A Beau-utiful Trade.

It wasn't exactly the draft I was hoping for, as the Coyotes grabbed Clayton Keller who by some projected would have been available in the 11 slot when the Devils were picking but clearly he was a bigger talent than some expected. So when it came time to select the Devils felt they could get their man in the 12 slot (Michael McLeod) and made a trade with Ottawa. That trade got them an addition 3rd round pick (Joey Anderson) and allowed us to trade our 77th pick from the 3rd round since we now had three choices in the round for Beau Bennett.

Beau hasn't really found loads of NHL success which is probably why the Penguins felt comfortable trading away a former 1st round pick for a 3rd rounder but New Jersey is a special place where people who haven't been successful find success (Devante Smith-Pelly, Kyle Palmieri etc) and others who have had success can't find it elsewhere (David Clarkson, Scott Gomez etc). Time will tell what Beau will be able to do in a Devils uniform but the cost (a 3rd round pick) seems like a very calculated risk to me and well worth the try. Beau was a fantastic junior player in the BCHL and I'm projecting 40 point seasons in his future which is an excellent return for a 3rd round pick.

 
I want to believe this is what Beau did when he heard about the trade! Welcome to the Garden State Beau.


Btw, Beau was born in Gardena California, kind of a neat coincidence.