Blackwood/Vanecek/We Really Need to Move On/Goalie Thread

[HBK27]

f*** it - I'm getting on board the Blackwood hype train. Way too much negativity about this guy. I still believe he can be a good goaltender for this team. Expecting a hell of a bounce back for the guy.

Who's with me?

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

f*** it - I'm getting on board the Blackwood hype train. Way too much negativity about this guy. I still believe he can be a good goaltender for this team. Expecting a hell of a bounce back for the guy.

Who's with me?

 

[MauDevils]

f*** it - I'm getting on board the Blackwood hype train. Way too much negativity about this guy. I still believe he can be a good goaltender for this team. Expecting a hell of a bounce back for the guy.

Who's with me?

All aboard!

 

[Stephen Gionta]

he had 4 below average starts, so that isnt true.

Schmid has looked perfectly capable. Blackwood is not needed anymore.

Ah yes. Let's take 4 NHL games from Akira Schmid and claim he's fully ready to be an NHL backup.

Good idea!

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

Ah yes. Let's take 4 NHL games from Akira Schmid and claim he's fully ready to be an NHL backup.

Good idea!

You're right, we should definitely be relying on Mackenzie Blackwood's .897 SV% and 3.14 GAA over his last 67 games as that guy. For sure!

 

[SteveCangialosi123]

Ah yes. Let's take 4 NHL games from Akira Schmid and claim he's fully ready to be an NHL backup.

Good idea!

I’m not sure if Schmid is good. But he can probably give us near .900 goaltending while not being made of tissue paper. Not sure if the other guy can do that.

 

[Bleedred]

Ah yes. Let's take 4 NHL games from Akira Schmid and claim he's fully ready to be an NHL backup.

Good idea!

Ah yes, let’s take the last 62 games of Blackwood and claim that he’s anything better than one of the worst goalies in the NHL.

Good idea!

Schmid may not be any good, that could very well be true. But I highly doubt he’s any worse than Blackwood.

#MBWITWGITNHL

 

[Bleedred]

You're right, we should definitely be relying on Mackenzie Blackwood's .897 SV% and 3.14 GAA over his last 67 games as that guy. For sure!

And that’s only .897% in his last 67 games because the first 5 of those games were much like Schmid’s games this year lol. .892% in his last 62.

The only reason anybody gives a shit about this guy anymore is because of a strong run (not unlike the one Vanecek is currently on) almost THREE f***in years ago. The guy was also mediocre at best in the AHL. He’s probably just bad.

You don’t have to be a particularly good goaltender at the NHL level to be better than this guy.

 

[PKs Broken Stick]

Ah yes. Let's take 4 NHL games from Akira Schmid and claim he's fully ready to be an NHL backup.

Good idea!

??? He has done way better than Blackwood has done in over 2 years. At some point you need to just give the guy a chance to run with it. How many games you guys need to see to be satisfied with him as backup sheesh.

 

[Bleedred]

??? He has done way better than Blackwood has done in over 2 years. At some point you need to just give the guy a chance to run with it. How many games you guys need to see to be satisfied with him as backup sheesh.

I completely understand not being sold on him just yet. That’s fine.

But even if he’s not good, there’s still a pretty good chance that he’s better than the decrepit #29, who is arguably the worst (full time/non-call up) goaltender in the NHL.

 

[Bleedred]

#MBWITWGITNHL

 

[FooteBahl]

#MBWITWGITNHL

I like how you put the W in there because that could be taken as “Marty Brodeur is the winningest goalie in the NHL.”

 

[mdj12784]

Your beef should with management, not the player. But that’s not going to happen.

 

[Bleedred]

Your beef should with management, not the player. But that’s not going to happen.

How so? For allowing him to continue to play?

Oh believe me, if there's any bullshit and they try giving him a run of games when he gets back and play him just to play him, you can bet I'll be blasting management and Ruff for it.

Fortunately for Ruff, we've built enough of a cushion that playing him one too many games won't be the death of his job, like it could have been early on.

Let's see how they play this out. He should be used very sparingly, like no more than what Schmid has been playing in his absence and I mean no more. One game a week-ish should be about it.

And if he comes back and shows he isn't playable, I don't wanna hear that he's still injured and he needs to get into a rhythm. Waive his f***in ass, just like Cory Schneider in 2019.

