Over the past few weeks or so there has been a ton of rumors swirling around Steven Stamkos and the failed fit in Nashville thus far. Numerous teams have been linked by NHL Insiders including the New Jersey Devils. Stamkos has been struggling mightilly to get in a groove with the Preds with just 9 points in his first 25 games.
Even with the "miserable" start as many have categorized it, if Stamkos were in Jersey's bottom six his half dozen tucks would equate to more output than Ondrej Palat(1G), Paul Cotter(2G), Stefan Noesen(1G), Juho Lammikko(0G) and Luke Glendenning(0G) in their combined 107 games played. The offensive black hole that New Jersey has endured with their third and fourth lines these past few seasons continues to hold them back. Adding Stamkos would for sure be an upgrade, but it would not be without obstacles.
Stamkos is currently on year one of a two year $8m deal with Nashville. Any team, especially NJ would be in need of some salary retention by the Predators. In addition I see no way NJ does this without shedding Ondrej Palat and his $6m cap hit. In order for Nashville to eat all of that salary, some draft picks and prospects would have to go to the team in gold.
Stamkos also has a full NTC, so he would have to agree to any destination Barry Trotz could move him to. If Stamkos is even interested in a move, Jersey should be of interest as Stamkos needs some playmakers around him for an opportunity to thrive. Jack, Bratt, Timo, Mercer and the mobile D should be enticing. With a wife and three small children however, would he really entertain another move?
As a middle six forward for NJ with at least 50% retention and Palat gone, the addition of Stamkos could be great. The likelihood however isn't that great as there are too many moving parts that would need to fall into place.
Who do you think the Devils should target to help increase production from the bottom lines? Let's hear it in the comments