashville Predators for a 2019 second-round pick. Boyle will become a free agent in the offseason so moving him for any type of assets was beneficial to the organization.

General manager Ray Shero gave this quote regarding Brian Boyle and his tenure in New Jersey, “We want to thank Brian for his time here, as he was a big part in helping establish the culture we now have in place. His leadership, dedication, and determination served as an inspiration to the entire organization, on and off the ice. We wish him, his wife, Lauren, son, Declan, and daughter, Isabella the best of luck in Nashville.” Brian also took to Twitter to sent out thanks to the Devils organization and the entire fan base.

Now for the actual trade itself, it was a move that will help both teams with their plans for the rest of the season. Nashville needed to find some grit and a net-front presence for the power play, which is exactly what Boyle will bring to their team. Boyle has 19 points in 47 games (13g, 6a). Of those 19 points, 8 of them came while on the power play (6g, 2a).

Even though the second-round pick from Nashville will be towards the end of the second round, being able to have three picks in the first two rounds puts the Devils in a nice spot moving forward. They can potentially package a pair of those picks to move up for a player they really want, or keep them and just have three players from the first two rounds. They could even trade back and gain more draft equity.

There is even a possibility that the Devils bring back Boyle in the offseason, which would mean they received a second-round pick for free. All in all, getting that high of a return for a fourth-line player was a great move by Shero, and hopefully a standard of return on future trades. Best of luck in Nashville Boyle, you deserve it.