There's a good chance someone will actually claim him, as he's on an expiring contract, but we have not a single bit of use for him beyond this year anyway. It's a fireable offense if he plays a single game here after this season.

If he's re-signed after this year then you bet everything you have that I'll be sounding off on management.

I don't thin he will be here beyond this year, but god forbid he has some bullshit market correction Cory Schneider second half of 2018-2019 run then all bets are off at that point.

 

[NJDevs26]

And that’s only .897% in his last 67 games because the first 5 of those games were much like Schmid’s games this year lol. .892% in his last 62.

The only reason anybody gives a shit about this guy anymore is because of a strong run (not unlike the one Vanecek is currently on) almost THREE f***in years ago. The guy was also mediocre at best in the AHL. He’s probably just bad.

You don’t have to be a particularly good goaltender at the NHL level to be better than this guy.

It’s also because he was a homegrown high-ish draft pick…if we’d traded for Blackwood three years ago or signed him in FA, most fans’ leash would have already run out long ago.

 

[MasterofGrond]

Your beef should with management, not the player. But that’s not going to happen.

everybody can be at fault here

if management plays him, they're wrong. but also if he just played better, it wouldn't even be an issue.

It’s also because he was a homegrown high-ish draft pick…if we’d traded for Blackwood three years ago or signed him in FA, most fans’ leash would have already run out long ago.

Yeah, given our long success with Brodeur, and also the recent jealousy when looking out across the river(s) at our rivals' success with drafted goalies, I think it's natural to long for an inhouse optino that ends up being good.

That ship has sailed (with MBW) at least. (I'm a Schmid believer, or at least enough of one that i want to be early on the bandwagon).

 

[Bleedred]

It’s also because he was a homegrown high-ish draft pick…if we’d traded for Blackwood three years ago or signed him in FA, most fans’ leash would have already run out long ago.

I think most fans (MOST, not ALL) have already given up on him, but last we saw of him the coaching staff/management were not even divorced from the idea of making him the 1b goalie not just the backup.

That's why he was getting starts he shouldn't have been, like the season opener and then after they threw him a bone after not playing him for a week and gave him a weak-ish opponent that he had historically played well against (Vancouver), they gave him the very next game against Edmonton. And it was really looking like that 13 game win streak was going to end that night at like 4 was it?

But he got hurt and had to leave the game first. And you know if he won the game they were probably throwing him out there again against Calgary. Not to mention that he hadn't had a sore elbow or whatever, he probably would have played at least one other game in between the Washington blowout and the Vancouver game. Probably the Colorado game we won 1-0.

He's basically riding on a run that happened almost 3 years ago. And the run lasted a little bit longer than Vitek's current run as far as games played goes, but it really wasn't any better.

He never showed ''Elite'' upside, but he showed good upside. It's been all downhill since then and he really shouldn't be a thought anymore outside of playing out the rest of the year.

His play isn't efficient enough to pay him $3 or $4 million for another year beyond this. Whatever his qualifying offer is, there seems to be some questions about how much it is exactly.

 

[Stephen Gionta]

I'm just as impressed with Schmid as the next guy. And at this moment, he has earned the backup job over Blackwood.

But to say Blackwood "is not needed" because of 4 good games against NHL basement dwellers from a 22 year old is just downright ridiculous.

What happens if both Schmid and Vanecek go down with injuries? I bet you would be begging to have Blackwood between the pipes.

Schmid has looked perfectly capable. Blackwood is not needed anymore.

Here is the quote ^ for reference.

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

every single NHL team would be in the same boat if they lost BOTH of their goalies lol thats not really a situation that happens all that often.

how many teams have more than 2 capable NHL goalies? Hell, most teams don't even have two. Some don't have one.

plus, this isn't even bringing up the fact that we still have Bernier...

 

[HBK27]

And that’s only .897% in his last 67 games because the first 5 of those games were much like Schmid’s games this year lol. .892% in his last 62.

The only reason anybody gives a shit about this guy anymore is because of a strong run (not unlike the one Vanecek is currently on) almost THREE f***in years ago. The guy was also mediocre at best in the AHL. He’s probably just bad.

