It's no secret the Devils need to significantly upgrade their forward group before they become contenders again.
Newly appointed GM Ray Shero didn't hide from that when discussing the state of the team, either, and admitted it's an area that needs to be addressed.
Via the team website: "Looking at the team from the outside, since I just got here, up front is an area we'll look at. We would want to score more goals and create more offense without abandoning a defensive structure and accountability that has been in place for years."
While Shero hasn't ruled out the possibility of moving the team's 1st round pick for immediate help, it sounds as if he is unlikely to do so.
Via NJ.com: "But the philosophy is not to trade off one year that is going to hurt you three or four years down the road. In three or four years you're thinking, 'What did we do that for?' You see that.
Acquiring Phil Kessel, for example, would fill a big need right now, but moving the 6th overall pick, and potentially more, to bring him in could turn into one of those scenarios Shero mentioned.
The Devils probably won't be Stanley Cup contenders for at least three or four years, and at that point Kessel would be 31 years of age.
If he hadn't started his decline already, he wouldn't be far off, and the Devils would have traded a then 22-year-old potential star on a cheap contract to get him.
Shero seems well aware of that.
Via FireAndIce: It's got to make not just short-term sense, but longer-term sense as well because you do think at No. 6 or no matter where you pick in the first round you're going to get a real good player for a long period of time that's going to be cost effective for a little bit and that's part of the philosophy moving forward.
Today's NHL is all about drafting and developing. You can't win without home grown stars a la Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane, and the only way to get them is at the top of the draft.
You also can't win without cheap, rising stars on their first or second contracts (i.e. Brandon Saad).
After a year off to reflect on his tenure in Pittsburgh, and evaluate the way today's NHL works, Shero knows that, which is why I think it's unlikely the 6th overall pick is traded.
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