Devils Forward Headed to UFA as Team Qualifies 6 Players
· Yahoo Sports
New Jersey Hockey Now has learned that it’s anticipated New Jersey Devils forward Paul Cotter will go to unrestricted free agency after he was not tendered a qualifying offer.
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The Devils wrapped up their qualifying offer decisions Monday afternoon, handing out offers to six players while letting four others, including Cotter, walk into the open market.
Those they did not tender qualifying offers to Calen Addison, Tyler Brennan, and Dylan Wendt.
Qualified players include Arseny Gritsyuk, Nico Daws, Amadeus Lombardi, Jakub Malek, Xavier Parent, and Topias Vilen.
Without that offer, the 26-year-old forward loses his restricted status and can sign with any team starting July 1. No compensation or matching rights come back to New Jersey.
Cotter first landed with the Devils in the June 2024 trade that sent Alex Holtz and Akira Schmid to Vegas. The move brought in a bigger body up front and a third-round pick, part of an effort to tweak the bottom-six makeup at the time. He played out the final year of his three-year deal this past season, mostly in a checking role that leaned on physical play and penalty-kill shifts rather than big offensive numbers.
Letting him hit unrestricted free agency keeps things simple on the cap front. His previous deal carried a $775,000 hit, so the savings are modest but real in a tight budget year. The team clearly sees other ways to fill similar minutes, whether through prospects already in the system or additions planned for the summer.
For Cotter, this opens a clean slate. Teams often look for affordable, durable forwards who can grind shifts and add size without eating big money. At his age he still has plenty of runway, and his skill set tends to appeal to clubs that value energy and net-front presence over pure point production.
Cotter is also crafty in the shootout and tends to thrive one-on-one with a goaltender.
The Devils now turn their attention to the rest of their roster questions. Gritsyuk and his camp are still in contract negotiations on an extension, while Nico Hischier’s looks all but done.
The Devils have $11,552,500 in cap space on July 1.
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