#NJDevils
- Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, Jesper Bratt - $23.125 mil
#NYR
- Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider, Artemi Panarin - $26.65 mil.
I know which three I’d prefer.
100% sounds like Brett Pesce will be a
#NJDevils
defenseman on July 1.
Notably, his contract is projected at 6 years @ 5.5 million as per
@EvolvingHockey
.
Also have to anticipate this means John Marino will be traded soon.
Just gonna drop this one here (redoing this for a typo lol):
#NJDevils
Alex Holtz: 9 points in 228:15
#NYR
Alexis Lafreniere: 12 points in 315:48
Holtz has a better points/60 than Lafreniere does and he’s playing neither top 6 minutes nor with 29-point haver Artemi Panarin.
Just to recap:
•
#NJDevils
avoid giving up 10th Overall, Holtz, Casey, or any goalie prospect.
• Kevin Bahl is a third pair defenseman on this team at best.
• Markstrom has been a top-10 goaltender in two of the last three seasons. Add ~$2m retention.
Fitz masterclass.
#NJDevils
are now down:
Both members of their opening night top defense pairing.
Their franchise, top-5 in the NHL player.
Their $8.8 million, 40-goal RW/LW.
Their second line LW who has arguably been a top-5 player on the Devils.
Incredibly unlucky.
With Matt Rempe on the ice tonight, the
#NYR
are:
• Losing shot attempts 15-4
• Losing scoring chances 7-0
• Losing high-danger chances 4-0
• Controlling 15.68% of the xG
Good stuff from the Rangers’ best here.
#TimeToHunt
I like how the biggest qualm with Lindy Ruff was his lineup choices and then he gets fired, fans celebrate, and the interim head coach makes it even worse.
Poetry, really.
#NJDevils
For those wondering what the
#NJDevils
system will look like under Keefe, I've been replaying some
#LeafsForever
games from the past couple of seasons and will be going in-depth about his system zone-by-zone over the next few days.
Let's start with his O-zone tactics:
(1/?)
The
#NJDevils
should be announcing their head coach pretty soon, and while Jay Woodcroft is my number one choice, recently fired
#LeafsForever
coach Sheldon Keefe is a pretty good consolation prize.
Here's why:
(1/?)
All eyes are on McLeod/Foote and things aren’t very fun for the
#NJDevils
, so let’s cheer everyone up with some Timo Meier stats.
Since returning, Meier is:
2nd in shots (12)
1st in individual HD scoring chances (6)
2nd in hits (5)
4th in ixG (1.05)
I think he’s back.
Hopefully Matvei Michkov leaving the KHL to play for the
#LetsGoFlyers
is a revelation for some other Russian prospects -- especially Arseni Gritsyuk.
Over the next few years, an NHL-ready producer on an ELC for the middle six will help the
#NJDevils
with their cup aspirations.
Nico Daws has certainly earned the starter’s role with his play in the last four games.
The
#NJDevils
should still be looking for an upgrade in net, though. Daws is 23, still unproven, and the recent success doesn’t mean he’ll stay like this.
I’m all-in on Markstrom.
#NJDevils
’ Alex Holtz without Bastian or Tierney: 2.91 points/60 minutes.
That puts him at 4th in the NHL, only behind McDavid, Farabee, and Hyman.
Ahead of:
MacKinnon
Kucherov
Pettersson
Pastrnak
Panarin
Literally everyone else.
Dude’s gonna be a stud.
According to David Pagnotta, the
#NJDevils
would send Alex Holtz to the
#Flames
in a Jacob Markstrom deal with salary retention.
Also said Fitz has spoken to
#FlyTogether
about Gibson,
#CBJ
about Merzlikins, and
#Preds
about Saros.
With Colin Miller out tonight, the
#NJDevils
are icing a defense corps of:
Luke Hughes - John Marino
Kevin Bahl - Simon Nemec
Santeri Hattakka - Cal Foote
Whoo boy. Gonna be rough.
@daniel_amoia
Lmao it’s so pathetic honestly. Bastian can mess up all he wants, as can Smith, Bahl, Tierney, Willman… literally everyone else. There is 100% a target on his back.
