Confirmed with Link: Devils sign Tomas Tatar (1 year, $1.8 million)

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

It's one thing I know in message boards, it's to always listen to the one random person demanding everyone think like them regardless of everything else presented.

"we really should stop doing this" = demanding. Hmmm!

if my posts bother you so much, just put me on ignore. thanks in advance pookie

 

[ndkjr70]

How were they going to fit Mercer's deal under the cap with Tarasenko at $4.5M?

Cutting Bastian & having MacDermid start the season in the AHL would've given them enough money for Tarasenko at 4.5 and Mercer at 4.5 with a little bit of wiggle-room for their extra skater.

EDIT: People need to stop blankly looking at capfriendly's "Cap Space" thing and assuming it's gospel. Capfriendly currently has the Devils carrying 13 forwards and 9 defenseman. Some of that space frees up just by having a normal roster size.

 

[MartyOwns]

just feels like a step backwards tbh. i would've preferred keeping holtz over signing tatar.

 

[TrufleShufle]

"we really should stop doing this" = demanding. Hmmm!

if my posts bother you so much, just put me on ignore. thanks in advance pookie

Nah I'm good, people being wrong doesn't upset me, was just trying to help. Sorry to offend!

 

[britdevil]

I like this. Come at me.

No you dummy, you're supposed to shit all over it as per HFBoards intelligentsia

 

[jkrdevil]

I understand the thinking here because him and Nico were a success, but not sure why our focus for adding forwards were wingers instead of a center. I feel like there team has no flexibility down the middle and the team really fell apart last year after McLeod was arrested. I’m not sure why a depth center wasn’t a priority to give us more flexibility.

 

[NJDevs26]

I alternately understand it and hate it at the same time. I understand shopping at the bargain bin and trying to be Lou Jr. bringing back known quantities and I don't really care about the playoff thing cause a serious franchise needs to upgrade by the deadline anyway.

But lemme get this straight, we didn't sign him last year after a productive season because he wanted two years and we only wanted to give him one, he goes off and looks washed with two different teams, seemingly justifying our hard line then we give him a very expensive (moreso than his one-year contract last year) year #2 anyway after he has a washed season?!

 

[HBK27]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1808232555600400754

 

[MartyOwns]

I understand the thinking here because him and Nico were a success

god i hope that was not the thinking here lol. nico was basically a PPG player last season without tatar, somehow

 

[theoptimist]

He's an unserious player and this goes against their grit/compete offseason theme. Embarrassing signing.

 

[MasterofGrond]

Look, either he's good again in the regular season, and we find a winger upgrade at the deadline, or he's bad again and then we find a winger upgrade in november.

It's a risk free move. If you have your panties in a twist about his playoff performance, or about how he plays the game, or whatever, lol

 

[Billdo]

This is fun.

They could have got him for league minimum.

Whatever, fine enough depth for the regular season.

If they could've why didn't they?

 

[VoidCreature]

Happy to have Tuna back. He’s a hard worker and has chemistry with Nico. Could play anywhere in the lineup.

 

[SteveCangialosi123]

He's an unserious player and this goes against their grit/compete offseason theme. Embarrassing signing.

Good. Don’t want to be one note and shows Fitz isn’t blindly following some ridiculous ideology. He can add some value to the team in his own way.

 

[Saugus]

just feels like a step backwards tbh. i would've preferred keeping holtz over signing tatar.

I would too, but it seems clear that Holtz ran out of rope with Fitz. It was never in the cards for him to have that spot.

From Fitz's previous comments and the fact that Holtz ultimately got traded for scraps, he has concluded that the kid is not an NHL player, and that it was time to admit it and cut bait.

 

[ndkjr70]

nico continuously dragging dead-weights to competency should not be an endorsement to re-sign dead-weights.

 

[NJDevs26]

Look, either he's good again in the regular season, and we find a winger upgrade at the deadline, or he's bad again and then we find a winger upgrade in november.

It's a risk free move.

Giving him freaking $1,8 million makes the November option infinitely harder

This is fun.


If they could've why didn't they?

Because Fitz was desperate and didn't want to wait till August or September for Tatar or similar options on a PTO that haven't played here. Might as well have brought back ****ing Boqvist while we were at trying to recapture 2022-23, at least he was only minimum salary.

 

[HoliksGhost]

Didn’t see that one coming

 

[TheUnseenHand]

I understand the thinking here because him and Nico were a success, but not sure why our focus for adding forwards were wingers instead of a center. I feel like there team has no flexibility down the middle and the team really fell apart last year after McLeod was arrested. I’m not sure why a depth center wasn’t a priority to give us more flexibility.

I agree, I just don't know who was there that made sense outside of Rico.

 

[Jersey Fan 12]

I alternately understand it and hate it at the same time. I understand shopping at the bargain bin and trying to be Lou Jr. bringing back known quantities and I don't really care about the playoff thing cause a serious franchise needs to upgrade by the deadline anyway.

But lemme get this straight, we didn't sign him last year after a productive season because he wanted two years and we only wanted to give him one, he goes off and looks washed with two different teams, seemingly justifying our hard line then we give him a very expensive (moreso than his one-year contract last year) year #2 anyway after he has a washed season?!

Didn't looked "washed" at all with the Kraken - and was +41 with the Devils two years ago.

Someone said yesterday I never give the Devils credit. Getting Tatar back at $1.8 million is a steal.

 

[Oneiro]

People always seem to have intense feelings about this guy.

It’s fine. I never expected that last top 6 F to be resolved this year given how the cap is shaking out.

 

[theoptimist]

Good. Don’t want to be one note and shows Fitz isn’t blindly following some ridiculous ideology. He can add some value to the team in his own way.

Danton Heinen is a better player

 

[MartyOwns]

I would too, but it seems clear that Holtz ran out of rope with Fitz. It was never in the cards for him to have that spot.

From Fitz's previous comments and the fact that Holtz ultimately got traded for scraps, he has concluded that the kid is not an NHL player, and that it was time to admit it and cut bait.

yeah i mostly agree with that, but that's a lot of mismanagement by fitz to gloss over. he shouldn't have drafted him in the first place, and the way he shit on him publicly was just a terrible look. having said that, holtz was a top 10 draft pick who definitely showed promise. why fitz would sell him when his value couldn't be any lower for paul cotter of all people, then overpay his replacement by signing tatar, is just mind boggling to me. especially considering that holtz could very well have flourished under keefe, we'll never know.

 

[MasterofGrond]

Didn't looked "washed" at all with the Kraken - and was +41 with the Devils two years ago.

Someone said yesterday I never give the Devils credit. Getting Tatar back at $1.8 million is a steal.

holy shit Fitz has done it

he made a move you like, un f***ing believable

I'm gonna change my opinion on this signing, unfortunately. It must be f***ing bad.

 

[SteveCangialosi123]

Danton Heinen is a better player

Maybe. He got 2 years. We have the flexibility of a 1 year deal plus we know he plays well with one of our Cs.