5 Players the Devils Should Avoid in Free Agency

The New Jersey Devils would be best off avoiding some of the top UFAs in a weak year for free agency.

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Today marks one week until NHL free agency begins. The New Jersey Devils are reportedly active on the trade market, where I expect them to make most of their moves, and that's probably the smart play since it's a weak year for UFAs.

I still expect the Devils to scour free agency to improve their depth, but they could get in trouble if they target some of the top UFAs in this year's class. Here are five players they should avoid when free agency begins on July 1.

Brock Boeser

The Devils have been linked to Brock Boeser as a trade target in past years, and I can understand why. Despite his flaws, he's a plus finisher and has one of the best shots in the NHL. He's averaged 30 goals per 82 games for his career, so it's easy to see why he'd appeal to the Devils' front office.

While the Devils could use a finisher like Boeser, the cons outweigh the pros. He's one of the worst skaters in the NHL and struggles in transition, so he'd essentially have to be glued to Jack Hughes' wing for him to find success.

He probably could succeed for the first couple of years of his contract, but Boeser isn't likely to age well on a seven-year deal worth potentially over $8 million annually. It wouldn't make much sense to get out of Ondřej Palát's contract and sign Boeser for seven years and $56 million total. That'd be another inefficient use of cap space by general manager Tom Fitzgerald.

The good news is that I haven't seen anyone link the Devils to Boeser in free agency, so perhaps that ship has sailed. They would be better off finding the necessary scoring upgrades through the trade market.

Brad Marchand

I know I will catch some heat for this one, but I'm not keen on the Devils pursuing Brad Marchand in free agency. This isn't to say they couldn't use a player like Marchand on their roster. They certainly could, but some of the numbers being thrown around for Marchand would give me pause about pursuing him.

Whether it's Elliotte Friedman or other top NHL insiders, there's speculation that Marchand could earn $8 million or slightly north of that on a four-year deal. Maybe that's just the rumor mill being the rumor mill, but I'd have significant concerns about pursuing Marchand on a four-year contract at that price.

Marchand still does many things at a high level, but he's 37 and showing some signs of slowing down. His skating is not what it used to be, and his production has gradually declined over the last three seasons.

The real issue is term. I wouldn't even think twice about giving Marchand a two-year contract. That's a no-brainer, but if NHL insiders are talking about him getting three or even four years, that probably means some teams would do it.