Devils team discussion (news, notes and speculation) - 2022-23 season thread part III

[Triumph]

The one adjustment I’m seeing from other teams is that they have noticed there are players on this team that don’t seem to know how to take a hit and are targeting them heavily from a physical standpoint. Nico being #1 on the hit list.

Our guys do seem soft. They turn away from hits and get crushed, and then mentally it seems like they can’t handle it either. Then they don’t seem capable of dishing it back to the opposition in any kind of effective way. This concerns me almost as much as the need for a sniper. Can’t expect that that kind of bullying over the course of an 82 game season isn’t going to take a negative toll on their performance. I don’t know what they need to do to fix it precisely, but it’s no bueno.

Just not buying this - Nico didn't have a great game, but he did crash the net and score the only goal. The team doesn't like getting hit - who does? - but I don't think they change their game a whole lot based on that.

 

[Whaddagoal]

Sounds like we need to bring in Scott Stevens and Ken Daneyko from the booth and run hitting drills.

I'm really not kidding.

Also, Fabian Zetterlund is now captain of the weight room and will run these guys through whatever he did to become the great white hulk.

I liked Fabian's reverse hit on Bergeron last night. Totally caught him off guard!

Just not buying this - Nico didn't have a great game, but he did crash the net and score the only goal. The team doesn't like getting hit - who does? - but I don't think they change their game a whole lot based on that.

I thought NIco played OK after that. He got his faced smashed on the dasher and came back and was still going around doing mostly his usual play. I didn't see the hit live, was out but i saw the 2nd half of the first and rest of game.

 

[guitarguyvic]

I agree with your points here. However...

What you're edging at is peoples emotional response to what is going on. I think its the emotional aspect that people don't want to go back to losing ways. I think that should be recognized here as well, people are invested in this team and the good has sheathed the bad feelings (until the last few games).

It boils down to, not that we can't appreciate how good this season has been if you look at it objectively compared to beginning season expectations, but rather, "we really don't want to be down there again".

Yes, we're still 2nd in division, ending December. No qualms about it from objective sense if you want to be disconnected from it.

It's more the aspect that we have seen SOO MUCH better already this season and don't want to go back to the mired play from years past. It's totally emotional response from most of every one here. The "doom and gloomers" and all the negativity from last night is only a reflection of how good this team has been and how on the edge we are from being at the top and being chasers again. It's hard to expect fans to lower their expectations after dominating for a long early stretch of the season. It may be misplaced optimism purely in the "big picture of things", but with this losing streak its hard not to expect the diehards to be so even keel about it, given the last 9 years of this franchise.

I mean, I get it. I'm emotionally invested as a fan as well. Shit, a buddy of mine asked me last month if the team was legit and I gave him a resounding YES and even said I believed they would finish at the top of the division. That's how impressed I was and how much I turned around on this team this year. As they've been losing these games, all I keep thinking to myself is "I'm going to look like a complete f***ing idiot for telling a friend they are a legitimately good team if they don't even make the playoffs, much less finish at the top of the division." And just the fact that I have to thinking about this makes me angry.

But there has to be a balance between the emotion as a fan and some kind of objectivity. If your only reaction to all this is to constantly scream about how an epic collapse is a foregone conclusion, there's nothing there to discuss or engage with. Like, the only response I can come up with "OK so are you not watching the team anymore?" It's a pointless exercise in screaming at the clouds about something that you actually don't know for certain will happen.

 

[JrFischer54]

Okay, I have to admit that that is impressive

i'll take useless stats for $100 alex

 

[NjDevsRR]

Home vs Away record is absolutely mystifying

Away: 12-2-1
Home: 10-9-1

 

[guitarguyvic]

Home vs Away record is absolutely mystifying

Away: 12-2-1
Home: 10-9-1

Not sure how much to read into this. I believe most of our games during this bad stretch have been at home. Seems like more of a coincidence of the scheduling than anything else.

 

[NjDevsRR]

i'll take useless stats for $100 alex

What you are actually taking:

Anything to ignore that they aren’t far off so I can continue whining for $1000, Alex.

 

[JrFischer54]

What you are actually taking:

Anything to ignore that they aren’t far off so I can continue whining for $1000, Alex.

you remember the movie little big league when the color tv host would come up with those stupid random stats to pass along. basically analytics

 

[Whaddagoal]

I mean, I get it. I'm emotionally invested as a fan as well. Shit, a buddy of mine asked me last month if the team was legit and I gave him a resounding YES and even said I believed they would finish at the top of the division. That's how impressed I was and how much I turned around on this team this year. As they've been losing these games, all I keep thinking to myself is "I'm going to look like a complete f***ing idiot for telling a friend they are a legitimately good team if they don't even make the playoffs, much less finish at the top of the division." And just the fact that I have to thinking about this makes me angry.

But there has to be a balance between the emotion as a fan and some kind of objectivity. If your only reaction to all this is to constantly scream about how an epic collapse is a foregone conclusion, there's nothing there to discuss or engage with. Like, the only response I can come up with "OK so are you not watching the team anymore?" It's a pointless exercise in screaming at the clouds about something that you actually don't know for certain will happen.

I also brought a friend/colleague into the team fold, this season as well.

He was like
"Should I stop watching games now, so they will win again?"

Now that he's all in emotionally.

 

[SteveCangialosi123]

i'll take useless stats for $100 alex

It’s useless to hold an elite sniper’s line to 0 shots on goal? Huh.