You don’t have to be a particularly good goaltender at the NHL level to be better than this guy.

Seriously, I think he'll bounce back and at least be decent and I am more than willing to eat crow if that doesn't happen.

 

[Bleedred]

Seriously, I think he'll bounce back and at least be decent and I am more than willing to eat crow if that doesn't happen.

Too lazy to look it up but.......

*Inserts picture of skeleton in lawn chair with a sign that reads Devils fan waiting for Blackwood to bounce back*.

I'm just as impressed with Schmid as the next guy. And at this moment, he has earned the backup job over Blackwood.

But to say Blackwood "is not needed" because of 4 good games against NHL basement dwellers from a 22 year old is just downright ridiculous.

What happens if both Schmid and Vanecek go down with injuries? I bet you would be begging to have Blackwood between the pipes.



Here is the quote ^ for reference.

Blackwood is not needed because he's arguably the worst goalie in the national hockey league. Not because of Schmid's 4 good games.

Then I guess we're down to Daws? He probably ain't worse than Blackwood either. He sure wasn't last year and he didn't even look good and was clearly not ready for the NHL.

It's not that these guys are so good that they make Blackwood expendable, it's that Blackwood is so bad that he makes himself expendable. Goalies that are replacement level are probably no worse than Blackwood. Blackwood is about replacement level.

 

[NJDevs26]

every single NHL team would be in the same boat if they lost BOTH of their goalies lol thats not really a situation that happens all that often.

how many teams have more than 2 capable NHL goalies? Hell, most teams don't even have two. Some don't have one.

plus, this isn't even bringing up the fact that we still have Bernier...

Eh Bernier's a ghost to me at this point...he went from practicing in camp to oops he's out again for a few months to oh boy he's ready to rehab soon and now it's back to radio silence. Either the dude is more fragile than MB29 or we're going through charades and Matvichuking him at this point.

 

[Triumph]

Eh Bernier's a ghost to me at this point...he went from practicing in camp to oops he's out again for a few months to oh boy he's ready to rehab soon and now it's back to radio silence. Either the dude is more fragile than MB29 or we're going through charades and Matvichuking him at this point.

The Devils are not 'Matvichuking' Bernier, not with one goalie already injured and plenty of room to switch him and Palat on LTIR. I also believe Mativchuk was practicing with the team weeks before he was finally dressed for a game.

 

[Bleedred]

I really thought we would see Bernier again, at least in the AHL. Figured there was a good chance that he’d either get blown up like Rask last year in his brief comeback or that he would wind up getting hurt again soon enough and that would be the last he would ever play pro hockey.

But it’s looking more and more like this is the last we’ll see of him in pro hockey.

As much as the league loves their retread goalies, it’s very unusual that a guy his age that’s been sitting injured for 1.5 years (should he not play at all this year) gets signed or even given a PTO.

I keep thinking of Tomas Vokoun in 2014. He had an amazing playoffs and took the Pens to the ECF in 2013 coming in for MAF after one of his meltdowns. He got injured in a preseason game the next fall and no one signed him in the 2014 off-season when his contract was up. And he was even better than Bernier, although he was about 3 years older too.

Then again, we did see Bernier again, but it was in a weird training camp scrimmage.

 

[Triumph]

I really thought we would see Bernier again, at least in the AHL. Figured there was a good chance that he’d either get blown up like Rask last year in his brief comeback or that he would wind up getting hurt again soon enough and that would be the last he would ever play pro hockey.

But it’s looking more and more like this is the last we’ll see of him in pro hockey.

As much as the league loves their retread goalies, it’s very unusual that a guy his age that’s been sitting injured for 1.5 years (should he not play at all this year) gets signed or even given a PTO.

I keep thinking of Tomas Vokoun in 2014. He had an amazing playoffs and took the Pens to the ECF in 2013 coming in for MAF after one of his meltdowns. He got injured in a preseason game the next fall and no one signed him in the 2014 off-season when his contract was up. And he was even better than Bernier, although he was about 3 years older too.

Then again, we did see Bernier again, but it was in a weird training camp scrimmage.

It's worth noting that 2014 looks like 'peak goalie' in the NHL. That said, I would be very surprised if Bernier ever plays again, but there's a lot more room in the NHL for him than there would've been 8 years ago.