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

[Guttersniped]

Time to end the Holtz experiment and send him to where he belongs and that is Utica. The guy unfortunately is not an NHL player and will never be one. Too slow, no vision, bad passer and especially a very low hockey IQ – a one trick pony that is nothing without the one trick. Until Palat or Bastian return, they should put Johnsson in. Not great, but better than Holtz. If I was Fitz, I'd try to trade Holtz and maybe a Bahl to get an upgrade up front. But the market value of Holtz will probably be incredibly low at this point. Should've traded him in the summer after all those beautiful AHL-goals he scored.

My favorite part of this is that you think Holtz is a bad passer.

 

[SteveCangialosi123]

Agreed, it's too early to give up on Holtz. I think it's clear that he has not been up to standard consistently, and he cannot justify his roster spot at the NHL level right now. But he still has value, and plenty of time to develop. I think it would be a mistake to say he must be traded now.

If a trade is there at the deadline for a guy like Tarasenko or Meier and he's a chip in that deal, so be it. But we should not be actively looking to trade him, which some posters seem to be advocating for.

Yeah I would send him down and have no real issue trading him, but it’s still very early for him. 10 games and a bunch of them without getting regular shifts. Not enough data.

 

[JrFischer54]

Team is in a rut and that’s to be expected after the run they had and yeah they are still picking up points which is nice but that still doesn’t mean the team doesn’t need help. Longer holtz stays up and plays will only lower his trade value.

 

[theoptimist]

About to call Doggo out to bark at you.

Where is the GDT???? You're at work or something?

No one is giving up on Holtz, I'm cashing the check early. Timo time.

 

[Devs3cups]

About to call Doggo out to bark at you.

Where is the GDT???? You're at work or something?

I'd do it, but we lost on mine yesterday... I'm not brave enough to do another one.

 

[R8Devs]

Meier would be okay provided the Devils can sign an extension but if he's used as a trade chip for Tarasenko that'd be a pretty horrendous use of assets

 

[NjDevsRR]

 

[HBK27]

View attachment 620843

Utica has games tomorrow, Friday, Saturday & Tuesday. Figure he gets at least tomorrow night's game and one of Friday/Saturday.

 

[NJ07102]

My favorite part of this is that you think Holtz is a bad passer.

I saw almost all of his Utica games last season and yes, he is not a good passer because he has a low hockey IQ, doesn't have good hockey vision and isn't a quick decision maker. But since everybody here seem to believe he's gonna be much better in a year or two or whenever, he'll probably turn into a good NHL player. Could happen, but imho that is highly unlikely.

 

[Devs3cups]

Alright fellas, I got a GDT locked and loaded for tonight's game, but we lost with my GDT last night... If I get the "OK", I'll post it, if not, someone else needs to step up quick!

 

[forceten]

There have been some trends I do not like lately despite still pulling majority of points from this poor play stretch.

- Goals against in first or last minute of a period
- Back to back goals in less than a minute (last night, 7 seconds, come on)
- Giving up leads

These are things we did last year. These are things we did not do in the first third of the year.

They have to be addressed. Part of the problem is having Wood, Bastian out, taking out our crash line that works so well. It shows the value of that line. It also ruins Zetterlund, Sharangovich, so it really affects the entire forward lineup.

Holtz... my god, 4 minutes of ice time. You just don't get moving in 4 minutes of ice time. He's decent on the boards, better than ever before. He passes well. His shot is good. His skating is not too slow for the NHL anymore. This team is super fast and super well integrated when the players are in. I understand the Palat excitement as he would definitely feel like a trade addition -- but I wonder what happens to the chemistry when he turns up too! If he isn't going to play I'd prefer him down in Utica, but it's not really him not fitting as much as more limited growth from NHL practice only. I'd be happy to trade him if our forward depth was even half our defense depth but I'm not sure that it is.

Frustrating. We need to spank someone and get this out of our heads. We should have won yesterday.

 

[Blender]

Dallas game tonight is going to be very difficult. We need to actually show up and play better, no more of this inconsistency.

 

[NjDevsRR]

Alright fellas, I got a GDT locked and loaded for tonight's game, but we lost with my GDT last night... If I get the "OK", I'll post it, if not, someone else needs to step up quick!

 

[Devs3cups]

View attachment 620861

I'll use this for the GDT...

 

[NjDevsRR]

I'll use this for the GDT...

 

[FooteBahl]

I saw almost all of his Utica games last season and yes, he is not a good passer because he has a low hockey IQ, doesn't have good hockey vision and isn't a quick decision maker. But since everybody here seem to believe he's gonna be much better in a year or two or whenever, he'll probably turn into a good NHL player. Could happen, but imho that is highly unlikely.

Sometimes people need time. Nico needed time, Elias needed time. Not everyone is Dawson Mercer that can step right in. From the 2020 class Laf hasn’t shown “it” yet, neither has Byfield or Rossi. Stutzle, Raymond and others look good, but it’s been 2 years…give them all some time.

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

Hard to be a good NHL player in four minutes of ice time.

Another Swedish forward had no points in 20 minutes.

I honestly respect you just continuing to beat the "Bratt sucks" drum even after everything he has shown.

You may be horribly wrong, but at least you're consistent!

 

[Devils731]

Some changes just to freshen everything up is needed so this is good. Get some guys some new looks and get the minds going fast again.

 

[Devs3cups]

Some changes just to freshen everything up is needed so this is good. Get some guys some new looks and get the minds going fast again.

Bratt back with Jack? Zetterlund back up? Rango back up? Haula back down?

 

[Devils731]

Bratt back with Jack? Zetterlund back up? Rango back up? Haula back down?

If it was me, I’d put Haula back at center. Add Johnnson at wing. Move Shara up in the lineup. Take out Boqvist or Holtz.

Not sure what else I would do the facilitate those changes but those are the tweaks I’d build the lineup around.

 

[glenwo2]

 

[NjDevsRR]

Some changes just to freshen everything up is needed so this is good. Get some guys some new looks and get the minds going fast again.

 

[Stephen Gionta]

I think they should scratch Holtz and put Johnsson into the lineup.

I also wouldn't be opposed to bringing up Pinho or Graeme Clarke.

If it was me, I’d put Haula back at center. Add Johnnson at wing. Move Shara up in the lineup. Take out Boqvist or Holtz.

Not sure what else I would do the facilitate those changes but those are the tweaks I’d build the lineup around.

I agree. with both Haula back at center and Johnsson into the lineup.

Mercer and Hughes should remain together with either Bratt or Tatar or Sharangovich on their other wing.

 

[TheUnseenHand]

Time to end the Holtz experiment and send him to where he belongs and that is Utica. The guy unfortunately is not an NHL player and will never be one. Too slow, no vision, bad passer and especially a very low hockey IQ – a one trick pony that is nothing without the one trick. Until Palat or Bastian return, they should put Johnsson in. Not great, but better than Holtz. If I was Fitz, I'd try to trade Holtz and maybe a Bahl to get an upgrade up front. But the market value of Holtz will probably be incredibly low at this point. Should've traded him in the summer after all those beautiful AHL-goals he scored.

I don't know if it's fair to say he will never be one, but he certainly has some things to work on. Remember, we are one of the two best teams in the league. Honestly it's hard to stand out on this roster because it's pretty damn good.

 

[Ben Grimm]

New Jersey Devils Impress with Top Four Defensemen

Adam Proteau says there are many impressive players on the New Jersey Devils, but their top four defensemen are arguably the best bargain for the team.

thehockeynews.com