Devils discussion (news, notes and speculation) - 2026-27 offseason part III

[Billdo]

Another great pickup if we want to improve the blue line:

He has ALOT of Damon Severson in him, he is mistake prone but most of the time hes on the ice he dominates. Similar to 2022, Severson dominated 2nd and 3rd pair duties but couldnt hack it as THE guy on the blue line. One of the top analytic darlings and will instantly improve any blue line he goes to.

RFA this season, needs a new deal but doubt he would ever ask for what Nemec wants.

62% !! Corsi this season with a 63% Fenwick. 61.4% On-ice Expected Goals %. He finished top 25 in total NHL D Game Score this year - good on both sides of the ice.

His downside? Low Quality of Competition. Could be a risk where he flourishes in PP2 and Non top pair time - BUT I think he would excel as a Top 4 D.

Brilliant skater, doesnt ever reach top speed but according to NHL Edge he is in the top 80th% in 20-22 MPH Bursts and Top 87% in 18-20 MPH bursts.

View attachment 1254661

Imagine him and Luke together. Would be either a disaster or full on skating exhibition with no in between

 

[Based Anime Fan]

Hes a better Mercer for basically Mercer money. Id rather upgrade on Mercer

Mikheyev is super fast, incredible F1 on the forecheck, constantly plays the toughest competition on every team he is on due to his elite defensive skills. Hes just a younger, faster Connor Brown

Mikheyev put up 18 goals / 18 assists with his most common ice mmates was Jason Dickinson, Ryan Donato and Wyatt Kaiser.

Deal Mercer for a 2nd, get some assets and get this guy as a UFA. Sheldon would be over the moon to get him back

Mikheyev is the prototype for a player who skates as hard and fast as he can to go no where and do nothing. He's like 6'6" and barely hits or uses that size to out-muscle guys. He's like Miles wood with maybe 2 more brain cells and 1/4 as much intensity

 

[Devils Trap]

Mikheyev is the prototype for a player who skates as hard and fast as he can to go no where and do nothing. He's like 6'6" and barely hits or uses that size to out-muscle guys. He's like Miles wood with maybe 2 more brain cells and 1/4 as much intensity

I dont really care for hits, but he absolutely uses his speed to be one of the best forecheckers in the sport.

But we absolutely adored Brown in his time, he is a MUCH better Connor Brown who faces top quality competition

 

[Devils Trap]

So pretty much the player nemec was supposed to be

I would be ecstatic if Nemec was 1/4th of Spence next year. I think its insane that OTT are even considering moving him

 

[Triumph]

Mikheyev is a fine player but not what the Devils want to be doing. That's a Fitzgerald-type move - yeah, Mikheyev is good, and fulfills a role, but he's 32 in October and is a limited-use player. He's really good at the things he's good at and not good at the things he's not. It's much better to try to find a guy who is 80% as good as Mikheyev for 1/5th of the cost than go for the luxury version.

 

[My3Sons]

Another great pickup if we want to improve the blue line:

He has ALOT of Damon Severson in him, he is mistake prone but most of the time hes on the ice he dominates. Similar to 2022, Severson dominated 2nd and 3rd pair duties but couldnt hack it as THE guy on the blue line. One of the top analytic darlings and will instantly improve any blue line he goes to.

RFA this season, needs a new deal but doubt he would ever ask for what Nemec wants.

62% !! Corsi this season with a 63% Fenwick. 61.4% On-ice Expected Goals %. He finished top 25 in total NHL D Game Score this year - good on both sides of the ice.

His downside? Low Quality of Competition. Could be a risk where he flourishes in PP2 and Non top pair time - BUT I think he would excel as a Top 4 D.

Brilliant skater, doesnt ever reach top speed but according to NHL Edge he is in the top 80th% in 20-22 MPH Bursts and Top 87% in 18-20 MPH bursts.

View attachment 1254661

Seems like more of a Dougie and Nemec replacement than a Kovacevic replacement?

 

[TheUnseenHand]

@TheUnseenHand you mentioned on the previous thread about work ethic and the roster. Team has tons of skill never a doubt. But they have zero heart zero drive zero want to do what’s needed to win hockey games in the regular season let alone in a grueling playoff run. Results speak for themselves this roster is more then a few tweaks away

I wonder if that's true or if there is something more to that. I don't think they are apathetic. They show a level and heart and drive when they play for their respective countries. Just not consistently here. I'm not sure what the deal is but it's not like they don't have it in them at all.

 

[MartyOwns]

I wonder if that's true or if there is something more to that. I don't think they are apathetic. They show a level and heart and drive when they play for their respective countries. Just not consistently here. I'm not sure what the deal is but it's not like they don't have it in them at all.

i’m pretty sure it’s the environment at this point. we’ve become a country club, and as much as i love nico i don’t think he’s the type of leader to change that standard. he’s not a scott stevens. i think the most important changes sunny can make have nothing to do with what we’re talking about nonstop in these threads.

 

[Zippy316]

Not sure Spence makes sense here. It would also mean both Nemec and Kovacevic are dealt too.

While he could be a really nice fit as 3RD with Dillon, you already have Hamilton on the right side. Luke also is competing for a PP spot too.

It would also leave either Luke or Hamilton being a regular PK option. Not to mention when Pesce inevitably gets hurt, that right side is going to struggle defensively.

