The 2025 calendar will soon switch over to August. For many players around the NHL, it is a month that represents the final weeks with their friends and family before traveling to their respective hockey cities for the 2025-26 season.
Currently, two former New Jersey Devils defensemen are unemployed and seeking their next opportunity in professional hockey.
Jon Merrill
Former Team: Minnesota Wild
Merrill has previously played for the Devils, Vegas Golden Knights, Detroit Red Wings, Montréal Canadiens, and Minnesota Wild. Now a veteran with 682 NHL games under his belt, the defenseman is an unrestricted free agent, looking for his next home.
The 33-year-old became expendable to the Wild with youngster Zeev Buium in the fold. Considered a stay-at-home defenseman, he scored two goals and earned six points last season.
Merrill would be a good addition for any team looking for depth on the blue line.
Brendan Smith
Former Team: Dallas Stars
Dave McCarthy of NHL.com was the first to report that the veteran defenseman was looking to play one more season. At 36 years old, he is coming off a season in which he appeared in 32 games for the Dallas Stars.
Brendan Smith will be hitting the market on Tuesday.
— Dave McCarthy (@DaveAMcCarthy) June 29, 2025
The defenseman is looking to play at least one more season.
There are few guys better than him to surround young players with if a team is looking for defensive depth.
Smith will fill whatever role a team needs, including the transition to a forward. A leader in the locker room, Smith has played for the Red Wings, New York Rangers, Carolina Hurricanes, Devils, and Stars, playing 726 career games.
Smith would be a great mentor to a team with a young blue line and add the depth teams need throughout an 82-game season.
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