Devils-Sharks Timo Meier blockbuster deal: Grading the trade

The Devils acquired Timo Meier on Sunday.

The Devils did not give up Luke Hughes, Dawson Mercer, Alexander Holtz, Simon Nemec or Akira Schmid to do so.

Sunday’s trade, a dramatic affair that lasted from the early afternoon to the late hours of night, will go down as general manager Tom Fitzgerald’s best yet. The third-year GM has proven efficient in trades for under-the-radar players like Vitek Vanecek and Jonas Siegenthaler, but he’s long searched for that big scoring winger to lift his team to another level.

WATCH EVERY DEVILS GAME IN 2022-23 HERE:DirecTV Stream, fuboTV

On Sunday, Fitzgerald pitched a masterclass – and proved why he should be in the Jim Gregory award discussion for the NHL’s best GM this season.

Here’s who the Devils acquired in the trade:

– Timo Meier (50% salary retained)

– Scott Harrington

– Timur Ibragimov

– Santeri Hatakka

– Zachary Emond

– Fifth-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft

Here’s who the Devils gave up:

– Shakir Mukhamadullin

– Nikita Okhotiuk

– Andreas Johnsson

– Fabian Zetterlund

– First round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft

– Conditional second-round selection in the 2024 NHL Draft

– Seventh-round selection in the 2024 NHL Draft

Devils grade: A+

Sharks grade: C+

Fitzgerald fleeced Sharks GM Mike Grier here. The quantity of the deal was shocking – it ranks as one of the biggest in NHL history – but the Devils were able to snag Meier (with his pay cut in half) for house-money prospects they didn’t really need.

Mukhamadullin, for example, was a first round pick in the 2020 draft and could have been a key part of New Jersey’s defenseman future corps alongside players like Hughes, Nemec, Seamus Casey and others. But as valuable as he is, Mukhamadullin was still the fourth best defenseman in the pool – which is a credit to Fitzgerald’s incredible asset management. At the end of the day, Fitzgerald should have no reservations about giving the 21-year-old Russian defenseman (and Okhotiuk) up in the trade.

Zetterlund was the second biggest blow to the Devils. He was a regular member of coach Lindy Ruff’s lineup this season (20 points in 45 games) and a locker room favorite among Swedes, but to essentially replace him with Meier – who has 31 goals in 57 games in 2022-23, which is tied for 14th most in the NHL – is a massive win for the Devils.

Of course, the picks have value. Through conditional rules, New Jersey could end up handing over two first rounders if they make the Eastern Conference Finals in 2023 or 2024. But New Jersey’s young roster – mixed with a talented prospect pool and hot record (39-15-5) – makes this a non-issue for the immediate future.

The Devils’ window is wide open. Acquiring Meier, who has 30.1 expected goals (ninth most in NHL) and is shooting at a 12.2% rate, is the ultimate “win-now” move. To make that – and still manage to have Mercer and Holtz in your arsenal – will make the Devils a Stanley Cup threat for years. Fitzgerald didn’t secure the extension yet, but Meier’s desire to win and connection with fellow Swiss players Nico Hischier and Jonas Siegenthaler should make it an easy pitch.

In his press conference Sunday night, Fitzgerald said he celebrated the deal by having a “drink or two” with his wife.

He’s earned it.

MORE DEVILS:

–How Devils’ Lindy Ruff went from the hot seat to a coach sparking postseason dreams: ‘He really needs an apology’

–’That hit still haunts me’: 2012 Devils reflect on Stanley Cup misery 10 years later

–’I don’t regret one bit of it’: Martin Brodeur finally talks about his Devils grudge and forgiveness, that brief Blues stint and his GM dreams

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Ryan Novozinsky may be reached at rnovozinsky@njadvancemedia.com. You can follow him on Twitter @ryannovo62.

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