Confirmed with Link: Devils acquire Meier (50% retained) and four others from the Sharks for 2023 1st, conditional 2024 1st, Mukhamadullin, Okhotiuk, Zetterlund & Johnsson

[Hisch13r]

You have to know that this guy is going to spend the next 7 years thinking that Luke Hughes is bad, regardless of what he actually does.



Grier specifically said the Sharks are not doing a full rebuild.

Yeah my bad. Read a tweet yesterday that said “it’s not a full on rebuild” but I glossed over the not a. Not surprising given it’s Grier but they should be going full rebuild

 

[Cheddabombs]

 

[Japam]

Bummed about losing Mukh. I liked his progression track and potential to be a minute eater in the NHL. I'll still be rooting for him.

 

[Guadana]

Maybe.....dare I hope....there was a verbal / handshake (with gloves on because Covid...lol) agreement with him and Bratt's agent?




I just want it to be 8 years....I don't care what the dollar amount is, whether it's lower or higher.

I just want him to be a Devils for the next 8 years.

If he will sign 7 years deal, we will handle it.

 

[glenwo2]

What’s your first post going to be when he gets signed?

HOW MANY YEARS?

(seriously...I want to make sure it's 8 years...THEN I'll be very happy...and start a GIF party)

 

[Clam Jensen]

“Hole”.

 

[glenwo2]

Of course...if it's 7 years...I'm okay with that too. @Guadana

 

[SteveCangialosi123]

I love that guy. It’s a testament to the work he put in that people in here were that upset about losing him in a deal for an all star player.

 

[JrFischer54]

You have to know that this guy is going to spend the next 7 years thinking that Luke Hughes is bad, regardless of what he actually does.



Grier specifically said the Sharks are not doing a full rebuild.

i get why GMs are afraid of the word rebuild but just embrace it man. they are off to a way better start then what shero had to start with here in terms of pieces to sell off.

 

[MauDevils]

Didn't love the whole "NJ will sell itself to Timo"

Really hope he gets locked up and it doesn't drag out. This would be quite a mistake for a year and a half of Timo Meier.

 

[glenwo2]

“Hole”.

 

[AfroThunder396]

My hole thanks you as well Z

 

[FinnishDevil]

Man.. I fell asleep with the phone on my chest somewhere around 2-3AM and barely avoided oversleeping this morning.

No problem whatsoever with the return. We got Timo f***ing Meier!

Hope our guys become good for SJ though.

 

[Jersey Fan 12]

“Hole”.

I occasionally still switch homonyms, two.

And I trust Fabian's English is a lot better than my Swedish.

 

[HBK27]

I don't know if you saw the Fitzgerald press conference tonight but he said he was going to be looking for help for Utica in the next week but it's sometimes hard to get it done

I listened to it on my drive in this morning - Fitz seemed caught off guard a bit by the question and basically admitted the players coming back were contracts the Sharks had to dump to balance things out.

I also thought I saw somewhere that Max Veronneau was supposed to be included but that he was injured which was part of the holdup in the approval process. Not that it matters as he would've also just been a contract dump, but he did play 4 years at Princeton.

We are now loaded enough to catch Carolina LFGD!

Would be huge if we could pass the Canes and face a wildcard team like Detroit, Pittsburgh or the Islanders.

Yeah, sleeping on it I'm mostly over the sticker shock. It was a surprise; the vibe a lot of people had was that this was a buyer's market, and seeing so many pieces, albeit not from the very top of the organizational depth, included was more a surprise than anything else.

But again, assuming Timo's extended you really can't be too upset at this, even if losing Mukh and Zetts hurts a good deal.

Part of why I feel better is I don't think Fitz is going to be the GM who goes out and swings deals like this on the regular; he knew had had prospect capital to spend, he saw a guy who was basically the perfect target for the Devils' contention window and on-ice needs, so he spent some of that capital to make it happen. He's not about to pull a Rangers and just empty the coffers every year, and he's shown no indication that he doesn't keep an eye on the big picture when considering the overall health and depth within the organization, so I don't expect that to change. Given that, replacing a lot of what the Devils lost here won't be the hardest thing in the world, and Meier potentially puts them over the top for a championship in the very (how about incredibly) near future.

