New Jersey Devils Expressing Interest In Brayden Schenn

As originally reported by Anthony Di Marco of Daily Faceoff, and later confirmed by James Nichols of New Jersey Hockey Now, center Brayden Schenn has become a focus player for the New Jersey Devils today. Factoring in their reported interest in Nashville Predators’ Ryan O’Reilly, the Devils are aggressively pursuing a top-six center and are unafraid of any remaining term.

Schenn would check a lot of the same boxes that O’Reilly does. He’s a veteran two-way center who can play in New Jersey’s top six for the rest of the 2024-25 campaign before transferring to a third-line role once Jack Hughes returns next season.

He shouldn’t cost any more than O’Reilly, either. Schenn has three years at a $6.5MM cap hit remaining on his current deal with a full no-trade clause this season. That no-trade clause transitions to a 15-team no-trade clause for the last three years of his contract.

The native of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, may not fill the offensive gap left by Hughes, but his physicality and defensive skills are exceptional. This season, he has scored 12 goals and accumulated 38 points in 63 games with the Blues, showing a slight improvement in points per game compared to his previous season, during which he recorded 20 goals and 46 points.

Meanwhile, Schenn has already eclipsed 100 hits on the season for the 14th consecutive year and is averaging higher than a 50.0% success rate in the faceoff dot. New Jersey is already 11th in the league in hits given this year with 1401, but their faceoff rate could use some work as they rank 24th with a team success rate of 49.05%.

Given the trade chatter surrounding Schenn the last several weeks, the Devils would undoubtedly have to part with their 2026 first-round pick in the hypothetical trade. St. Louis is known to be seeking additional assets, but a first-round pick is an imperative part of the deal. New Jersey appears inclined to make that a part of any package for a promising center, but they’ll pursue all other options before pulling the trigger.