New Jersey Devils Could Use Montreal Canadiens Forward Jake Evans

As the New Jersey Devils hit the halfway point in their season, they still have two glaring holes offensively. One is in their top six, as New Jersey needs to find a consistent and pure goal scorer. The second area is in their bottom six, specifically the center position. That is where Montreal Canadiens forward Jake Evans comes in.

As Full Press Hockey has documented, Evans is a hot commodity in the trade market despite the Canadiens wanting to re-sign him. However, according to Marco D’Amico of RG Media, Evans is playing himself out of Montreal.

In 40 games this season with Montreal, Evans has recorded 23 points (10 goals and 13 assists). Evans is on pace for 20 goals, as he currently has a shooting percentage of 28 percent. This is 18 percent above his average of 10 percent.

However, as we have seen around the league, you can’t justify paying a fourth-line playing anything over $3.5 million. That player ultimately becomes a cap casualty down the road. See Barclay Goodrow in New York. He was waived, and the San Jose Sharks picked him up.

As much as the Canadiens want to keep him, as Full Press Hockey has noted, if the right package comes along for Evans, similar to the one Montreal got for Artturi Lekhonen in 2022, then he will be on the move. If that package does not come along, they will probably keep him. That all depends on the Canadiens staying within the playoff mix.

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New York Rangers: Trade Speculation Surrounds New York Rangers Center Mika Zibanejad

However, Evans is a pending unrestricted free agent with a very good salary cap hit at $1.7 million. This fourth-line center would be ideal for any cup-contending team. Enter the New Jersey Devils, who need help at that position with injuries to Curtis Lazar and Erik Haula. Lazar continues to deal with a nagging lower-body injury, and Haula will be out for weeks with an ankle injury.

Though Justin Dowling has filled in nicely from the AHL, President and General Manager Tom Fitzgerald continues his due diligence on the trade market. Though he tries to improve areas of weakness, he also likes to add to positions of strength.

Entering the season, one of the biggest questions facing the Devils was their center depth, as Mike Morreale of NHL.com told Full Press Hockey.

“I’m still debating whether or not the Devils have enough depth at center,” Morreale said. “I mean it’ll be interesting to see if the Devils have enough at the position.”

The fact that the Devils continue to look at the market this early tells you that this team knows it is a problem, too. With the Devils in their window to take a run for a championship this season, the Devils are one of the teams, according to Pierre LeBrun of TSN, have inquired about Jake Evans

“I know there are a lot of cup contenders that are circling his name and are waiting to see how Montreal plays that situation out,” LeBrun said. “For example, the Devils, I’m told, are among the teams that have already kicked tires on Jake Evans. The Devils are looking for a center.”

According to PuckPedia.com, the Devils have $2.4 million in cap space to add at the March 7th trade deadline if they decide to add at this area of need.

Again, this will come down to cost and what the Devils want to pay for a player like Evans. These teams have done business in the past, but this time, the Devils could be getting just a rental and may not want to give up too much.

However, Evans is the type of player the Devils need to balance out their bottom six.

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