Fair to say that Vitek Vanecek should never start another game with the
#NJDevils
after tonight.
I don’t really care if it’s premature. Daws has been the only goaltender to remain calm under pressure this season.
Pierre LeBrun reported that the
#Preds
are listening on Saros, but that no team — including the
#NJDevils
— is willing to pay the price that they’re asking for.
Has to be astronomical if the Devils are completely unwilling to engage.
Nemec is such a weird case too. He’s by far the most active defenseman I’ve ever seen. Hell, he almost put in a backdoor tap-in feed from Jesper Bratt. I’m legitimately unsure if there’s another defenseman like him in the league.
#NJDevils
might have the NHL’s first true rover.
Hockeyviz's synthetic estimates have Simon Nemec as better than Luke Hughes already. Difficult to overstate just how impressive Nemec's has been playing 22 minutes against top NHL competition in his first two games in the league.
Friedman on 32T today said that people are “talking about Nemec going in a deal for a veteran D” but that “if I’m New Jersey, I don’t know if I’m doing that.”
I have no idea why he even decided to bring that up.
0% chance the
#NJDevils
move Nemec for anyone at all right now.
Alex Holtz:
Leads the
#NJDevils
in 5v5 goals (10)
Second on the Devils in 5v5 points (19)
Has one (1) 5v5 point while playing with Tierney.
Nate Bastian:
2 5v5 goals.
7 5v5 points.
Is on the third line over Holtz.
Something’s gotta give, man.
Apparently, William Carrier has been informed that he will not be brought back to
#VegasBorn
and I'm once again reminding you that he should be the
#NJDevils
#1
free agent target, even beyond a top-six forward.
Depth scoring matters a ton, and he's the perfect fourth-liner.
#NYR
fans really do all they possibly can to defend Jacob Trouba’s 689th elbow with intent to injure.
“It was to the shoulder!!!”
“He didn’t even fully connect!!”
“Rodrigues didn’t even miss any time!!”
He tried to kill the dude with an elbow to the face! Shut up!
Let's talk Jacob Markstrom, and why he's a good fit for the
#NJDevils
and new head coach Sheldon Keefe.
Let's get one thing out of the way: SV% is generally a bad metric for gauging goaltender skill/effectiveness because it doesn't take into account average shot danger.
(1/?)
After my thread on why the
#NJDevils
should NOT hire Craig Berube as their next coach, here's a thread on why they should instead hire ex-
#LetsGoOilers
head coach Jay Woodcroft for the position:
(1/?)
Re: Berube because a ton of people are asking me why I don't like him as the
#NJDevils
' next HC.
There seems to be this notion that the Devils "need" a hard-ass coach to put our players in their places and that's just untrue? (1/?)
Here are the
#NJDevils
forward lines from morning skate ahead of facing the Canadiens.
Timo Meier likely returning tonight!
Rotating 5 D with Luke Hughes absent, so we’ll see how that pans out later.
Daws starting versus Habs.
Please be innocent.
Please be innocent.
Please be innocent.
Please be innocent.
Please be innocent.
Please be innocent.
Please be innocent.
Please be innocent.
Please be innocent.
Please be innocent.
Please be innocent.
Please be innocent.
#NJDevils
Patrik Laine wants out of
#CBJ
, and the
#NJDevils
really should just be all over it. There’s still a need for a bona fide top-six forward.
It’s easy to forget just how good he was in 2022-23:
#NJDevils
finish with 81 points in 82 games.
Rough, but there are some bright spots:
Meier and Bratt proving to be worth their contracts; Luke and Nemec showing that they will both be studs; Nico proving last year was not a fluke.
Next year SHOULD be fun!
Simon Nemec jumping into the NHL and immediately becoming the
#NJDevils
best 5v5 defenseman is honestly pretty incredible.
I didn’t like the pick at the time but I’m more than happy to eat my words here.
I get the concern about Dawson Mercer’s contract situation, but let’s not pretend he wasn’t completely horrendous at the whole hockey thing last season.
I’m a-okay with a short term prove-it deal instead of locking him up.
#NJDevils
Oh god, this kid sucks lol.
