Subscribe
Follow Us
The New Jersey Devils need to recoup some cap space this summer as they look to get key restricted free agent Luke Hughes locked up. And in that quest, top blue liner Dougie Hamilton could be on the move.
As RG's James Murphy reported on Tuesday, the 32-year-old has become a hot commodity on the trade market. And although the Devils aren't actively shopping him, at least four teams are interested in the veteran's services.
“Teams are calling on [Hamilton] now,” an NHL executive source told Murphy. “I heard the Leafs looked into him. They’re looking into multiple options for their blue line, and a lot of them have offensive flair. That’s their strength, so there’s a common thread with their trade targets right now, and Hamilton fits the bill.
“The Stars, Red Wings, and Mammoth have also been pushing hard to acquire a right-shot defenseman that can bolster their offense and improve their power play, so they make a ton of sense.”
Toronto, Dallas, Detroit and Utah would all greatly benefit from Hamilton's services, but any potential trade would need to go through him. Hamilton, who owned a full no-movement clause until July 1, now has modified no-trade protection. He can currently veto a trade to 10 NHL teams.
Devils' Dougie Hamilton has a huge cap hit
Besides his no-trade list, Hamilton also has the highest cap hit of any player on the Devils. He signed a massive seven-year, $63 million contract extension back in 2021, and has three seasons remaining on his deal at a $9 million AAV. That's higher than all of Timo Meier ($8.8 million AAV), Jack Hughes ($8 million AAV) and Jesper Bratt ($7.875 million AAV).
“Things as we know can change really fast in the NHL and with trade talks; all it takes is one call and voila! But there are a few things to consider here when it comes to Hamilton,” the source told Murphy.
“First is how many of those teams are willing to and can take on his $9 million cap hit? The second thing is that the Devils aren’t out there shopping him right now, and by no means are they in a hurry to trade him. Don’t forget, Jonathan Kovacevic is coming off of knee surgery, and as far as I know, he’s probably not coming back until late November/early December.”
Losing Hamilton would certainly be a huge blow to New Jersey's blue line, but it does look like Hughes is preparing to take over top powerplay duties in due time. Still, Hamilton stands 6-foot-6 and 229-pounds, and the value he brings is nearly irreplaceable.
The former ninth overall selection in the 2011 NHL Draft has eclipsed the 40-point mark eight times in his excellent career, including an incredible season that saw him score 74 points in 82 games back in 2022-23.
While there doesn't seem to be any imminent resolution here, it would be truly quite interesting if the Devils did decide to move on from the franchise cornerstone — and the return could be even more intriguing.