 

[Zippy316]

i’m pretty sure it’s the environment at this point. we’ve become a country club, and as much as i love nico i don’t think he’s the type of leader to change that standard. he’s not a scott stevens. i think the most important changes sunny can make have nothing to do with what we’re talking about nonstop in these threads.

Part of me has wondered about Hischier “stepping down” from the captaincy with an extension. Even if it’s something like going into training camp and letting it naturally play out to see who takes that role.

It would likely never happen, but if there was ever a player I could see do something like that it would be Nico. Similar to how he specifically said that if Josi joined the Swiss team in the WC he would step down to give Josi the captaincy.

 

[MadDevil]

Who are you acquiring that Nico would give up the "C" for? If you feel you need a veteran to push guys, go get one. That player doesn't have to wear the "C" or any letter for that matter. People need to stop expecting/wanting every Devils captain to be Scott Stevens.

 

[HoliksGhost]

Until they fix the top six, I'm not even looking at adding guys like him. Just rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.

Add a top six player and get slightly more appropriate slotting

 

[MartyOwns]

Who are you acquiring that Nico would give up the "C" for? If you feel you need a veteran to push guys, go get one. That player doesn't have to wear the "C" or any letter for that matter. People need to stop expecting/wanting every Devils captain to be Scott Stevens.

is this supposed to be for me? i didn’t say anything about trading nico, nor do i want him to lose his C. he’s a great leader, he’s just not a culture change type of leader. sunny needs to be that guy, that was my point. nico is fine as is.

 

[Billdo]

Some of you guys dig your heals in that the captain needs to be a guy like Stevens as if that's the ONLY way for a guy to be a leader.

 

[Killing Joke]

Another great pickup if we want to improve the blue line:

He has ALOT of Damon Severson in him, he is mistake prone but most of the time hes on the ice he dominates. Similar to 2022, Severson dominated 2nd and 3rd pair duties but couldnt hack it as THE guy on the blue line. One of the top analytic darlings and will instantly improve any blue line he goes to.

RFA this season, needs a new deal but doubt he would ever ask for what Nemec wants.

62% !! Corsi this season with a 63% Fenwick. 61.4% On-ice Expected Goals %. He finished top 25 in total NHL D Game Score this year - good on both sides of the ice.

His downside? Low Quality of Competition. Could be a risk where he flourishes in PP2 and Non top pair time - BUT I think he would excel as a Top 4 D.

Brilliant skater, doesnt ever reach top speed but according to NHL Edge he is in the top 80th% in 20-22 MPH Bursts and Top 87% in 18-20 MPH bursts.

View attachment 1254661

Yea, anyone not on board with this is clueless.

This is what we need to keep the puck in the other end, and he can play defense if it cames back the other way. Size is overrated. Ottawa is doing the Fitz size queen brain rot.

 

[BostonDevil]

Yea, anyone not on board with this is clueless.

This is what we need to keep the puck in the other end, and he can play defense if it cames back the other way. Size is overrated. Ottawa is doing the Fitz size queen brain rot.

How do we get him though? I don't see what we could offer that would make sense for them.

 

[Devils Trap]

Yea, anyone not on board with this is clueless.

This is what we need to keep the puck in the other end, and he can play defense if it cames back the other way. Size is overrated. Ottawa is doing the Fitz size queen brain rot.

Agree, Ottawa going full "we need size" after a Carolina Playoff loss. Maybe they want Dougie - hes tall

 

[NJDevs26]

Some of you guys dig your heals in that the captain needs to be a guy like Stevens as if that's the ONLY way for a guy to be a leader.

Well that or the 'best player on the team'...which I don't agree the best player HAS to be captain but to be fair, Jack is the only guy on the team you would even consider making that change with. Hard to see them being able to acquire someone from the outside that would take the role unless Sunny can really do cap magic overnight.

 

[MadDevil]

is this supposed to be for me? i didn’t say anything about trading nico, nor do i want him to lose his C. he’s a great leader, he’s just not a culture change type of leader. sunny needs to be that guy, that was my point. nico is fine as is.

It was more of a general statement. I think people fixate too much on the "C" as it is, or have expectations that good leaders have to be vocal, visibly show frustration/anger, and motivate everybody when things go bad. Nico just seems to be more of the quiet, lead by example type. He's more of an Elias or Niedermayer personality wise than a Stevens.

And I don't even necessarily disagree with those that say the culture needs fixing or tweaking. I just think people sometimes focus on that or lean on it as a crutch instead of focusing on simply building a better, deeper team that can better overcome adversity. Or getting a starting goaltender that doesn't regularly put you in a hole 5-6 minutes into the game.

Plus we've seen numerous times that players aren't winners/performers until they are. Barkov had as many playoff series wins as Nico does before captaining a team to 3 straight Cup Finals. Did he suddenly learn to be a better leader/winner or was his team finally good enough to win? Matthew Tkachuk did f*** all in the playoffs in Calgary before becoming a playoff hero in Florida. Although maybe that's not the best example since he was traded from the team that drafted him to another team to win lol

 

[ZachaFlockaFlame]

The moves up front are gonna be pointless if they still have the same goalies next year, mainly Markstrom and I don't even have faith in Jake Allen being above .900 next year.

If Markstrom is on the roster opening night, there's next to no reason to care about the whole year. The ceiling of that team will be similar to 24-25 which is a bubble team that'll get routed in Round 1.