The Devil has 4 AHL comets to watch before the 2025 trade deadline – Hockey Writer – Comet Utica

It’s no secret that the New Jersey Devil will be a buyer for the transaction deadline. They have the third best record in the Mets division and will be able to play the playoffs. What is captured is that while the Devils’ season is great, they still have obvious weaknesses and some action is needed to make the playoffs roster full.

Related: Devil’s ideal post-trade deadline list

If the devil is to take action, they will have to trade one or two prospects. Whether it’s adding a deep player or making a difference, every seller wants an asset that is young NHL ready talent or potential customers helping to rebuild. Although the devil’s American Hockey League (AHL) branch Utica Comets is the worst team in the North District, they have some players that can flip in the trade.

Xavier Parent

Xavier’s parents have a pleasant season on the Comet and prove that he has a dynamic striker’s tool. He is a 5-foot-8 smaller skater and weighs 170 pounds, but he makes up for it with skill and speed. He has 11 goals and 13 assists this season and scored goals and assists in a game and beat the Bridgeport Islander 4-2 on February 22. He has proven that he can find the back of the net and create scoring opportunities, and the 23-year-old striker is expected to one day shoot in the NHL.

He is the prospect of the devil being able to move to deadline without pairing with another prospect. His talent is enough to allow the NHL team to give him opportunities. The only question is, which team would like to have a smaller six forward dice like parents?

Remember when the Devil traded Blake Coleman to Tampa Bay Lightning? The move happened at the 2020 trade deadline and helped Lightning win the Stanley Cup. One of the returnees is Nolan Foote. He has been down in the NHL since joining the Devils, but has sorted out a great season with the Comets with 16 goals and 18 assists.

Foote wasn’t a development prospect at the age of 24, but he was proven to be an NHL-level deep skater. Foote isn’t enough to get a player into a deal, but he can be part of a devil’s upgrade package.

Topias Vilen

The Devils have a handful of young defensemen, but there is no place to put them on the NHL roster, especially after the 2024 offseason acquisition of Brenden Dillon and Johnathan Kovacevic. Simon Nemec is the first prospect to come to mind, and Santeri Hatakka is another person to stand out, but Topias Vilen is ice skating because he may be moving. Vilen, 22, is still developing, which makes him the skater the Devils are now trying to win.

Vilen is an excellent skating defender who moves the puck to the ice. He is not a scorer, but he is a great passer, which explains why he had 27 assists last season, his first assist in the AHL and 15 assists this season. Rebuilding the team could allow him to develop a season or two on the ice defensive end and then bring him to the NHL, making him a prospect worthy of adding during the deadline.

Isaac Poulter

Goalkeepers are always hard to evaluate and harder trades, especially developing goalkeepers like Isaac Poulter. He showed that he could be a good goalkeeper, but was inconsistent. That said, as the devil added Jacob Markstrom and Jake Allen while allowing Nico Daws to fill as the third string goalkeeper, Poulter (Poulter) is consumable and can be part of any transaction.

What can the devil get from these prospects

The problem with the devil is not the target they are going to target. They want to upgrade the forward unit, which is double. They should want to increase their scores, but they also need physical and defense in the roster, which they lacked in the second round against the Carolina Hurricanes in 2023, a series they lost in five games.

If the Devil adds skaters with the bottom six, a deal involving one of their prospects is coming into play. But if they cheer in the top six and add someone to the top six, then a few prospects and draft picks will be part of the reward. As their debate window opens, the Devil is in a unique position and will last for a while, but if this is the season of pushing the push, they will do it to get themselves ready for the Cup.