This year’s restricted free-agent (RFA) class is arguably more exciting than the unrestricted free-agent (UFA) class. We have already heard rumors of players not wanting to sign with the team they are currently with. Two of these players are Pierre-Luc Dubois from the Winnipeg Jets and Alex DeBrincat from the Ottawa Senators. While Dubois could be a good piece for the Devils, the player that is more intriguing is DeBrincat. If the Devils were to make a trade for him, they would need to give up a significant piece. That piece, in this case, would be Jesper Bratt. He is also an RFA and the Devils seem hesitant to sign him long-term. In this article, we will look over why this deal makes sense for both teams and why it could benefit both clubs going forward.
The Devils’ Side
DeBrincat is exactly what the Devils are looking for. He is only 25 years old, which is around the age group for the core of the team, and he is an elite sniper, something they lack. You might be thinking that Jack Hughes is a sniper since he just scored 43 goals this past season, but that was his first true season of showing that kind of goal scoring capability.
DeBrincat has been scoring goals since he got into the NHL back in the 2017-18 season. He has only scored below 20 once and has scored 41 twice, each time with a very weak Chicago Blackhawks roster around him. He is coming off a 27-goal and 66-point season with the Senators and they are going to be selling low on him since he had a career season the year before. If the Devils acquire him and sign him long-term, he would be a great fit on the wing of either Hughes or Nico Hischier. They are the playmakers and he is the sniper that will bury the puck in the back of the net most nights than not. He could easily get back to being a 40-goal scorer with the elite talent the Devils have in their lineup.
Related: While Senators Open to DeBrincat Trade, Oilers Should Stay Away
On the opposite side, Bratt has become a fan favorite and has turned into an all-around elite player. He is the best late-round pick the Devils made during their rebuild, getting him in the sixth round of the 2016 NHL Draft. He has grown with this team over the years and when he finally broke out in 2021-22 and the Devils wouldn’t give him term, he bet on himself with a one-year deal and had another incredible season in 2022-23.
Now, Devils management find themselves in the same situation as last summer. Bratt wants a long-term deal, but the Devils don’t seem keen on giving it to him. There have been more rumors about them talking to Timo Meier about an extension than there have been about Bratt. Very little is known about the conversations going on between him and the Devils. If things do head south, trading him for a player like DeBrincat would be the Devils’ best move. They get another young, elite player and they give up a young player who they don’t see as a key piece going forward.
The Senators’ Side
As for the Senators, they are in a no-win situation. Last summer, they made the trade for DeBrincat thinking he would be part of the core moving forward. Fast forward a year later and he wants out because the Senators’ ownership situation is still unresolved and he doesn’t know if he wants to spend the next seven or eight years of his career in Canada. He and his agent have given a list of teams to the Senators of where he would like to go the most. It is unknown if the Devils are on this list, but if they are and this hypothetical offer is on the table, the Senators need to take it. They traded three picks to the Blackhawks for DeBrincat, which included the seventh-overall pick in last year’s draft. They are unlikely to receive a similar trade package due to the fact that everyone knows he wants out of Ottawa. If the Devils offer the Senators Bratt for DeBrincat, how could they possibly say no?
If the Senators were to acquire Bratt, they would be receiving a very similar player in return that could fit into their top-six immediately. While he is not the elite shooter that DeBrincat is, Bratt can still bury the puck if needed. He is an elite playmaker and having him on a line with Brady Tkachuk and Tim Stutzle would be a deadly trio for years to come. If the Senators want to try and compete for a playoff spot next season, they need to trade for players who will help them get there and Bratt can be one of those players.
The Senators have a great, young core and Bratt falls right into their age group. Up front, they have Tkachuk and Stutzle, but they also have other great players like Josh Norris, Drake Batherson and Claude Giroux. With Thomas Chabot and Jakob Chychrun leading the defense, the Senators should be a competitive team going into next season. If they trade DeBrincat for picks, they won’t be as good of a team, but if they trade him for a player like Bratt, it makes them just as good or even better going into the 2023-24 season.
