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

[Cheddabombs]

I have zero problem if is Severson being scratched next game. More so if it's just the one game. Send a message to the team. If we lose next game but it lights a fire under their ass to be better and more consistent, then that's fine.

 

[Devils731]

LOL the still shot doesn’t do that justice…looking at that in real time and on replay there’s no justification for it. And is it really the worst thing in the world to send a message by coming down on a vet after four straight losses where dumb mistakes have killed us throughout? Lemaire was doing this shit almost three decades ago and he was a master manipulator then.

I don’t see Severson’s decision to pass into the slot as any more aggressive than Hamilton’s decision to start pinching lower and centrally to try and get a shot off.

If Hamilton reads the play as 4 players already committed to offense than he should lay back as the lone defender.

Of course that doesn’t fit the Devils style, but attempting a pass into the the slot at an open player doesn’t seem outside the Devils style either.

Ruff just yelled at the team for not staying aggressive while leading a week or two ago and now he’s yelling at them for being aggressive in a tie game.

 

[Saugus]

Deferring to a teammate might have been correct over taking a blocked shot, but passing to Hamilton was not correct there. Dougie was out of position, and clearly the Flyer behind him was ready to cut the pass, which is exactly what happened. I can't tell who is in the slot on that sequence from the still, but that would have been the better pass.

Or if neither looked open, putting it in the corner and letting Wood go get it is never a bad idea.

 

[guitarguyvic]

The Devils want to be aggressive but aggression in a tied game late in the third is seldom justified, unfortunately. Especially against a team like the Flyers who don't have a lot of players who excel in OT.



Giveaways are an awful stat and Cordell is embarrassing himself by using it.

Exactly.

I swear Hell is freezing over.

 

[NJDevs26]

I love them both, but Dougie regularly blunders and Siegenthaler has been absolutely horrible over this last stretch of games for the most part. Probably one of the biggest reasons for any dip in play has been Siegenthaler and Marino falling off.

Severson has been out there for 9 GF and 4 GA in the last 10 and has been mostly good.

Quality of competition…Severson is no longer playing against other teams’ top players thank goodness, which is a huge reason why the D has been miles improved this year.

 

[tailfins]

If you think the team will be worse off making these trades, then you don't do them. I don't care if the team is not a legit Stanley Cup contender - learning to win is important and I wouldn't want to do anything that diminishes their ability to do that right now.

Now if you believe that Devils can still be as good as they are now without these guys, that's a different story. The only reason I hesitate to believe this could be the case is because we really have no one else to rely on for defensive depth if injuries occur. That being the reality, I'd only consider trading Sevs for a roster player that might round out some of our deficiencies. What are the chances Fitz can swing such a trade? Seems slim.

Yeah - this is the balance. I understand the perspective.

But, I think the team's ability to "learn to win" is the same with or without Severson. I don't think he's the difference between making the playoffs / missing them, or winning the first round / losing.

I do think that there's a psychological aspect. He's clearly a good player, and losing a good player (and someone who's been part of the team for so long) is hard. I don't think the Devils get back an equivalent roster player.

Still, I think trading Severson will be important for the future of the team. The Devils have a limited pipeline of forwards, and goalie is still pretty uncertain. I think a Severson trade looks more like the Blues trading Shattenkirk. Get back maybe a depth player and futures. Those futures can be flipped for what the Devils need, or can be part of the next generation - whatever Fitz wants.

The Devils are losing Severson in the off-season anyway. If he's not the key piece in a Cup run, trade him at the deadline, get assets, and get the rest of the team executing in a Severson-less world this year.

 

[Blackjack]

LOL the still shot doesn’t do that justice…looking at that in real time and on replay there’s no justification for it. And is it really the worst thing in the world to send a message by coming down on a vet after four straight losses where dumb mistakes have killed us throughout? Lemaire was doing this shit almost three decades ago and he was a master manipulator then.

No, it’s stupid to lay all the blame for this loss at Severson’s feet.

If I were Severson I’d tell Lindy that I’m happy cashing checks from the press box and to enjoy watching Bahl or Smith struggle to play their off hand.

 

[Devils731]

Deferring to a teammate might have been correct over taking a blocked shot, but passing to Hamilton was not correct there. Dougie was out of position, and clearly the Flyer behind him was ready to cut the pass, which is exactly what happened. I can't tell who is in the slot on that sequence from the still, but that would have been the better pass.

Or if neither looked open, putting it in the corner and letting Wood go get it is never a bad idea.

The pass was to the player in the slot, not Hamilton, and the pass got tipped.

If Hamilton hadn’t moved inwards then the tipped pass wouldn’t have been a big deal but that aggression is seemingly fine, even though it also played a factor in the breakaway.

I’m fine with the pass and Hamilton moving inwards. Lindy can’t ask the team to have an aggressive mindset and then get mad when multiple things align to burn the team due to the aggression. That’s the price you pay to be aggressive.

 

[SteveCangialosi123]

Quality of competition…Severson is no longer playing against other teams’ top players thank goodness, which is a huge reason why the D has been miles improved this year.