 

[JrFischer54]

It’s useless to hold an elite sniper’s line to 0 shots on goal? Huh.

its great if you win the game. like the bruins did find secondary scoring when your stud is shut down. the devils should take a page from that book.

if you are looking for moral victories like holding pasta to zero shots or some shit like that in year 9 of a rebuild get lost with it i dont want to hear it.

 

[Rhodes 81]

Coming up we have:
Pittsburgh (lost 3 in a row)
Carolina
Detroit (who have been average recently)
St. louis (Lost 3 in a row, not that good this year)
Rangers
Carolina again
Anaheim (Terrible)
LA
San Jose (Terrible)
Seattle (fading)

Of those, Car X2, NYR, and LA are the only games where we shouldn't be favored to win, and LA/NYR should be tossups. Could easily see us getting 6-7 wins over this stretch. Then we have a few tough match ups to close out the month followed by a really soft schedule in February where we could legitimately go the month without losing.

It sucks for the vibes that we played all these tough teams in a row and lost a lot of close games. It sucks that we easily could have gone .500 in those games with a few more breaks and better finishing. But there's light at the end of the tunnel now. If these guys can get out of their heads a little bit and get healthy, they can win a lot of games over the next two months.

 

[SteveCangialosi123]

its great if you win the game. like the bruins did find secondary scoring when your stud is shut down. the devils should take a page from that book.

if you are looking for moral victories like holding pasta to zero shots or some shit like that in year 9 of a rebuild get lost with it i dont want to hear it.

It isn’t a moral victory, it’s an objectively good thing that occurred during the game.

 

[Whaddagoal]

Coming up we have:
Pittsburgh (lost 3 in a row)
Carolina
Detroit (who have been average recently)
St. louis (Lost 3 in a row, not that good this year)
Rangers
Carolina again
Anaheim (Terrible)
LA
San Jose (Terrible)
Seattle (fading)

Of those, Car X2, NYR, and LA are the only games where we shouldn't be favored to win, and LA/NYR should be tossups. Could easily see us getting 6-7 wins over this stretch. Then we have a few tough match ups to close out the month followed by a really soft schedule in February where we could legitimately go the month without losing.

It sucks for the vibes that we played all these tough teams in a row and lost a lot of close games. It sucks that we easily could have gone .500 in those games with a few more breaks and better finishing. But there's light at the end of the tunnel now. If these guys can get out of their heads a little bit and get healthy, they can win a lot of games over the next two months.

We have to win these conference games. Penguins first and foremost (due to them being right behind us), and then Rangers. Winning against CAR will be sweet revenge. West conference teams would be nice to get points with (particularly those weaker teams we need to pile points), but I want to see wins against our conf/division rivals, teams that matter right now beacuse it will be a benchmark for who we are.

 

[Blackjack]

i'll take useless stats for $100 alex

I really don’t give a shit if you think that stat is interesting or not.

 

[Devils090]

If we beat Pitt and Carolina we could get on a roll again given the schedule, have to at least get 3 points from those two game. Also must beat the rags, they have a tough run of games before we play and we could get some breathing room should they start losing and we win a few.

 

[Normal Devil]

If we beat Pitt and Carolina we could get on a roll again given the schedule, have to at least get 3 points from those two game. Also must beat the rags, they have a tough run of games before we play and we could get some breathing room should they start losing and we win a few.

Currently I don't have any faith that we can beat either of those teams

 

[NJDevs26]

Home vs Away record is absolutely mystifying

Away: 12-2-1
Home: 10-9-1

And you know they’re due for a market correction on the road eventually so they’d better get their ass in gear at home

 

[NJDevs26]

Waited until everyone took their pound of flesh

Yep he can go kick rocks too

 

[JrFischer54]

It isn’t a moral victory, it’s an objectively good thing that occurred during the game.

in a game we lost.

I really don’t give a shit if you think that stat is interesting or not.

that makes two of us

 

[ninetyeight]

Let's just go game by game before we start dreaming who we beat and how many points we get from what. We were suppose to beat the Isles Rags and Flyers with ease and get 6 points from the 2xFLA, 2x BOS, CAR stretch. At this point it seems anything can happen.

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

its great if you win the game. like the bruins did find secondary scoring when your stud is shut down. the devils should take a page from that book.

if you are looking for moral victories like holding pasta to zero shots or some shit like that in year 9 of a rebuild get lost with it i dont want to hear it.

I think my favorite schtick from people like this is that every time, the "rebuild" grows longer

question for you- do you think the better team always wins in sports?

And you know they’re due for a market correction on the road eventually so they’d better get their ass in gear at home

"you know theyre due for a market correction on one of these and its the one that fits my narrative and ONLY that one!"

 

[NJDevs26]

LOL at this constant narrative nonsense whenever you don’t agree with something, what’s more likely a streaky team finishing maybe a few games above .500 at home or playing to an .850 point percentage on the road for an entire season?

 

[guitarguyvic]

Let's just go game by game before we start dreaming who we beat and how many points we get from what. We were suppose to beat the Isles Rags and Flyers with ease and get 6 points from the 2xFLA, 2x BOS, CAR stretch. At this point it seems anything can happen.

Exactly. Just take it one game at a time. Focus on winning against Pittsburgh.

 

[Jersey Fresh]

Frustrating that this team can’t seem to find the answers. No one is going to feel sorry for them that they’re down two top-4 D.

Majorly disappointed with how anonymous Bratt has been. Just a total no-show.