The New Jersey Devils finally traded one of their most coveted assets in defenseman Sami Vatanen. He’s on his way to the Carolina Hurricanes, who became a partner after Brett Pesce got injured in their last game against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Obviously, coming into the season, the Hurricanes weren’t a likely team to deal with the Devils for a defenseman. They signed Jake Gardiner to add to a defense that has Jaccob Slavin, Pesce, Trevor van Riemsdyk and Dougie Hamilton. It seemed like one of the deepest blue lines in the league.