Juuse Saros to the Devils? Not So Fast

As the 2024 NHL Draft gets closer, trade rumors linking the Nashville Predators and the New Jersey Devils are starting to heat up.

Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald has said that he is willing to trade New Jersey's No. 10 pick in the Draft for the right price – and that price is likely to include a starting goaltender.

"If we feel it helps us now and in the foreseeable future, then, yes, I'm listening," Fitzgerald told Mike Morreale of NHL.com at the NHL Scouting Combine this week. "I haven't gotten anything yet but the more I talk to teams, I say 'Listen, I'm open to moving No. 10, but it's going to have to be something (significant).'"

Fitzgerald has made it clear on several occasions that one of his biggest priorities is upgrading the goalie position. The Devils allowed 3.43 goals per game in 2023-24, tied for 26th in the NHL, and 33-year-old Jake Allen is the only one of the five goalies to play for New Jersey this season who is under contract for 2024-25.

Enter: Juuse Saros . A former Vezina Trophy finalist and two-time NHL All-Star entering the 2024-25 season on an expiring contract, the 29-year-old netminder is easily Nashville's most valuable trade chip – and exactly the type of player Fitzgerald thinks his team needs.

Several reports indicated that Fitzgerald and the Devils made the strongest push to acquire Saros from the Predators at the trade deadline. And just because they weren't successful in their attempts leading up to March 8, it doesn’t mean they won’t try again during the offseason. The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun wrote after the trade deadline that "the Devils still aim to go out and trade for a bona fide No. 1 if possible this summer, and that includes re-engaging with the Calgary Flames on Jacob Markstrom but also investigating the situation with Nashville Predators goalie Juuse Saros."

Nashville general manager Barry Trotz said after the deadline that he "wasn't going to accept inadequate stuff" from other teams in exchange for a Vezina-caliber goalie like Saros. Although Trotz said at his end-of-season media availability that signing Saros to a contract extension remains a priority, he has not taken the possibility of a trade off the table. Still, the type of trade package Trotz is seeking for Saros is likely more than Fitzgerald would be willing to offer.

If New Jersey is serious about pursuing Nashville's star goaltender, Fitzgerald will have to be willing to part with far more than a first-round draft pick. A trade package for Saros that doesn't include multiple high-end players and/or prospects is going to be a non-starter for Trotz and the Predators.