The rebuilding Devils traded a respected and inspirational part of their present on Wednesday for a chance to build for the future — dealing 2017 Masterton Trophy winner Brian Boyle to the Predators for a second-round pick in this June’s NHL draft.
Boyle, 34, thus gets a chance to win a Stanley Cup with the Western Conference power Predators — though New Jersey loses a notably tough and admired center, who had been diagnosed in September 2017 with chronic myeloid leukemia and returned to action just 43 days later.
Earlier this season, Boyle announced that his cancer was in full remission.