Senators acquire Kurtis MacDermid from the Devils for Zack MacEwen

A couple of tough guys are changing their addresses.

On Friday, the Ottawa Senators acquired forward Kurtis MacDermid from the New Jersey Devils. In exchange, the Devils are receiving forward Zack MacEwen in a one-for-one deal.

MacDermid had been with the Devils since March 2024, when he was acquired by the team in a deal that sent Zakhar Bardakov and a draft pick to the Colorado Avalanche. The first time the Quebec City native was traded was when the Seattle Kraken sent him to the Avs just a few days after he was picked in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft.

MacDermid spent the entire 2024-25 season with the Devils, but played in just 23 games due to numerous instances where he was a healthy scratch. It was the fewest games he had played in a single NHL season since the 2018-19 campaign, when he was in the Los Angeles Kings organization. The 31-year-old failed to register a point, a first in his eight-year career in the league.

In 288 NHL games, MacDermid has scored 11 goals and 20 assists for 31 points, while amassing 391 penalty minutes. He is entering the second season of his three-year contract that he signed with New Jersey in May 2024. The deal has an AAV of $1.15 million.

MacEwen is another grinder who has bounced around the league. After starting his career with the Vancouver Canucks, he was claimed off waivers by the Philadelphia Flyers in October 2021. Then, before the trade deadline in 2023, he was traded to the Kings for Brendan Lemieux.

Unlike MacDermid, the Charlottetown, P.E.I. native split the past couple of seasons between the NHL and American Hockey League, appearing in 23 games with Ottawa’s top farm team, the Belleville Senators, last year. He potted seven goals and nine assists for 16 points, totaling 29 PIM. With the big club, MacEwen scored two goals and an assist for three points in 21 games.

In 237 NHL appearances, the 29-year-old has notched 17 goals and 17 assists for 34 points, registering 323 PIM. MacEwen is entering the final season of his three-year contract, which he signed with the Sens in July 2023. The deal has a cap hit of $775,000.