The Devils added some extra depth up front. They acquired forward Curtis Lazar from the Canucks. Going the other way is a 2024 fourth-round pick.
The 28-year-old was in his first season with Vancouver after inking a three-year, $3M deal ($1M AAV) with the Canucks last summer. However, things didn’t go quite as planned. Lazar has struggled to say healthy – he’s currently on injured reserve – and when he has been in the lineup, he hasn’t been the most productive, collecting just three goals and two assists in 45 games. However, Lazar has won nearly 52% of his faceoffs while averaging 2.75 hits per game.
New Jersey moved out some of its forward depth in the recent Timo Meier move, and Lazar’s acquisition helps to fill some of that at a reasonable price tag. When he’s able to return, he could fill a spot on the fourth line or simply serve as injury depth for what the Devils hope is a long playoff run. He could spend some time on their penalty kill; he’s averaging more than a minute per night short-handed.
Cap-wise, the Devils now have roughly $1.26M remaining in LTIR room, per CapFriendly, so beyond another depth move, New Jersey might be quiet the rest of the deadline day. Meanwhile, CapFriendly pegs Vancouver’s LTIR space at just over $4.7M. With the four players on their LTIR out for the season, the Canucks will have some flexibility to take on a contract or be a third-party retainer to add an additional pick or two.
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