The Devils made some significant changes to their NHL roster on Day 2 of the NHL Draft. They traded away forward Alexander Holtz and goaltender Akira Schmid to Las Vegas and sent blueliner John Marino to Utah.
In exchange, the Devils acquired forward Paul Cotter from Vegas and several draft picks (two second-round picks and a third).
Acquired:
- F Paul Cotter
- Utah’s 2nd-round pick (49th overall) in 2024: goalie Mikhail Yegorov
- Edmonton’s 2nd-round pick in 2025
- Vegas’ 3rd-round pick in 2025
Out:
- D John Marino
- F Alexander Holtz
- G Akira Schmid
- Colorado’s 5th-round pick in 2024
Takeaway:
Cotter, 24, will help bolster the Devils’ bottom-6 makeup. He’s a fast, big (6-foot-2, 213 pounds), physical power forward that is good in the defensive zone. He also has some offensive upside and great hands, scoring 13 goals in 55 games during the 2022-23 season and posting 25 points (7g-18a) last season in 76 contests.
Cotter gives the Devils something they really covet, which is a defensively reliable bottom-6 player that can add toughness, size, speed and grit to the lineup. He played on Vegas’ third line most of last year, but at times did log second-line duties. And with two years left on his $775 contract, he comes at a great price.
“In the vision we have to build our roster that I’ve talked about since the end of last season, we want a different looking bottom-6. Paul Cotter fills that with his skating, speed, and physicality,” general manager Tom Fitzgerald said. “We are betting on Cotter’s upside, and he’s just scratched the surface of what he can do.
“With that being said, we have to give up to get a Cotter, and Holtz would have been the odd man out in our bottom six group.”
The Devils have also traded away defensemen Kevin Bahl (in the Jacob Markstrom deal) and Marino. Meaning they have some holes to fill on the blue line. They currently have nearly $20 million in projected cap space with July 1 free agency forthcoming. It could be a very busy and interesting day for the Devils.
