I always believe in taking trade rumors with salt, especially at this time of year, but RG.com’s Jimmy Murphy suggests that the Red Wings are among the teams kicking the tires on 32-year-old New Jersey Devils defenseman Dougie Hamilton (who Murphy states is not on the trade block as of yet), and…Well, the rumor makes some sense:
With his full no-movement clause becoming a ten-team modified no-trade clause on July 1, New Jersey Devils defenseman Dougie Hamilton has become the topic du jour in NHL trade rumors.
“Teams are calling on [Hamilton] now,” an NHL executive source told RG media recently. “I heard the Leafs looked into him. They’re looking into multiple options for their blue line, and a lot of them have offensive flair. That’s their strength, so there’s a common thread with their trade targets right now, and Hamilton fits the bill.”
As for other potential Hamilton trade suitors, the source had this to say:
“The Stars, Red Wings, and Mammoth have also been pushing hard to acquire a right-shot defenseman that can bolster their offense and improve their power play, so they make a ton of sense.”
However, while teams may be inquiring about Hamilton on the NHL trade market, another NHL executive source cautioned not to expect the 32-year-old, 6-foot-6, 229-pound, slick-moving defenseman to be traded anytime soon.
“First is how many of those teams are willing to and can take on his $9 million cap hit? The second thing is that the Devils aren’t out there shopping him right now, and by no means are they in a hurry to trade him. Don’t forget, Jonathan Kovacevic is coming off of knee surgery, and as far as I know, he’s probably not coming back until late November/early December.
Hamilton’s still big and mobile, but he has a $9 million salary cap hit, though the Devils had to pay him a whopping $10.55 million signing bonus on July 1st of this year. Per PuckPedia, Hamilton’s due $1 million in salary and a $7.4 million signing bonus in 2026-2027, and $5.25 million in salary in 2027-2028.
Long story long, this isn’t a trade suggestion bubbling to a boil on the hot stove or something, but given the fact that the Devils would have to eat some of Hamilton’s salary cap hit to move him, it’s something to keep under our hats for future reference.
Perhaps the Devils might feel a greater need to add to their $6.9 million in cap space after the team re-signs defenseman Luke Hughes, who’s due a big raise from his $925,000 entry-level contract this summer.
Like I said, far from a bubbling, boiling rumor, but something to keep in mind for later this summer, if not into the 2025-2026 regular season.
