Does Nils Hoglander make sense for the New Jersey Devils with current injuries?

The New Jersey Devils have problems on the fourth line. After Curtis Lazar went down, it became apparent how little depth the Devils have at center. Justin Dowling is an interesting player in a vacuum, but having him in the lineup every night is a problem. Kurtis MacDermid, playing for Nathan Bastian, essentially adds the same amount of guts but removes 100% of Bastian’s offense. Now Tomas Tatar is reportedly injured after sustaining something on Friday evening. Tatar is not in the squad on Saturday evening, but we won’t know much more until after the game.

Once the Devils have a few days off, they could do something bold with the roster, but for now they should look at who might be available around the league. One player mentioned in rumors is Vancouver Canucks forward Nils Hoglander. It’s pretty obvious why.

The Canucks just re-signed him to a three-year deal worth $9 million in October. That was two months ago, but for most of this season he has been relegated to the fourth line. It shows immediate buyer’s remorse, and that could work in the Devils’ favor.

While the Devils were specifically not named as participants in the Canucks’ trade talks, our brothers at The Canuck Way did mention the Devils as a trade partner.

“Removing Hoglander from the Canucks would not only provide the Devils with an immediate dose of speed and injury relief, but also a young, depth player who can continue to thrive with the current group of players in New Jersey. Hoglander is only 24 and the Devils will likely buy out or trade Palat after the season.”

Jon Bailey, The Canuck Way

This is an interesting point as the Devils wouldn’t trade just for a disposable forward. Hoglander has tons of talent and deserves this contract. He also had a strange NHL career where he struggled with consistency. After two full years in the NHL, he was even sent to the AHL. He scored 24 goals last season alone, so this is a player who can build on his career so far.

But this season he was pushed to the fourth line. He has five points and two goals in 22 games. There is no way around it; he was bad.

The other problem is the Devils’ cap situation. Even with LTIR, they have very little money. The fact that Hoglander is used at full strength seems to be taboo this season. They could afford his $3 million in future years, but this year it’s hard to digest without the money flowing the other way.

The deal could happen, but would likely happen closer to the trade deadline when the Devils need to gobble up less of those dollars right away. It could also help the Devils’ offense, which consistently has issues that get them shut down.