The Devils’ pursuit of a bonafide starting goaltender has been a dominant storyline for months and remains one of the few certainties of the summer. While there are more than a handful of qualified names on the trade block, the Flames’ Jacob Markström and the Bruins’ Linus Ullmark are the two likeliest names that New Jersey general manager Tom Fitzgerald would swing a deal for, sources told Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic on Tuesday.
Fitzgerald also confirmed to reporters yesterday that he would make the Devils’ 2024 first-round pick, 10th overall, available in trade talks. In what’s viewed as a deep class of high-end talent, that pick could very well be enough to pry Markström or Ullmark away from their respective teams, although a low-to-medium-value asset may also be required.
The other big fish on the goalie trade market, 2022 Vezina Trophy nominee Juuse Saros, doesn’t appear likely. He’s only been connected to the Devils sparingly in recent weeks and wasn’t mentioned at all as an option for New Jersey in LeBrun’s reporting yesterday.
Markström and Ullmark are the elder statesmen of the group, but as such, could cost less to acquire than the sub-30 Saros. Ullmark finds himself in the conversation after throwing up a .924 SV% average over three seasons with the Bruins, but he’s only started more than half his team’s games in a season once. That was Boston’s record-setting 2022-23 campaign when he won the Vezina Trophy after recording a 40-6-1 record, .938 SV% and 1.89 GAA.
Markström’s numbers have been more inconsistent over the past few seasons, but he has a much longer track record of being a true starter. The 34-year-old Swede has started more than half his team’s games in each of the last seven years and is two years removed from a league-leading nine shutouts that helped him earn his only career Vezina nomination in 2022.
He’s coming off a verifiably above-average season, too, posting a .905 SV% and stopping 13.7 goals above expected (MoneyPuck) despite a .500 record. The other advantage is his contract – he’s got two seasons left at a $6MM cap hit compared to Ullmark, who’s only signed through next season.
Markström isn’t the higher-ceiling option, but he may be the safer one. He carries a full no-move clause, but multiple reports indicated he waived it for a move to New Jersey before this season’s trade deadline that ultimately fell through. LeBrun confirmed that notion yesterday.
I get that we need a goalie, but I’m not trading 10th for a goalie.
Goalies are voodoo.
It sounds like Ullmark and Markstrom don’t want to play here. Kahkonen played good enough and should’nt be expensive to bring back.
Except good goalies tend to be good and stay good baring injury. Markstrom at 6 million ya not worth the 10th pick. But Markstrom somewhere in the 3-4.5 million for the next 2 ya that’s 100% worth it. Or say an even bigger deal where it’s something like Markstrom and Anderson for the 1st +++. Devils are a goalie and another top 4 d away from being really good especially if the rangers and hurricanes take a step back this offseason
I’m going with Kahkonen, Talbot, or Stolarz for cheaper than Markstrom, and keeping 10th.
Any one of those cheaper options gets you bounced in the first round
How did Ullmark and Markstrom do in the playoffs this year?
What an uneducated response
Coming from you? Couldn’t mean less.
I don’t think NJ should tinker too much with this team. Although Markstrom may improve your goalie situation, the cost of of future assets may narrow your window of contention long term. This improvement may not be worth the cost of acquisition. Ullmark is a bit of a wildcard. Saros too costly. No team needing a goalie this season is going to like their options, my Leafs included.
As a bruins fan I accept this proposal
I don’t know… I think at ten the Devils staff needs to take a hard look at who is still there on draft day and be ready to pull the trigger if things don’t fall the right way for them.
Unless the Devils are dumb enough to trade a top ten pick for one, neither of these guys will fetch more than a mid second.
Saros is the only one worth a first (if you are a fan of his, I wouldn’t pay that for him either, but…it would be justifiable based on age, track record, current level of play, etc.) but even he’s not worth a top ten pick.
CGY doesn’t HAVE to trade Markstrom, but they have no need to keep him.
BOS does HAVE to trade Ullmark unless they want an improperly balanced roster to waste another season.
Buyer’s market this year.
The Bruins are looking for a player to fill a roster need in an Ullmark trade. They’re probably not trading Ullmark for the #10 pick.
Or the B’s can take the pick and use the cap space to sign a FA
Should go after Silvos from Vancouver.
#10 pick will do
No, Demko for #10. Find another to tandem with Silvos.
Then you can extend Lindholm, Hronek and Zadorov
Devils should trade for Gibson. He’d be very cheap.
I’d be reluctant to trade 10th unless I was getting Saros, and maybe not even then. Good goaltending is lightning in a bottle & it can disappear fast. Improve the defence (healthy Hughes too) and kick the tires on Markstrom, ullmark.. just don’t give away too much.
Exactly, the Devils already did this with Cory Schneider and they won nothing. I’d rather have Bo Horvat now compared to whatever Cory is doing.