“I didn’t even think I hit him!” yeah okay when I extend my elbow and feel someone’s face I think it’s the boards too, and when everyone tries to fight me afterwards it’s clearly because I hit glass and not someone’s face.
#NJDevils
#NYR
No. 73 also said he had no idea he even hit
#NJDevils
Jonas Siegenthaler.
“Obviously, watching back, I did. I made a mistake… I thought I hit the wall, but I ended up hitting him. That was unfortunate. I’m sorry about that.”
Look, I’m not saying that Michael McLeod has been better at 5v5 than Artemi Panarin this year.
But I’m also not saying that he hasn’t been.
#NJDevils
#NYR
Completely inconsequential trade for the
#NJDevils
, but it can’t be understated that this is yet another nice guy move from GM Tom Fitzgerald.
Clarke was never gonna get a shot in the NHL here, and he was sent to his home state of Minnesota.
Apparently
#GoJetsGo
forward Nikolaj Ehlers is on the trade block and man, if there is one player I have wanted the
#NJDevils
to pursue for years, it’s him.
He’s elite at everything offensively and took a huge jump in defense this year. One of the fastest players in the NHL.
With the
#NJDevils
likely solving their top-6 problem in free agency, one name I could absolutely see being of interest is
#CauseChaos
UFA Teuvo Teravainen.
Excellent defense-first, PK winger with goal scoring ability.
EH projects his next contract at 5x$6.8.
Friedman on the Marek Show said that former
#LetsGoOilers
head coach Jay Woodcroft is in the mix for the
#NJDevils
coaching position.
I was under the assumption he wasn’t allowed to talk to other teams, but he’s now my new
#1
target (even over Sullivan).
#NJDevils
might want to think twice about dealing Seamus Casey.
Solid outing today in USA’s first WJC game, and he’s arguably been the NCAA’s best defenseman.
After going through Keefe's system and what it might look like for the
#NJDevils
in all three zones, let's take a look at what Craig Berube's system will be for
#LeafsForever
and why the Devils are lucky not to have him.
First things first, let's look at his OZ play:
(1/?)
#NJDevils
prospect Arseni Gritsyuk has been on FIRE in the KHL — his 19 points in his last 12 games (including a goal today) has him up to 33 points in 38 games.
That’s an NHLe of 57 points over an 82-game season.
At the very least, the Devils have a good trade asset here.
Seems like the
#NJDevils
are struggling way more to hold leads under Green.
Last three games:
Blew 3-2 lead in third vs NYR (4-3 L)
Blew 3-1 lead in third vs PIT (6-3 L)
Blew 2-0 lead in second vs. BUF (5-2 L)
They’d be tied for WC2 with 82 points if they didn’t. 🫠
I'm pretty content with Fitzgerald not handing out these medium-long-term deals with high AAVs to aging players who are likely too slow for the
#NJDevils
system.
Marchessault and Stamkos are good, but I'm glad they're going to
#Smashville
.
Suspensions should be revisited and more severe. I’m glad the NHL has been cracking down more often on suspending guilty parties but man, Hischier is STILL out and Connor Clifton only got two games.
Suspend players until the injured player returns.
#NJDevils
#LetsGoBuffalo
After going over Keefe's offensive-zone system yesterday, let's take an in-depth look at what his teams primarily deploy in the neutral zone (NZ), both on attack and while defending the rush:
#NJDevils
#LeafsForever
(1/?)
With Jack Hughes, Timo Meier, Dougie Hamilton, and Ondrej Palat all out tonight, the
#NJDevils
are missing $31.8 million (38.5%) of their cap across just four players.
That’s… wow.
Among
#NJDevils
defensemen with at least 40 games played, Simon Nemec ranked:
2nd in xGF% (52.55%)
1st in xGF/60 (2.99)
2nd in HDCF% (51.02%)
2nd in HDCF/60 (11.8)
1st in blocks (105)
Pretty incredible stuff for a 20 year old with pretty limited NA ice experience beforehand.
Friedman on 32T said that it was retention that was the biggest issue for the
#NJDevils
in acquiring
#Flames
goaltender Jacob Markstrom, and that they were close in terms of players.
