Fifteen days from trade to long-term deal
New Jersey acquired Luke Evangelista on September 1. On Tuesday night they tied him down for five more years.
The extension is worth $36.25 million, an annual cap charge of $7.25 million, and it starts with the 2027-28 season. General manager Sunny Mehta announced the deal through the club. Evangelista still has this campaign to play out on the $3 million contract he brought with him from Nashville, so his cap number is about to more than double.
He is 24. He scored 12 goals and a career-high 56 points in 81 games last season.
Try it for $0.99.
The cost of getting him, the cost of keeping him
Nashville collected a conditional 2028 first-round pick, originally Colorado’s, plus New Jersey’s own 2028 second, for a player the Predators had taken in the second round in 2020. That was already a firm bet on a winger with one strong season behind him.
Fixing him at $7.25 million a year before he has played a single game in a Devils sweater raises the stake again. Mehta has held the job since April 16, when he replaced Tom Fitzgerald, and his summer has circled around one number.
That number is 2.76
New Jersey averaged 2.76 goals per game last season, sixth-lowest in the league. They finished 12 points adrift of the second Eastern Conference wild-card spot, a gap nobody closes with defensive structure alone.
So Mehta went looking for finishing. Evan Rodrigues came in a trade with Florida carrying two Stanley Cup rings. Anthony Mantha signed out of free agency from Pittsburgh. Evangelista was the costly one, and now he is the committed one, dropped in alongside Jack Hughes, Jesper Bratt and captain Nico Hischier.
Whether 56 points in Nashville turns into more than that in New Jersey is the open question. The contract says the Devils have already made up their minds. The season has not.
Discover the rest of our NHL news on MathODDS!
in your pocket.
Real-time notifications & alerts
Leave a Reply