Confirmed with Link: Devils acquire Vitek Vanecek and 46th Overall pick from WSH for 37th Overall pick and 70th Overall pick

[BurntToast]

The Devils just got the Caps’ starting. This is a win-win. ( Not as good of a goalie but better timing/price)This is low key the Cory Schneider trade. They moved the better goalie, and you have to believe they are going after Kuemper and Campbell. Which could end up somewhere else.

 

[Bleedred]

I totally forgot that Seattle claimed Vanecek in the expansion draft last year, only for Washington to send them a 2nd round pick to get him back about a week later.

 

[NjDevsRR]

The Devils just got the Caps’ starting. This is a win-win. ( Not as good of a goalie but better timing/price)This is low key the Cory Schneider trade. They moved the better goalie, and you have to believe they are going after Kuemper and Campbell. Which could end up somewhere else.

Who us? We are not on Keumper or Campbell. Fitz said we are rolling Mac and Vanecek while reevaluating Bernier when he is back.

 

[GeNeXt]

His 5 v 5 numbers are good... I must ask, with how many shorthanded goals our PP coughed up last season -hopefully it will never that bad again (It's impossible, right?)- what were Vanecek's 5 v 4 numbers like?

 

[billingtons ghost]

@Nubmer6 so... is Vanacek a reactional goalie?

I'm glad Fitz didn't give up any big assets for a goalie - it's almost the perfect show-me scenario wherein we aren't overpaying or dealing pieces to make a move that is still going to be largely dependent upon what types of shots we give up in front of him. I expect Blackwood to bounce back big, unless we are a complete horror show again like last year, and I expect Vanacek to play about the same as Blackwood does. So... tldr I'm hopeful. Great move.

 

[PKs Broken Stick]

Ok yeah so you agree it’s year 9 of rebuild 2.0?

No, we are on year 3. Anything Shero did doesn't matter. He failed to commit to one plan and it ended up in a mess and eventually him being fired.

In fairness though, Fitz inherited a much better team so it won't (shouldn't) take another 6 years. I'm expecting playoffs by '23-'24 at the latest and a massive improvement this upcoming season.

 

[BurntToast]

Who us? We are not on Keumper or Campbell. Fitz said we are rolling Mac and Vanecek while reevaluating Bernier when he is back.

No the Caps. They need a goalie. Samsonov sucks..

 

[Emperoreddy]

No the Caps. They need a goalie. Samsonov sucks..

They are apparently in the goalie market yes. I don't quite get what they are doing, but they were determined to trade one of their two young goalies to make room for a new guy.

 

[PKs Broken Stick]

They are apparently in the goalie market yes. I don't quite get what they are doing, but they were determined to trade one of their two young goalies to make room for a new guy.

Maybe they want a more experienced guy and kept the young one with more upside.

 

[Bcap88]

Trading/signing Gusev and giving up assets for Grabner and Maroon at the 2017 deadline are prime examples. Subban also counts. If he didn’t think this team could compete he wouldn’t have made those moves.

which one of those picks are in the nhl rn ?
Spitballin not directed specifically at you

 

[Hisch13r]

which one of those picks are in the nhl rn ?
Spitballin not directed specifically at you

Bobby Brink is. I still think the PK move was a good bet at the time. The 2 picks turning into Brink and Khusnutdinov is pretty crazy though. That's a really nice pair of prospects

 

[ninetyeight]

Vanecek is not an elite goalie, but this is about as good as we could've done. When I was pushing my get an euro goalie agenda, I knew there was very a good chance we wouldn't get anything worthy from free agency. But people argued like we could just sign some elite starter just like that. This move at least gives them a chance.

I've gone on record saying I'm not very high on Husso. And with his salary I'm glad we avoided him. It will be interesting to see how he does on a weaker team (at least on paper). Maybe he breaks out and becomes an elite goalie, it's possible. But my prediction is he'll be eventually outplayed by Olkinuora and they'll be paying 5m for a backup.

 

[Emperoreddy]

Maybe they want a more experienced guy and kept the young one with more upside.

Samsonov was supposedly available as well. They wanted to move one goalie. Didn't care which one.

 

[Hisch13r]

Vanecek is not an elite goalie, but this is about as good as we could've done. When I was pushing my get an euro goalie agenda, I knew there was very a good chance we wouldn't get anything worthy from free agency. But people argued like we could just sign some elite starter just like that. This move at least gives them a chance.

I've gone on record saying I'm not very high on Husso. And with his salary I'm glad we avoided him. It will be interesting to see how he does on a weaker team (at least on paper). Maybe he breaks out and becomes an elite goalie, it's possible. But my prediction is he'll be eventually outplayed by Olkinuora and they'll be paying 5m for a backup.

