New Jersey Devils linked to Jacob Markstrom, Chris Tanev

Pierre LeBrun floated the idea of the Devils chasing a big package from the Flames. Should they?

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The Calgary Flames are expected to be one of the bigger sellers leading up to the trade deadline.

They have already moved on from the likes of Nikita Zadorov and Elias Lindholm. New GM Craig Conroy is only scratching the surface with those moves.

Veteran defender Chris Tanev is very likely to be traded while Noah Hanifin (if he won’t re-sign) and Jacob Markstrom could also be dealt in the coming weeks.

Pierre LeBrun recently linked the Devils to a couple of those players, wondering if Tom Fitzgerald – looking for an upgrade in goal and a reliable defenseman, seemingly in that order – might push for a package featuring Tanev *and* Markstrom.

Excerpt via The Athletic:

If the Devils think they have any chance of still making the playoffs (I think they do), they’ve got the cap room with Dougie Hamilton and his $9 million cap hit on long-term injured reserve. Do they take a swing at a Markstrom-Tanev package?

The goalie situation is pressing in New Jersey. Odds are, the Devils make a goalie trade ahead of any D trade, from what I can gather. Sources around the league say they do indeed keep calling around on goalies. And I don’t think they’re looking at rentals, either. That’s why Markstrom could be among those on their radar.

There’s a lot to get to here as you could make strong cases for and against this type of deal.

The glass half full approach is that the Devils remain firmly in the playoff hunt despite dealing with an insane amount of injuries and horrendous goaltending all season long.

If they can upgrade on defense, and in goal, while getting some bodies back (Jack Hughes’ return is imminent, Timo Meier recently rejoined the team, etc.), things could turn around in a hurry.

The Eastern Conference is also wide open this season. Specifically, the Metro Division bracket. The Rangers own a negative goal differential at 5v5 and the Hurricanes can’t get a save.

If that’s the cream of the crop, the Devils should still feel like there’s a path to a deep run if they can get in.

The chances of making noise with a stabilizer like Tanev, and MoneyPuck’s No. 6 netminder in terms of Goals Saved Above Expected, are certainly much higher.

And, best of all, the Dougie Hamilton injury has opened up a golden opportunity for the Devils.

There is no salary cap in the playoffs. If the Devils are cap compliant on the final day of the regular season, they can activate any players they want for the playoffs, per PuckPedia.

That means, if the Devils can make the dollars work, they could add a Tanev + Markstrom package and still be able to activate Dougie Hamilton for the playoffs.

For fun, that would allow the Devils to ice a lineup such as this for Game 1: