Devils 2021 training camp thread (news, notes and speculation) - Part III [MOD warning in OP]

[RememberTheName]

RememberTheName's Preseason Game One Notes and Overreactions:

• MVP: Alex Holtz. The dude was a beast all game, showed off a great willingness to throw pucks on net and rip one home, and had some highly underrated vision, and the ability to set up high-danger scoring chances. The chemistry was there between Hughes and Holtz is seemed.
• Speaking of Hughes, he looked awesome and he didn't even look like he was trying 90% of the time. He is going to be a monster. His goal was unbelievably effortless.
• Sharangovich is just such a treat to watch. He somehow looks better than he did last year with an overall much more well-rounded game.
• Hischier was alright. It's hard to look amazing playing with a 4th liner and a young AHLer, but it's his first game back, so whatever. He also had a beauty of a game winner so...
• Vesey and Jankowski both proved why they should be signed as press box guys. Jankowski I'd argue looked real solid and is probably deserving of minutes, but at the bare minimum, these are two guys who can sit in the press box and fill in for injuries without having to keep some of our young guys getting 0 minutes in the press box. Jankowski could be a decent bottom 6 center for the team, you could do way worse.
• Dawson Mercer had an inconsistent, but overall good game, but he showed exactly why teams hate playing against him. He makes lives so difficult. He scored a goal 1v4. He drew an amazing penalty that led to the game winner. Showed exactly why he could step in as the #3 C right now. Loved what I saw.
• The other forwards were all just meh (sans Studenic, he looked real nice and a potential 4th line speedster).
• Onto the defense, jeez. Not much to like. Severson and Siegs weren't terrible, the rest were, to put it lightly, not good.
• Bernier had a rough night, but whatever. Daws looked real good, it'll be nice seeing him getting a lot of AHL minutes this year.

I want to see more preseason games first, but I think these lines would work for the Devils real well based on what I saw here. This honestly looks real solid to me.
Sharangovich - Hughes - Holtz
Zacha - Hischier - Bratt
Tatar - Mercer - Kuokkanen
Wood - McLeod - Jankowski
Johnsson, Vesey

 

[OmNomNom]

RememberTheName's Preseason Game One Notes and Overreactions:

• MVP: Alex Holtz. The dude was a beast all game, showed off a great willingness to throw pucks on net and rip one home, and had some highly underrated vision, and the ability to set up high-danger scoring chances. The chemistry was there between Hughes and Holtz is seemed.
• Speaking of Hughes, he looked awesome and he didn't even look like he was trying 90% of the time. He is going to be a monster. His goal was unbelievably effortless.
• Sharangovich is just such a treat to watch. He somehow looks better than he did last year with an overall much more well-rounded game.
• Hischier was alright. It's hard to look amazing playing with a 4th liner and a young AHLer, but it's his first game back, so whatever. He also had a beauty of a game winner so...
• Vesey and Jankowski both proved why they should be signed as press box guys. Jankowski I'd argue looked real solid and is probably deserving of minutes, but at the bare minimum, these are two guys who can sit in the press box and fill in for injuries without having to keep some of our young guys getting 0 minutes in the press box. Jankowski could be a decent bottom 6 center for the team, you could do way worse.
• Dawson Mercer had an inconsistent, but overall good game, but he showed exactly why teams hate playing against him. He makes lives so difficult. He scored a goal 1v4. He drew an amazing penalty that led to the game winner. Showed exactly why he could step in as the #3 C right now. Loved what I saw.
• The other forwards were all just meh (sans Studenic, he looked real nice and a potential 4th line speedster).
• Onto the defense, jeez. Not much to like. Severson and Siegs weren't terrible, the rest were, to put it lightly, not good.
• Bernier had a rough night, but whatever. Daws looked real good, it'll be nice seeing him getting a lot of AHL minutes this year.

I want to see more preseason games first, but I think these lines would work for the Devils real well based on what I saw here. This honestly looks real solid to me.
Sharangovich - Hughes - Holtz
Zacha - Hischier - Bratt
Tatar - Mercer - Kuokkanen
Wood - McLeod - Jankowski
Johnsson, Vesey

i think considering mercers linemates, he did well. not saying holtz was bad, but he had much better linemates

 

[Lou is God]

i think considering mercers linemates, he did well. not saying holtz was bad, but he had much better linemates

I don't care if Holtz's line mates was Gretzky and Kurri, he looked like he belonged and I wasn't expecting that, I thought it would only be Mercer who stood out but both did.

