It appears veteran defenceman Dougie Hamilton is willing to work with the New Jersey Devils to find a suitable trade partner after being declared a healthy scratch for Sunday’s game against the Winnipeg Jets.
With defenceman Johnathan Kovacevic, who’s been sidelined for the entire 2025-26 campaign with a knee injury, expected to make his season debut on Sunday, head coach Sheldon Keefe announced Saturday that Hamilton would be scratched.
TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun reached out to Hamilton’s agent J.P. Barry, who said the decision to scratch his client seemed “very calculated at this stage.”
Barry added Hamilton would be willing to be flexible beyond his 10-team trade list if it helps to find a suitable destination.
“Dougie was informed today that he will be not be playing now that Kovacevic is back in the lineup. In our view, this decision is all about business rather than his game right now. Singling him out seems very calculated at this stage,” Barry told LeBrun. “Dougie has a 10-team trade list and there have been efforts to trade him going back to the draft last year. We have made it clear to the Devils that we will consider teams outside our list and other creative ways to get to a team that is mutually acceptable.”
Reached out to Dougie Hamilton’s agent J.P. Barry. His response:
“Dougie was informed today that he will be not be playing now that Kovacevic is back in the lineup. In our view,
this decision is all about business rather than his game right now. Singling him out seems very…
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) January 10, 2026
LeBrun also reached out to Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald, who said Hamilton was the odd-man out with the team’s right side defence being healthy for the first time this season.
“As you know, we just put [Simon] Nemec back in the lineup on Thursday. He’s a young guy who we want getting his game back, where he had been easily our best defenceman before his injury,” Fitzgerald explained. “[Brett] Pesce’s play speaks for itself, he isn’t going anywhere. And Kovacevic coming back, gives our roster a spark we are looking for, and he was our best defensive defenceman all of last year. And that’s what we want with our lineup now. This is simply Dougie being the odd-man out with where our right-side is fully healthy for the first time all year. This is business. Business of our lineup!”
Reached to Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald in wake of J.P. Barry’s comments.
Fitzgerald:
“As you know, we just put Nemec back in the lineup on Thursday. He’s a young guy who we want getting his game back, where he had been easily our best defensemen before his injury.
Pesce’s play…
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) January 10, 2026
The 32-year-old Hamilton has five goals and five assists over 40 games with the Devils this season, his fifth in New Jersey and 14th in the NHL.
Keefe also told the media on Saturday that Hamilton would be the “odd man out” on Sunday.
“On the right side, we wanted to give [Simon Nemec] an opportunity to get his game back going. [Brett] Pesce isn’t going anywhere. We just talked about what Kovacevic can bring and wanted to get him back involved,” Keefe said.
The 28-year-old Kovacevic is in the first year of a five-year, $20 million contract.
Kovacevic hasn’t played this season due to offseason knee surgery.
HC Keefe on the decision to scratch Hamilton:
“Dougie is the odd man out. On the right side, we wanted to give (Nemec) an opportunity to get his game back going. Pesce isn’t going anywhere. We just talked about what Kovy can bring and wanted to get him back involved.”#NJDevils https://t.co/iPVKJJ10xx
— Amanda Stein (@amandacstein) January 10, 2026
A native of Toronto, Hamilton is in the fifth season of a seven-year, $63 million contract, featuring an annual cap hit of $9 million, signed with the Devils ahead of the 2021-22 season.
Hamilton has 156 goals and 355 assists over 875 games with the Boston Bruins, Calgary Flames, Carolina Hurricanes and Devils, adding nine goals and 22 assists over 71 playoff games.
Boston selected Hamilton ninth overall in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft.
New Jersey has struggled recently, dropping three straight games by a total score of 16-2. They sit sixth in the Metropolitan Division with a 22-20-2 record.
The trade deadline is March 6.
