The Devils made their first big move of the offseason Wednesday, trading veteran forward Erik Haula to the Nashville Predators in exchange for defenseman Jeremy Hanzel and a 2025 fourth-round pick.
New Jersey now has seven picks in the 2025 NHL Draft: two second-round picks (NJ and Edmonton via Utah), one third-round pick (Vegas), two fourth-round picks (NJ and Nashville), and two sixth-round picks (NJ and San Jose). The draft begins on Friday, June 27 and goes through Saturday, June 28.
Haula, 34, was entering the final year of his three-year contract ($3.15 million AAV). Over three seasons with the Devils, he totaled 41 goals and 56 assists (97 points) with 140 penalty minutes across 227 games. He was originally a seventh-round pick by the Minnesota Wild in the 2009 NHL Draft and spent time with them, the Vegas Golden Knights, Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers, Predators, and Boston Bruins before being acquired by NJ in the Pavel Zacha trade in 2022.
The forward recorded 21 points (nine goals and 12 assists) over 51 games during his first stint with Nashville in the shortened 2020-2021 NHL season.
Hanzel, 22, was drafted by the Colorado Avalanche in the sixth round of the 2023 NHL Draft. He was then acquired by the Predators in March 2024 and spent the 2024-2025 season with the Milwaukee Admirals (AHL) and Gwinnett Gladiators (ECHL), registering two penalty minutes over four games with Milwaukee and three goals and 19 assists (22 points) with 28 penalty minutes for Gwinnett.
Listed at 6-foot-1 and 195 pounds, Hanzel was part of the Seattle Thunderbirds’ WHL championship-winning team in 2023. He amassed 149 points (39 goals and 110 assists) in 218 games with Seattle over four seasons, plus 35 points (seven goals and 28 assists) over 41 playoff games.
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