Devils Rival Could Pursure Former Forward in Free Agency

Rarely, if ever, do the New Jersey Devils do business with their division rival, the New York Rangers. The last, and only time, the rivals have ever connected on a trade was in 2018 when the New Jersey acquired forward Michael Grabner from the Rangers in exchange for the Devils’ second round pick in 2018 and prospect defenseman, Yegor Rykov. According to a recent report, the Rangers were poking around the idea of approaching the Devils for a trade at the 2024 NHL Trade Deadline, however, ultimately didn’t pull the trigger. Now, the Rangers very well may target a former Devils forward in free agency.

According to a report by Peter Baugh via The Athletic, the Rangers had interest in former Devils forward Tyler Toffoli at the 2024 NHL Trade deadline.

According to Baugh, the Rangers are seeking a top-six winger, and Toffoli appears on the shortlist.

“My sense is the Rangers looked at Tyler Toffoli around the trade deadline, and now he’ll be a free agent after finishing last season with the Winnipeg Jets,”Baugh writes. “At 32, Toffoli is likely looking at his last chance to get a larger deal, and he could fetch a contract around four years at more than $5 million annually. The Rangers could find a way to make that work, but they’d probably need to clear some cap space via trades. We’ll see how willing general manager Chris Drury is to make that happen. Toffoli had 30-plus goals each of the past two seasons.”

It’s already been confirmed that Toffoli will head to free agency on July 1st, therefore, it’s unlikely he’ll be returning to the Winnipeg Jets who General Manager Tom Fitzgerald traded him to at the trade deadline.

Upon dealing Toffoli, Fitzgerald admitted he’s interested in brining the 32-year-old sniper back via the free agency after conversations with him and his agent fizzled out. The two sides couldn’t come to an agreement on an extension before the trade.

The Devils are going to be in the market for another top-six forward this summer, so you could see a situation where the Devils and Rangers auction for Toffoli’s services.

Between now and the start of free agency, there’s the 2024 NHL Draft, qualifying offers are due, and we could see a flurry of trades go down as soon as the Florida Panthers or Edmonton Oilers lift the Stanley Cup.

Then, we’ll see how things go down on July 1st at the start of free agency.

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