I really hope that ship hasn’t sailed.
I've already gone through Keefe's OZ and NZ tactics, and what
#NJDevils
fans should expect the team to run with in that regard under the tenure of the ex-
#LeafsForever
coach.
Now it's time to go into detail about the defensive (DZ) system and how it affects the goalie:
(1/?)
Friedman on 32T today that the
#NJDevils
are unsurprisingly looking for a center.
Also mentioned that they are not interested in
#Flames
Chris Tanev because he’s a rental.
Honestly, the more I think about it, the more I’m comfortable saying that Arseni Gritsyuk is the only
#NJDevils
prospect that has an argument for staying in the system.
The Devils are win-now. Gritsyuk is a proven KHL commodity, which translates to the NHL decently well…
After another strong performance tonight, the
#NJDevils
line of Bratt, Hischier, and Palat now rep a 5v5 xGF% of over 61%, good for 4th best in the NHL.
Absolutely love to see it.
The
#NJDevils
forward corps — and specifically Hughes, Bratt, and Hischier — are carrying the Devils’ cap situation.
Have to imagine a full season of healthy Meier and Dougie will make this look more favorable as well.
Via TheAthletic
Have to think Graeme Clarke deserves a look on the third line should Erik Haula miss more time for the
#NJDevils
. He's been dynamite in Utica, especially of late.
Chris Tierney is not it.
One of Sheldon Keefe or Jay Woodcroft will be the next
#NJDevils
head coach.
They were my top two options, so the fact the Devils will be getting one of the two is good enough for me.
Holtz practiced on the
#NJDevils
third line today, and I have genuine issues with it.
They’re trying to turn him into a two-way, playdriving player. He will never be that player (and that’s fine). He needs to be a top 6 passenger player who plays alongside the likes of…
The
#NJDevils
have the 10th overall selection in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, and there's really only one name I think they should actively avoid with the pick: Konsta Helenius.
Here's why:
(1/?)
The
#NJDevils
will have an undoubtedly eventful and interesting off-season, and one question I personally have is "What should they do with Jonas Siegenthaler?"
Let's take a quick deep dive into the pros and cons of keeping Siegenthaler around:
(1/?)
Meier needs to be with one/both of Hischier and Palat.
Without either of those guys, Meier has a 25.71% xG%.
With Palat, he’s at 79.27%.
With Hischier, he’s at 70.79%.
With both, he’s at 67.27%.
If the
#NJDevils
want him to get going, it starts there.
Sitting at the
#NJDevils
game right now and I can’t stress how annoying this fanbase is.
Third in the division, lost one game since losing Hughes (to the Avs no less) and I have to hear Frank the Tank behind me yelling incessantly about how “putrid” the team is.
With the
#NJDevils
likely solving their top-6 problem in free agency, one name I could absolutely see being of interest is
#CauseChaos
UFA Teuvo Teravainen.
Excellent defense-first, PK winger with goal scoring ability.
EH projects his next contract at 5x$6.8.
With the
#NJDevils
in need of a bottom-six revamp this off-season, one target that should be on just about everybody’s radar is pending
#VegasBorn
UFA William Carrier.
Vegas is cap-strapped to say the least, and Carrier is excellent on both sides of the ice and should be cheap.
Pretty tired of the
#NJDevils
takes I’m seeing tonight.
We’re down Hughes and Hischier and played against one of — if not THE — unluckiest teams in the NHL. They had a bounce back game and we *still* made it a heavyweight bout for the first two periods (and the third)
Grow up
The
#NJDevils
should be announcing their head coach pretty soon, and while Jay Woodcroft is my number one choice, recently fired
#LeafsForever
coach Sheldon Keefe is a pretty good consolation prize.
Here's why:
(1/?)
Yes, Nico Daws was electric last night (+1.51 GSAx, two save of the year candidates), and yes, he’s been good in the last three games.
No, he is not ready to take the reigns, and no, it is not worth NOT making a move for a goaltender.
#NJDevils
Hopefully, Tomas Tatar can find his 2022-23 self in his second stint with the
#NJDevils
, who could use him to boost their top-six if he rekindles that energy.
