With the 2024-25 NHL season officially over, teams are turning their focus towards the draft, which looms just nine days away. Ahead of draft night, the New Jersey Devils and Nashville Predators reached an agreement on a trade.

The Panthers, on the heels of a massively disappointing season, have acquired veteran left wing Erik Haula from the Devils in exchange for a fourth-round pick in the upcoming draft and defenseman Jeremy Hanzel.

Haula, 34, is entering the final year of his contract and is due to make $3.15 million in 2025-26. He's coming off a down year in New Jersey during which he had just 10 goals and 21 points in 69 games. It was his lowest scoring output in a season since the shortened 2020-21 campaign, which he spent in Nashville.

The move opens up a bit of cap space for the Devils, who will now have around $14.4 million to work with in the offseason as they look to better position themselves to make a Stanley Cup Final run.

In 2020-21, Haula's previous season with the Predators, he recorded 21 points in 51 games. In addition to the Devils and Predators, Haula has spent time with Minnesota Wild, Vegas Golden Knights, Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers and Boston Bruins. He has 337 points and 153 goals in 759 career games.

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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Predators Acquire Veteran Winger From Devils in Early Offseason Trade.

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