Foote was hit and miss I thought and I need to see more of Clarke's game, he doesn't stand out but he does play a smart solid game it seems.

 

[Emperoreddy]

Holtz does have a more difficult path to make the team due to roles.

I am not sure a bottom 6 role would suit him at all, so it becomes a question of whether you feel comfortable with him in the top 6.

With the way Mercer plays, it's easy to slot him right into the bottom 6

 

[Classic Devil]

Holtz does have a more difficult path to make the team due to roles.

I am not sure a bottom 6 role would suit him at all, so it becomes a question of whether you feel comfortable with him in the top 6.

With the way Mercer plays, it's easy to slot him right into the bottom 6

I don't know if it's a great idea for Holtz's development, but there's definitely a part of me that wants to see Sharangovich-Hughes-Holtz in the NHL this year.

 

[Hisch13r]

I don't know if it's a great idea for Holtz's development, but there's definitely a part of me that wants to see Sharangovich-Hughes-Holtz in the NHL this year.

I don't see how it's bad at all. Our 3rd line could end up having Kuokkanen and Zacha. That's a perfectly fine place for Mercer to be. Gone are the days of a true top 6-bottom 6 divide where the top 6 is all skill guys and there's no skill in the bottom 6.

 

[Classic Devil]

I don't see how it's bad at all. Our 3rd line could end up having Kuokkanen and Zacha. That's a perfectly fine place for Mercer to be.

Tatar - Hischier - Bratt
Sharangovich - Hughes - Holtz
Kuokkanen - Zacha - Mercer
Wood - McLeod - Johnsson
Vesey - Jankowski

I can dig it.

 

[TrufleShufle]

I don't know if it's a great idea for Holtz's development, but there's definitely a part of me that wants to see Sharangovich-Hughes-Holtz in the NHL this year.

It's your dong isn't it.

 

[SYWTom]

Seriously the highlights of Holtz shot is unreal. Showing guys at work (Boston and Arizona fans) they were amazed by the shot.

looking forward to seeing the kids play Friday as I missed this one. Hope Holtz, Mercer and more are in the lineup, have to imagine at home that Hamilton will play.

 

[Bcap88]

 

[Clam Jensen]

Preseason I know, but the amount of talent currently in the organization is truly amazing.

 

[Jersey Fresh]

yeah i guarantee nobody here will give a shit any more if he gets vaccinated.

It'll be funny to see how all the people using him as an avatar for their own skepticism will react, though.

 

[WhiskeyYerTheDevils]

Tatar - Hischier - Bratt
Sharangovich - Hughes - Holtz
Kuokkanen - Zacha - Mercer
Wood - McLeod - Johnsson
Vesey - Jankowski

I can dig it.

I'd prefer Zacha on the wing and Mercer in the middle if they were to play on the third line. Regardless, I think Holtz needs to round out his game in the AHL - he had some nice moments out there but there were many more where he looked lost / overwhelmed.

As much as I want Mercer to start at C, this is tempting:

Sharangovich - Hughes - Mercer
Zacha - Hischier - Bratt
Tatar - McLeod - Kuokannen
Wood - Jankowski - Johnsson

 

[Lou is God]

I watched this three times and I still have no idea how Jack saw Shara cutting towards the net:

 

[JimEIV]

Fun game to watch especially it being the first action vs a real opponent of the year.

I don't have any real strong takeaways from the game. It was very nice to see Holtz perform well...his last season had me down from the WJC on. Last night brought much renewed hope.

The biggest positive for me is the emergence of new players that can really shoot the puck...losing Palmieri, I thought we lost a quality that couldn't be replaced but with the renewed hope for Holtz, Sharangovich and Zacha there is a potential for some real quality shooters on this team... that looks like it starting to gell. That makes me happy.

I wasn't too impressed with Nico or Jack..but it's early. Jack always makes some jaw dropping moves..his hands on his goal was spectacular but you know it was scored on a bad turnover with no one else around him...his in game play still leaves a lot to be desired. It just seems that he puts himself in a lot of "dead-end" and low percentage situations...I saw a lot of the same last night.

Was really hoping to see a little better showing from Okhotyuk. Of course it's just 1 preseason game but my early assessment would be too raw. Needs another full year of AHL hockey.

Bahl continues to impress in very small nuanced ways. I like a lot of little things he does and I am continually impressed by his agility for such a big dude.

A lot of fun stuff last night.

