New Jersey Devils mailbag: On goaltending solutions, deadline trade bait & more

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The New Jersey Devils are an unmitigated disaster right now. They continue to lose game after game while conceding goals in bulk.

With the team struggling mightily, and a few days before the next game, I thought now would be a good time to change things up and open the floor for your questions.

Let’s get into it!

Q: Depending on where we fall in the draft, what would you give up for Matthew Tkachuk, since he apparently is unhappy in Calgary? Assuming a deal for him would be in the offseason.

There are layers to this one. In a vacuum, I would give up a lot for Matthew Tkachuk. High picks, former 1st round picks (Chase Stillman, Shakir Mukhamadullin), roster pieces, the whole nine yards.

Tkachuk is somewhat of a unicorn in that he plays the old school game but remains elite in the modern era. He drives play, he scores a lot of goals around the net, he’s a fantastic playmaker, and might well be the best below the dots player in the league. Oh, and he plays with bite. He’s everything you want in a player and, at 24, is someone who could fit in with New Jersey’s core long-term.

All that being said, I think the Tkachuk noise has been overblown. Tkachuk did have some concerns about his role last season. He wanted to play more and with better players. Well, now he routinely skates on a top line with Johnny Gaudreau and Elias Lindholm. He is producing more than a point per game, their on-ice numbers are flat-out elite, and the Flames very much look like a competitive team.

If the Flames are ready to spend big on Tkachuk – as they should be – I don’t see much reason for him to want to leave; and I certainly don’t see any reason the Flames should be looking to move him.