Specifically, let's talk about his effectiveness when playing alongside Nico Hischier (and Dawson Mercer)
(1/?)
If the
#NJDevils
are upping the grit/physicality in their game — which I’m not opposed to — Yakov Trenin is a name I’d like to see them pursue.
One of the better defensive bottom-sixers in the league and an excellent PKer to boot.
Very classy move by Tom Fitzgerald moving Reilly Walsh to
#NHLBruins
.
#NJDevils
have a LD logjam, so Walsh didn’t have a place on the team.
Fitz gave Walsh an opportunity to play NHL minutes with his home-state team, who desperately need talent on cheap contracts.
Very odd that waivers didn’t get announced today. Usually someone says “No waivers today.” if there isn’t anything, but it’s just been radio silence.
#NJDevils
Seravalli also said on DFO Rundown that the
#NJDevils
would prefer to have Schmid spend the entirety of next season in the AHL.
It seems like Fitz is, in fact, not done.
#VegasBorn
is going to be in a crazy cap crunch and will have to part ways with a couple great players.
Past William Carrier, another player who should be on the
#NJDevils
radar is Shea Theodore.
Would instantly be the best puck-moving defense corps in the league.
#NJDevils
re-sign Kurtis MacDermid to a three-year, $1.15m AAV contract.
Really just a perplexing move all around here. Too much money for too long a time. He does nothing well on skates outside of taking penalty minutes.
Seems to be the consensus from what I’m seeing, but I’ll just reiterate that the
#NJDevils
need to stay away from a Hellebuyck trade if it comes with an extension.
As a rental? Sure. Absolutely.
With a $9.5m AAV longterm contract? Wouldn’t touch it with a ten foot pole.
I’ve mostly been a Lindy Ruff defender, I like his system for the
#NJDevils
’ skaters a lot.
But man, continuing to trot out Vanecek as the starting goaltender is just so unbelievably bad.
Might be time to move on.
Look, I’m obviously not a GM, right? But…
Looking at the
#NYR
cap situation, it’s BAFFLING to me that GMs are so afraid to offersheet players. If someone were to offersheet either Lafreniere or Miller, the Rags would have no choice but to lose the player.
#NJDevils
👀
Apparently, the C market is pretty thin, and the
#NJDevils
are now missing their 3C with McLeod out indefinitely (and presumably forever).
As such, I think the Devils would be smart to target
#FlyTogether
Adam Henrique once they acquire a goaltender. He's been really solid.
With Luke Hughes out for 6-8 weeks, one of Santeri Hatakka or Johnathan Kovacevic should be given the opportunity to work in a third-pair setting.
The loss undoubtedly hurts, but the
#NJDevils
can’t really go wrong with either one.
I mentioned the name that I don't want the
#NJDevils
to target at 10th overall if they keep the pick -- Konsta Helenius -- but who would I want them to select if he's available?
Easy. Bar-none, my pick would be Berkly Catton.
Here's why:
(1/?)
#NJDevils
recent draftee Anton Silayev has been sturdy in the KHL thus far.
He hasn’t been producing in the early bits of the season, but he’s established himself as a top-four defenseman on a KHL team at 18.
He was third on his team in EV TOI today. Encouraging to see.
I’m seeing some “UFA vs. RFA” comments and uh, that’s more a commentary on how poor the Rangers are at developing prospects.
Shocker! Locking your best players up longterm as RFAs is better for building a contender than signing the shiniest new UFAs every year.
The
#NJDevils
might be looking to add a depth defenseman, and if they are, Jalen Chatfield is someone they should have on their radar.
His success might be a product of the
#CauseChaos
system, but it’s worth taking a flier on him in case he’s just that good.
Obviously the story here is that Mukhamadullin’s star probability and NHLer probability have gone way, WAY up since he was traded.
But he’s also grown 2”???
#NJDevils
#SJSharks
Perfect time to remind everyone that NHL goaltenders are hired to make difficult saves to bail out the defense every now and then.
Well, NHL goaltenders outside of the
#NJDevils
organization, I guess.