Nathan Bastian (© John Jones-Imagn Images)The New Jersey Devils have several players who can become free agents this off-season. Forward Nathan Bastian is one of them, as the 27-year-old forward is a pending unrestricted free agent.
While Bastian has the potential to hit the market this summer, he made it clear that this is not his preference. While speaking to reporters, the 6-foot-4 forward said that his hope is to remain with the Devils.
"Everything. It's crazy how quick a place can feel like home," Bastian said. "Since the time of being drafted, I think I'm the longest Devil still standing. Being here means a lot to me, obviously. Where we live, the city, the rink, all the staff, and you guys. It's something I want to be a part of."
Hearing that Bastian is hopeful to stay put with the Devils is understandable. The 2016 second-round pick has played 264 out of his 276 career games with the Devils and has been a nice part of their bottom six.
However, the Devils will now need to decide if Bastian is a player they want to keep around. They are entering this off-season with limited cap space, and have other notable pending unrestricted free agents like Jake Allen and Brian Dumoulin to make decisions with. In addition, defenseman Luke Hughes' entry-level deal has expired, and the pending restricted free agent is due for a significant raise from his current $925,000 cap hit. Thus, re-signing Bastian could be tricky.
Bastian appeared in 59 games this season with the Devils, where he had four goals, 10 points, 138 hits, and a minus-4 rating. It will be interesting to see if the Devils end up re-signing him from here.
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