The National Hockey League is in talks with the money-losing New Jersey Devils to advance the team money so it can continue to operate through the season, The Post has learned.
Under the NHL plan, Devils controlling owner Jeffery Vanderbeek would continue to run the team while he pursues a long-term financing solution, sources said.
“We can presume if the advance has not happened, it is going to happen soon,” a source close to the team said.
The Devils, which need to meet payroll twice a month until the regular season ends April 7, are weighing trading team captain Zach Parise for draft picks.
Parise makes $6 million and his contract expires at the end of the year, a source said.
A Devils Arena Entertainment spokesman said, “We are not prepared to make any further comment.”
An NHL spokesman called a report that the league was considering funding the Devils “inaccurate,” but declined to elaborate.
The Devils are on track to lose up to $20 million this season. The team could cut those losses if it makes the playoffs and is able to generate revenue from additional games.
Currently, the Devils have the seventh-best record in the Eastern Conference and eight teams make the playoffs.
Aside from losing money, the team has not been able to repay an $80 million principal payment that was originally due Sept. 1.
The lenders could place the loan in default but are restricted by NHL rules from placing the team in bankruptcy until the end of the season.
Vanderbeek has been looking to raise money by securitizing the team’s long-term television rights deal with the MSG cable sports network.
According to sources, the process has been a tough slog.
Vanderbeek, who owns 47 percent of the team, does not have the money to fund losses, while billionaire Ray Chambers, who also owns 47 percent, no longer wants to fund the team.
Last year, Vanderbeek unsuccessfully tried to sell Chambers’ stake. Chambers has offered to pay lenders $24 million to get out of his financial guarantee, indicating that he believes the club is not worth more than its roughly $200 million in team and stadium debt.
Chambers has declined comment.
Billionaire Nelson Peltz, who controls the Wendy’s restaurant chain, is interested in refinancing the team, a source said. A Peltz spokesman declined to comment.