Basically, Fitz cashed in some chips to make this happen, but he's no degenerate gambler, so no reason not to trust the process and enjoy the ride, which is likely about to get even crazier now.

I'm also over the initial sticker shock. Was more than I was expecting to give up, but I don't hate the deal and would've been pissed if another team outbid us with something slightly less.

There was a lot of talk about NJ possibly giving up 2 of Holtz/Muk/Casey, so I'm glad there's only 1 major prospect going back. Don't think Okhotiuk had much of a future with this team, especially if he had to clear waivers next season, plus Bahl's recent improved play made him the better of the two to hold onto. I thought the Devils might have to add a 2nd round pick or so to the deal, so it being a conditional 1st with those conditions seems fair enough.

Fitz has his work cut out for him this offseason, but should be a fun ride between now and then.

 

[captainscott12]

good times.. love Zetts think he is gonna be a really good NHL guy ... best of luck to him I think we def made a fair trade... SJ got some really good prospects and young players.. we got a guy that we desperately needed and at a good age... great job go devils.. ummmmm pretty much our entire forward corp shoots lefty now.. but thats an argument for another day.. mercer. bastian.. mcleod .the rest are southies

 

[Jersey Fan 12]

I was referring to your point re: Muk winding up better than Luke/Simon.

Time will tell.

Perhaps the progress of Vilen has made Mukhamadullin expendable but I am not yet sold on either Nemec or L. Hughes at the next level.

 

[Triumph]

Yeah my bad. Read a tweet yesterday that said “it’s not a full on rebuild” but I glossed over the not a. Not surprising given it’s Grier but they should be going full rebuild

I think it's hard when you have that many players signed to long-term deals to admit that you are doing a full rebuild.

 

[Richer's Ghost]

Holy f*** it actually happened???

It's like Christmas morning for you lol.

 

[Richer's Ghost]

Didn't love the whole "NJ will sell itself to Timo"

Really hope he gets locked up and it doesn't drag out. This would be quite a mistake for a year and a half of Timo Meier.

Did you watch his interview from last night? I don't think that's the grin of a guy not genuinely happy to be coming here.

 

[Clam Jensen]

Time will tell.

Perhaps the progress of Vilen has made Mukhamadullin expendable but I am not yet sold on either Nemec or L. Hughes at the next level.

We all know

 

[Guadana]

From SJ point of view
I don`t like trade of Zetterlund because it`s a strange\weak move for rebuilding team to trade for 24 yo players.
I don`t like trade of Zetterlund because it`s a strange\weak move for retooling team to trade top-line 26 yo winger for 24 yo middle six winger. And Meier is 14th scorer of the league with 31 goals, Zetterlund scores 6 goals.

Hope we will caught them with Zetta\Okhotiuk on waivers.

 

[Better Call Sal]

Didn't love the whole "NJ will sell itself to Timo"

Really hope he gets locked up and it doesn't drag out. This would be quite a mistake for a year and a half of Timo Meier.

Fitz said similar things when Dougie signed here as well. I think it's just a part of his value statement he gives these guys when talking with them.

And as a biased resident of New Jersey, he's not lying!

I will be shocked if he doesn't re-up here long term. He has every reason possible to do so, including having familiar buddies here.

 

[HBK27]

Didn't love the whole "NJ will sell itself to Timo"

Really hope he gets locked up and it doesn't drag out. This would be quite a mistake for a year and a half of Timo Meier.

I actually really liked that from Fitz and he's completely correct.

From purely a team aspect, we arguably offer Meier the best chance for success over the next 8-9 years, not to mention the Swiss connections. Fitz is also completely correct on what NJ has to offer - from the city life of Jersey City or Hoboken to the suburbs, it's a great place for players to live and he rightfully called out the travel aspect, which is a big advantage teams in this area have.

 

[Jersey Fan 12]

Did you watch his interview from last night? I don't think that's the grin of a guy not genuinely happy to be coming here.

Was looking at not being in the playoffs for the fourth straight year and is heading to a team with a legitimate shot at a Stanley Cup.

He won one of Willy Wonka's golden tickets.