New Jersey Devils Trade John Quenneville to Chicago for John Hayden

After making a blockbuster deal this afternoon, Ray Shero and the New Jersey Devils were not done. They made a smaller but still notable trade during the second day of the 2019 NHL Draft. John Quenneville has been sent to Chicago for John Hayden.

This is the end for John Quenneville. The 2014 first round selection by the Devils was almost not supposed to even happen. Originally, the Devils’ first rounder was going to be given up as part of the penalty for Ilya Kovalchuk’s first re-signed contract earlier this decade. However, before the 2014 draft took place, the Devils were awarded the very last pick of the first round. They used that to pick center John Quenneville.

Quenneville went on to have a solid career in juniors, make the jump to professional hockey, and not really progress much further. Quenneville has been given chance after chance after chance in training camps, preseasons, and call-ups to make the New Jersey roster. However, the center was never able to show that he belonged at the NHL level. In the AHL, it was another story. Quenneville was productive almost right away in Albany back in 2016-17. That level of offense continued for the next two seasons in Binghamton. He appeared to be the classic example of someone who could get the job done and be effective in the minors but he cannot keep up with the pace, the talent, and the grind the majors. The mostly anonymous 19 games he appeared in last season made that clear. A new organization may be exactly what Quenneville needs. The Devils certainly did not need him.

Who is John Hayden? According to Elite Prospects, Hayden was Chicago’s third rounder in 2013 - making him a year older than Quenneville. The right-shooting winger is big (6’3”, 223 pounds) and he is an alumnus of Yale. He came out of Yale to appear in 12 games with Chicago in 2016-17; he played in 47 games with Chicago and 24 with their AHL affiliate in Rockford in 2017-18; and he played in 54 games with Chicago last season with no appearances in the AHL. At the least in Chicago’s situation, he was not a tweener. He was also not used very much. According to the 5v5 stats at Natural Stat Trick, Hayden had a time on ice per game of 8:28. His on-ice rates also from Natural Stat Trick were not that good: a CF% of 46.27%, a SF% of 42.79%, a xGF% of 47.86%, and a SCF% of 45.33%. Combined with a total of five points in 54 games, it is clear that Hayden is a fourth-liner at best - and not all that good of one last season. The Blackhawks did not play better with him on the ice and he did not contribute much. But because he played so few minutes, it did not appear to be so damaging that he had to be sent back to the minors.

Ultimately, this is a somewhat even trade. Quenneville was not likely to get yet another chance to make the New Jersey roster and he has not done enough to warrant one. Hayden is a winger who has not done much in the NHL but at least understands what it takes to be in the NHL. Both players will add to their new team’s depth and likely not much more than that. That’s my initial take. Now I want to know what you think. Are you happy with the deal? Unhappy? Please let me know in the comments and take part in our poll. Thank you for reading.