Olkinoura’s not going to be in the NHL

 

[swiiscompos]

Who cares how good Vanacek is at 5v5, the real question is how good is he on the PP, can he stop those shorthanded shots??

 

[ninetyeight]

Olkinoura’s not going to be in the NHL

He'll start in the AHL yes, but I'm willing to bet he plays himself into the NHL lineup, he's better than Husso. Husso has played with the same team Finland lineup as Olkinuora and has been terrible every time.

 

[BurntToast]

I actually think there is still some upside here. Most goalies don’t hit their stride until their mid to late 20’s. Plus, the Caps weren’t exactly the best team defensively.

I can’t speak for the NHL but somehow Blackwood is still getting put in trade proposals on the main boards. Imagine the trade assets if these guys both hit this season.

 

[JK3]

I think I’m on board with this, at least we didn’t give up anything and it’s better than throwing Daws to the wolves or playing our collection of dumpster dive goaltenders of the week.

I guess we’ll get to see how league average does within Ruffs system.

 

[Nubmer6]

@Nubmer6 so... is Vanacek a reactional goalie?

I'm glad Fitz didn't give up any big assets for a goalie - it's almost the perfect show-me scenario wherein we aren't overpaying or dealing pieces to make a move that is still going to be largely dependent upon what types of shots we give up in front of him. I expect Blackwood to bounce back big, unless we are a complete horror show again like last year, and I expect Vanacek to play about the same as Blackwood does. So... tldr I'm hopeful. Great move.

I dunno. He seems more reactionary than positional to me. Maybe @Bleedred has more insight?

 

[Puckclektr]

I’m happy with those two in net next year.
From what I have been reading the last couple years many people don’t like Blackwood regardless of how he played. The fact that he wasn’t vaccinated still have people mad at him and biased and want him gone for that reason.
I get there are some people who don’t like him for his play, but when people don’t like him I take the comment with a grain of salt because I know a lot of it is because of his personal decision.

 

[Bleedred]

I dunno. He seems more reactionary than positional to me. Maybe @Bleedred has more insight?

Been a while since I've seen him, but I think he's more reactionary?

Like I said though, it's been a while and maybe I'm wrong. It's easy to forget when you're watching 120 goalies in a year.

 

[HBK27]

I really like this move by Fitz.

He read the UFA goalie market correctly - the demand well outweighs the supply, and the result is going to be some painful contracts handed out for some questionable goalies. The Devils would also be up against more desperate teams in Toronto, Washington & Edmonton that are all in a "win now" mode that will be willing to overpay (particularly in term) to solidify the goaltending position. There was also a huge risk in waiting for free agency to address this need and coming away empty-handed, which is going to put teams in a bad spot to overpay on a trade for someone such as Gibson.

Whatever issues people have with Blackwood, he put together two solid seasons before Covid/Injury/Overuse de-railed his past two seasons. If they trade him now, they're not getting much back. The Devils don't need more mid-round picks. He (like VV) is the type of goalie they need right now with this team - younger guys with some good upside to their game. Roll them out in a 1A/1B tandem and see what happens this season. Let Daws & Schmid marinate in the AHL.

Ultimately, it was a low cost to acquire VV and I think one if not both of the teams that sign Kuemper/Campbell will absolutely regret those contracts. They're only going to get worse with age and the Devils would be competing against teams in a "win now" mode for them, when the Devils are still a few years away from being serious contenders. Solid move by Fitz.

 

[Nubmer6]

Been a while since I've seen him, but I think he's more reactionary?

Like I said though, it's been a while and maybe I'm wrong. It's easy to forget when you're watching 120 goalies in a year.

But .. but... Your memory. Don't disappoint me

-edit-

One thing I'd like to add is that positional goalies tend to be described as "cerebral" while reactionary goalies tend to be described as "athletic". Because of that, I think the guy we just drafted is probably a positional guy. Mac Black is more reactionary. He relies on his athleticism, and injuries really hamper that. That's why I still have hope in him.

 

[ninetyeight]

The fact that he wasn’t vaccinated still have people mad at him and biased and want him gone for that reason.
I get there are some people who don’t like him for his play, but when people don’t like him I take the comment with a grain of salt because I know a lot of it is because of his personal decision.

And he actually did get vaxed eventually, but people didn't care anymore since they had already decided he was the enemy. Tribalism is one of the worst qualities in humans and has let to a lot of awful things.

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

And he actually did get vaxed eventually, but people didn't care anymore since they had already decided he was the enemy. Tribalism is one of the worst qualities in humans and has let to a lot of awful things.

Blackwood not getting vaccinated could be considered tribalism too if we want to play that game.

People can dislike or not dislike people for whatever reason they choose. His decisions hurt the team, and I dont like that. The end. Sorry this offends!