Canucks trade No. 2: Devils add other pieces
Fundamentally, this second Canucks trade proposal is similar to the first, though the Devils add two different pieces of greater significance.
This one, you could argue, bleeds the Canucks even further.
Instead of receiving Garland and a draft pick, the Devils ask for and receive goalie Thatcher Demko and top defence prospect Tom Willander.
Although the Devils already have prospects like Nemec and Casey, both players have mostly flattered to deceive at the NHL level and could have significant value in a trade for a top winger or other roster player to help them patch up the loss of Jack Hughes at center, for example.
Willander's NHL signing rights won't expire until 2027, so the Devils have time to figure out their defensive logjam before putting Willander on a contract.
With Demko, the Devils are getting a running mate for former Canucks goalie Jacob Markstrom, who is only getting older.
Demko will be turning 30 soon, while Markstrom will turn 36 before the end of next season. Ideally, Demko replaces Markstrom, and top Devils goalie prospect Mikhail Yegorov replaces Demko, making everything run smoothly between the pipes for the next several years.
As for replacing Garland from the previous trade, perhaps the Devils dip into the free agency market and sign Canucks winger Brock Boeser to reunite with Elias Pettersson.
This gives the Devils a top-six forward group of Timo Meier, Nico Hischier, Jesper Bratt, Pettersson, Boeser, and either Dawson Mercer or Stefan Noesen.