The New Jersey Devils are a team in turmoil on the ice and now reportedly off the ice. According to a report from hockey insider Elliotte Friedman on Sportsnet’s Saturday Headlines, the Devils are in conflict with veteran defenseman Dougie Hamilton.
The team found a trade suitor for Hamilton this past summer, the San Jose Sharks, but he blocked the deal with his no-trade clause. Now, Hamilton’s agent believes the team is trying to unsettle his client through healthy scratches, hoping he relents and accepts a future trade to teams not on his list.
“Dougie Hamilton practiced on the fourth defensive pair on Saturday,” Friedman told Ron MacLean. “The Devils play the Jets on Sunday, and he won’t play. He’s already been informed he will not be in the lineup. The Devils say, ‘Look, we have extra defensemen, Kovacevic is coming back, somebody has to sit.’ But Hamilton’s agent, JP Barry, feels that this is a business decision to try to force Hamilton to accept a trade.
“Now, Hamilton did move to a partial no-trade clause this season. He can be traded to only one of 10 teams; the other 21 he can block. One thing we are aware of, in the summer, San Jose did try to trade for him, and Hamilton blocked that move. The way it’s going now for the Sharks, maybe he changes his mind. They’re one of the best teams in the NHL to watch.”
Hamilton is in the fifth year of a seven-year $63 million contract ($9M AAV) that he signed with the Devils in 2021 after departing the Carolina Hurricanes. He is due $11.55 million in salary this season, primarily from a $10.55 million signing bonus.
The 32-year-old blueliner is set for a similar amount next year with a $7.4 million bonus, which Friedman says will likely keep him from just coming to terms on a mutual contract termination with New Jersey. In doing so, he would forfeit that money, and the Devils would get him off their books for free. Instead, Hamilton and his agent plan to seek a more mutually beneficial compromise with New Jersey’s desires.
“The fact is that Barry has indicated they will consider discussing some of the teams that Hamilton can block a trade to, but there’s no question right now that the feelings are very hard on both sides,” Friedman said. “Losing does that, Hamilton feeling he’s being targeted for non-performance reasons certainly does that. The one thing I can tell you is that people were wondering if he would terminate his contract.
“He’s got two years left after this year at about $13.6 million. I’m told the answer to that is, ‘No.’ Hamilton is due $8.4 million next year, including a $7.4 million bonus in the summer. That, I understand, is not on the table, so we’ll see if everybody can work together here to get something done.”
So far this season, Hamilton, who has a 74-point season in his past with the Devils, has just 10 points (5g, 5a) in 40 games. The Devils are struggling overall, losing three games in a row and amassing just 13 standings points since the start of December, which ranks second-worst in the league (Winnipeg, 11).
With the Devils seeking change and the surging Sharks just one point out of first place in the Pacific Division, Hamilton could be asked to reconsider the trade he blocked just a few months ago.
The Sharks still need defensive depth, especially on the right side, as John Klingberg is their top-earning right-handed rearguard, and players like waiver-claim Vincent Iorio and the oft-traded Vincent Desharnais are still getting regular minutes.
According to PuckPedia, the Sharks currently have $8.29 million in cap space, meaning they’d likely need to make a corresponding move to fit Hamilton’s entire cap hit comfortably.
The Devils and Hamilton will have until this year’s trade deadline, March 6, to figure out a solution that satisfies both parties.
