Johnathan Kovacevic a great insurance policy for the New Jersey Devils

The 26-year-old has established himself as a solid NHL defender over the past couple of seasons.

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New Jersey Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald made some noise on the eve of free agency, acquiring defenseman Johnathan Kovacevic from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for a 4th round pick in 2026.

That move was quickly forgotten, so to speak, as the Devils embarked on a $50+ million shopping spree the very next day – which featured the signings of two of the top UFA defensemen available.

While those moves rightfully garnered a lot of attention, the Kovacevic trade is worth circling back to. It was a sneaky-good piece of business by the Devils.

Kovacevic is a 6’5’, 220+ pound right-shot defenseman who has established himself as a solid NHLer over the past couple of years.

He appeared in 62 games for the Canadiens in 2023-24 and garnered strong results on a subpar team.

Of nine Canadiens defensemen to log at least 400 minutes of ice at 5v5, Kovacevic ranked 3rd in shot suppression and 4th in expected goals against on a per 60 basis.

He also posted a blueline-leading +10 goal differential in that gamestate while posting the best mark of the bunch in terms of the rate at which goals were allowed.

In terms of defensive impact across all situations, Kaiden Guhle was the only Canadiens defenseman who posted a higher GAR.

Kovacevic is someone who can give you reliable minutes on a depth pairing. He is also quite adept at killing penalties.