Devils Bottom-6 Trade Targets: Gourde, Evans & More
In addition to top-9 scoring, who could the New Jersey Devils target to improve their bottom 6 at the trade deadline?
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Earlier this week, we looked at potential top-nine trade targets for the New Jersey Devils from the 2025 free-agent class. Today, we'll look at some bottom-six options from 2025 UFAs that could interest the organization.
General manager Tom Fitzgerald mentioned to The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun earlier this week that he'd like to add some fourth-line help in addition to upgrading the top nine. Who could he target? Let's take a look.
Nico Sturm
With Curtis Lazar out indefinitely and Nathan Bastian still sidelined, adding fourth-line help might be in the cards. One player the Devils could target is San Jose Sharks center Nico Sturm, who has four goals and eight points in 25 games this season.
Sturm is excellent in the dot, winning 63.2 percent of his faceoffs after winning just over 60 percent a season ago. He'd also add some size at 6-foot-3, 209 pounds, something Fitzgerald seems to want in a bottom-six addition.
You might think that because Sturm is a fourth-line center, his defensive game is his strong suit. That isn't the case, however, as his even-strength offense has been worth a goals above replacement (GAR) of 9.2 over since the 2022-23 season.
Sturm likely wouldn't cost much more than a mid- to late-round pick, and depending on how long Lazar is out, he could be one of the Devils' top targets for the fourth line.
Jake Evans
There haven't been too many bright spots for the Montreal Canadiens this season, but Jake Evans is one of them. The center/right wing has five goals and 14 points in 27 games, putting him on pace for 15 goals and 43 points.
Evans is a solid two-way forward who can chip in some offense. He isn't overly physical but will throw his body around from time to time; he recorded 86 hits in 82 games last season.
The one "red flag" with Evans is he's shooting 20.8 percent to begin this season. He might cost a bit more than your typical bottom-six forward if he continues pacing for 43 points, but it's not guaranteed that his scoring rate will continue since he's shooting nearly 21 percent.
Lars Eller went for a third- and fifth-round pick just a few weeks ago. Evans could cost similar, so he should be one of the Devils’ targets.
Penguins Forwards
Though the Pittsburgh Penguins have been playing better lately, they will still likely be sellers at the trade deadline. At least for bottom-six forwards, they might be ideal trade partners for the Devils.
The forwards the Devils could target are Blake Lizotte, Jesse Puljujärvi and New Jersey native Drew O'Connor. Let's start with Puljujärvi, who's had a bit of a resurgence in Pittsburgh this season.
Puljujärvi has totaled eight points in 21 games — a 31-point pace over 82 games. More importantly, his underlying metrics look solid. He has an expected goals share of 52.2 percent, and his even-strength impacts have been positive:
Lizotte missed some time with an injury earlier this season, but he's been on a tear lately. He has six goals and nine points in 13 games — a 38-goal, 57-point pace over 82 games. However, that's unlikely to last since he's shooting 37.5 percent.
Regression is coming for Lizotte, but his defensive impacts have been excellent this season; his even-strength defense has been worth a GAR of 2.2. His trade value is probably sky-high right now, but that should change once his shooting percentage regresses.
Finally, there's O'Connor, who played for Delbarton High School in Morristown. He's having a solid season, with nine points in 29 games — a 25-point pace over 82 games. He totaled 16 goals and 33 points a season ago, so we know he has more offense than he's shown so far in 2024-25.
O'Connor and Puljujärvi are strictly wingers, while Lizotte can play down the middle and on the wing. Either way, the Penguins might be ideal trade partners for the Devils and Fitzgerald when looking for bottom-six help. Lizotte's price tag should be similar to Eller's, and it’ll likely be a bit less for O'Connor and Puljujärvi.
Yanni Gourde
Yanni Gourde's production has fallen in the last season and a half, as he finished with 11 goals and 33 points last season and is on pace for 36 points in 2024-25. Still, there's a pretty useful player here.
Per Corey Sznajder's tracked data, Gourde still does everything well. He's good in transition and drives possession well, something that could be a big boost for the bottom six:
Fitzgerald said he'd like to add a fourth-line center, but what about a third-line center that pushes someone down the lineup? Erik Haula has played well this season, but imagine a center group of Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, Gourde and Haula? That'd be tough to beat in the playoffs.
The Devils have three second-round picks in the 2025 draft, and I imagine it'd take one of them to acquire Gourde, plus another pick and/or B-level prospect.
The one issue with Gourde is his cap hit of $5.166 million. I'm unsure how much deadline cap space the Devils will have, but even with retention, he might be too expensive if the plan is to add a top-six or middle-six winger. Fitzgerald could look for cheaper options instead.
Nick Bjugstad
Utah HC has made strides this season, but it still looks like they'll be sellers at the trade deadline. One player who could interest the Devils is Nick Bjugstad, who has revived his career over the last couple of seasons.
Bjugstad has four goals and eight points in 18 games this season — a pace of 36 points over 82 games. He finished with 22 goals and 44 points a season ago and was one of the Arizona Coyotes' better scorers.
Bjugstad would add size to the bottom six at 6-foot-6, 209 pounds, and some scoring pop. He's not great on draws, with a career faceoff percentage below 50 percent. But I still like the scoring upside he'd add to the bottom six.
The Edmonton Oilers acquired Bjugstad for a third-round pick and Michael Kesselring at the 2023 trade deadline, and I imagine his value would be similar this year. The Devils might need some retention on his $2.1 million cap hit, but he should still be a more affordable option than Gourde, allowing them to pursue a top-nine forward.
Top-6 Scoring Should Be the Priority, But Depth Can't Hurt
At least for me, the Devils' priority should be adding a top-six/middle-six winger. Ondřej Palát isn't weighing down Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt, but they would benefit from having another scorer like Kyle Palmieri or Frank Vatrano on their line.
Plus, Lazar and Bastian are supposed to return to the lineup at some point this season. They may be enough to strengthen the bottom six, but if the opportunity to add someone on the cheap comes up and Fitzgerald thinks it'll improve the team, he shouldn't pass on it since depth can't hurt and these Devils look legit.
Advanced stats from Natural Stat Trick, Evolving Hockey