During this past off-season, the New Jersey Devils acquired forward Paul Cotter from the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for forward Alexander Holtz and goaltender Akira Schmid. With the Devils looking to boost their bottom six, they were willing to give up two youngsters in Holtz and Schmid to bring in a proven NHLer like Cotter. 

Now, one year later, it is fair to say that the Devils have benefited from this trade. Cotter cemented himself as a solid part of the Devils' roster this past season, as he scored a career-high 16 goals, while recording eight assists and 22 points in 79 games. He also made New Jersey a tougher team to go up against for opponents, as he finished the season with a career-high 245 hits, which is a new Devils record. 

Overall, Cotter gave the Devils solid secondary scoring and a ton of grit during his first season in New Jersey. While he had some cold stretches as the season went on, it is fair to say that the Canton, Michigan native lived up to expectations in 2024-25, and he will now look to build off that. When noting that he is only 25 years old, the possibility of him hitting a new level in 2025-26 should also not be ruled out. 

Nevertheless, the decision to bring in Cotter was a smart one by the Devils. He provided them with nice value during this past season, especially when noting that he only carries a $775,000 cap hit. Now, he will be looking to have another solid year next season from here. 

Devils Have Potential Target In Interesting Free-Agent Forward When looking at the <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-jersey-devils">New Jersey Devils</a>' roster, it is fair to argue that they could use another forward. While bringing in a big-name forward at this stage of the summer would be difficult for the Devils, they could use the free-agent market to improve their depth on offense.

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