 

[Call Me Al]

it looked like a bad turnover but jack gets a lot of those - his skating and speed are deceptive and defensemen often seem to think they have more time than they do with him

 

[Call Me Al]

agree with the d assessment - okhotiuk didn’t look ready and bahl is steady and good but they both will benefit a lot from a year in the A

also someone was comparing holtz and sharangovich’s shots in the game thread and have to just say that i think sharangovich’s shot is definitely an elite skill. there aren’t many people who can put a wrister cleanly past the goalies from the circles and he does that a bit. not every team has a player that can do that and it looks like we have two now

 

[RangerDoggo]

If Holtz and Mercer keep this up, I’m more than happy keeping them in the regular season. Holtz on the first line, Mercer at 3C, and Vesey and Jankowski in the press box can answer some of those nagging questions.

 

[Cheddabombs]

I watched this three times and I still have no idea how Jack saw Shara cutting towards the net:

Damn I didn't even realize how ridiculous that pass was after watching it yesterday

 

[Hisch13r]

Fun game to watch especially it being the first action vs a real opponent of the year.

I don't have any real strong takeaways from the game. It was very nice to see Holtz perform well...his last season had me down from the WJC on. Last night brought much renewed hope.

The biggest positive for me is the emergence of new players that can really shoot the puck...losing Palmieri, I thought we lost a quality that couldn't be replaced but with the renewed hope for Holtz, Sharangovich and Zacha there is a potential for some real quality shooters on this team... that looks like it starting to gell. That makes me happy.

I wasn't too impressed with Nico or Jack..but it's early. Jack always makes some jaw dropping moves..his hands on his goal was spectacular but you know it was scored on a bad turnover with no one else around him...his in game play still leaves a lot to be desired. It just seems that he puts himself in a lot of "dead-end" and low percentage situations...I saw a lot of the same last night.

Was really hoping to see a little better showing from Okhotyuk. Of course it's just 1 preseason game but my early assessment would be too raw. Needs another full year of AHL hockey.

Bahl continues to impress in very small nuanced ways. I like a lot of little things he does and I am continually impressed by his agility for such a big dude.

A lot of fun stuff last night.

Shocker

 

[devilsblood]

also someone was comparing holtz and sharangovich’s shots in the game thread and have to just say that i think sharangovich’s shot is definitely an elite skill. there aren’t many people who can put a wrister cleanly past the goalies from the circles and he does that a bit. not every team has a player that can do that and it looks like we have two now

The positives I see in Shara's shot is that it is big and heavy and how consistently he is able to get it off especially when skating with speed. His shot stands out even when he misses, the sound it makes hitting the boards/glass behind the net. Not to say it's not an accurate shot, but I don't think he's a true sniper .

Only one shot, and one goal, but Holtz's shot really fit the scouting report of a true sniper. Pin point laser beam.

 

[Blackjack]

I don't see how it's bad at all. Our 3rd line could end up having Kuokkanen and Zacha. That's a perfectly fine place for Mercer to be. Gone are the days of a true top 6-bottom 6 divide where the top 6 is all skill guys and there's no skill in the bottom 6.

Maybe the only thing weirder than declaring which players should not make the team before camp even begins is acting like the 3rd line is some barren wasteland of grinders and goons that plays eight minutes a game

 

[Blackjack]

The positives I see in Shara's shot is that it is big and heavy and how consistently he is able to get it off especially when skating with speed. His shot stands out even when he misses, the sound it makes hitting the boards/glass behind the net. Not to say it's not an accurate shot, but I don't think he's a true sniper .

Only one shot, and one goal, but Holtz's shot really fit the scouting report of a true sniper. Pin point laser beam.

Shara's accuracy is decent and the power on his shot is excellent, but what's truly special in my view is his release. The puck is often in the goal before the goaltender even reacts to his shot, I simply cannot remember the last time I saw a shooter with such a quick release.

 

[AfroThunder396]

There are very clearly four tiers of prospects right now.

Mercer Tier - Mercer
On The Cusp Tier - Holtz, Bahl, Foote
Needs A Bit More Time Tier - Okhotiuk, Stillman, Clarke, Vukojevich, Thompson, Daws
Who Cares Tier - Everyone else

 

[devilsblood]

Was really hoping to see a little better showing from Okhotyuk. Of course it's just 1 preseason game but my early assessment would be too raw. Needs another full year of AHL hockey.

Bahl continues to impress in very small nuanced ways. I like a lot of little things he does and I am continually impressed by his agility for such a big dude.

A lot of fun stuff last night.

On the bright side there is no room for Okhotyuk (or Bahl) at this point anyways. Those guys are 4th and 5th on the NHL depth chart, and it is nice that depth like this is piling up.