As the NHL heads into All-Star weekend, the New Jersey Devils, a playoff team in 19 of the last 21 seasons, face a lot of uncertainty. The primary concern is long-term due to the ownership situation. The Devils are in a tremendous amount of debt and may be unable to re-sign certain players, including soon-to-be unrestricted free agent, Zach Parise. The Devils captain is making $6 million this season and is believed to demand close to $8 million per season this summer, should he reach free agency. It seems unlikely that the Devils will trade him, as they are currently in a playoff spot, but if they struggled after the All-Star break, Parise could be moved so that the Devils can get a return. It would probably take an elite defenseman, forward or massive package of prospects and draft picks to pry Parise out of New Jersey during the season.
The Devils are also dealing with a number of key injuries this season. In a season that has already seen Ilya Kovalchuk, Travis Zajac once already, Jacob Josefson, Eric Boulton, Adam Henrique and Andy Greene injured, defenseman Henrik Tallinder will miss close to two months with a blood clot in his leg. Greene is also weeks away from returning, while Zajac has yet to resume skating himself, as he re-injured his Achilles after just eight games. Henrique also upset his injured groin, and has since pulled out of the All-Star weekend, as did fellow teammate Adam Larsson with soreness of his own.
The coming weeks will be very telling of how the Devils approach the trade deadline. They could certainly benefit from adding a quality forward who can score, but they could also use the services of a top-end defenseman. If the Devils do slip after the break, as they do face several "elite" conference rivals after the break, they may resort to selling players, specifically Parise. It is unknown whether other veterans, such as Dainius Zubrus and even goaltender Johan Hedberg would be available. Nothing has been reported as of yet.
The Devils are also dealing with a number of key injuries this season. In a season that has already seen Ilya Kovalchuk, Travis Zajac once already, Jacob Josefson, Eric Boulton, Adam Henrique and Andy Greene injured, defenseman Henrik Tallinder will miss close to two months with a blood clot in his leg. Greene is also weeks away from returning, while Zajac has yet to resume skating himself, as he re-injured his Achilles after just eight games. Henrique also upset his injured groin, and has since pulled out of the All-Star weekend, as did fellow teammate Adam Larsson with soreness of his own.
The coming weeks will be very telling of how the Devils approach the trade deadline. They could certainly benefit from adding a quality forward who can score, but they could also use the services of a top-end defenseman. If the Devils do slip after the break, as they do face several "elite" conference rivals after the break, they may resort to selling players, specifically Parise. It is unknown whether other veterans, such as Dainius Zubrus and even goaltender Johan Hedberg would be available. Nothing has been reported as of yet.
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