I don’t think Siegenthaler’s dip in play has anything to do with QoC. He just hasn’t been good. Marino really hasn’t been better than Severson lately either.

 

[Devs3cups]

The pass was to the player in the slot, not Hamilton, and the pass got tipped.

If Hamilton hadn’t moved inwards then the tipped pass wouldn’t have been a big deal but that aggression is seemingly fine, even though it also played a factor in the breakaway.

I’m fine with the pass and Hamilton moving inwards. Lindy can’t ask the team to have an aggressive mindset and then get mad when multiple things align to burn the team due to the aggression. That’s the price you pay to be aggressive.

Timing plays a part also. 7 minutes left in the game and it’s tied. It should definitely impact Seve’s decision making there.

 

[Devils731]

Timing plays a part also. 7 minutes left in the game and it’s tied. It should definitely impact Seve’s decision making there.

But is really that aggressive of a play?

I don’t think it is. He’s making a pass into the slot. If his defensive partner was playing defense then there was almost zero risk, even if the pass gets tipped. It’s only the combination of tipped pass and defensive partner playing offense that cause the issue. If the team is supposed to be playing conservative then why are all 5 guys on the ice thinking offense first? (I think because the team has been told to make calculated offense risks when they think it makes sense)

Ruff just yelled at the team for not being aggressive enough while leading so I expect the team to play aggressive while tied as they think aggressive is their best state.

 

[TonySoprano]

You can't play Severson next game. You just can't. Guy on paper decent player, but how many time does he make back breaking turnover after back breaking turnover, year after year?

His whole NY times article quote, then going "what are ya gonna do?" is a real life spiderman meme. f***ing send him to the moon. I'm sick of his shit for the past 10 years has it been? feels like 30

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

I said it last night, but Severson is another guy like Zacha where its just time to move on. Same goes for Blackwood.

 

[Jack Be Quick]

Yeah, great, can’t wait to see Brendan Smith out there instead of one of the better defenders in the NHL. That’s really good for the team. Brendan Smith never turns the puck over or gets coned out there.

That's an impressive take.

 

[guitarguyvic]

I don’t see Severson’s decision to pass into the slot as any more aggressive than Hamilton’s decision to start pinching lower and centrally to try and get a shot off.

If Hamilton reads the play as 4 players already committed to offense than he should lay back as the lone defender.

Of course that doesn’t fit the Devils style, but attempting a pass into the the slot at an open player doesn’t seem outside the Devils style either.

Ruff just yelled at the team for not staying aggressive while leading a week or two ago and now he’s yelling at them for being aggressive in a tie game.

Attempting a pass into the slot when...
- your defensive partner is already pinching
- there's an opposition stick clearly in the passing lane ready to cut off your attempt
- there's 8 minutes left in a 1-1 game where you're being goalie'd and the opponent has a clear disadvantage if it goes to OT...

...is straight up stupid and irresponsible.

You can pin some blame on Hamilton, sure. But he's not the puck carrier. Damon could have read what was happening and put the puck deep into the corner. But doing the safe thing when the context calls for it is never something you can rely on Damon to do.

 

[Blackjack]

You can't play Severson next game. You just can't. Guy on paper decent player, but how many time does he make back breaking turnover after back breaking turnover, year after year?

Not very many, it turns out.

His whole NY times article quote, then going "what are ya gonna do?" is a real life spiderman meme. f***ing send him to the moon. I'm sick of his shit for the past 10 years has it been? feels like 30

Great, can’t wait to watch Brendan Smith skate around like a pee wee and take full responsibility for all the goals he’s on the ice for.

Hockey players should have a Catholic style confession booth that they use to own up to all their bad plays, but on the other side of the blind are the hockey media.

 

[guitarguyvic]

But is really that aggressive of a play?

I don’t think it is. He’s making a pass into the slot. If his defensive partner was playing defense then there was almost zero risk, even if the pass gets tipped. It’s only the combination of tipped pass and defensive partner playing offense that cause the issue. If the team is supposed to be playing conservative then why are all 5 guys on the ice thinking offense first? (I think because the team has been told to make calculated offense risks when they think it makes sense)

Ruff just yelled at the team for not being aggressive enough while leading so I expect the team to play aggressive while tied as they think aggressive is their best state.

What are you talking about? Lindy said in the post-game he had just talked to the entire bench about not playing risky given the context of the game at that point.

 

[Devs3cups]

But is really that aggressive of a play?

I don’t think it is. He’s making a pass into the slot. If his defensive partner was playing defense then there was almost zero risk, even if the pass gets tipped. It’s only the combination of tipped pass and defensive partner playing offense that cause the issue. If the team is supposed to be playing conservative then why are all 5 guys on the ice thinking offense first? (I think because the team has been told to make calculated offense risks when they think it makes sense)

Ruff just yelled at the team for not being aggressive enough while leading so I expect the team to play aggressive while tied as they think aggressive is their best state.

It’s not really the slot though, he’s close to the blue line and it’s a pass right next to him, he should know he’s the last line of defense there. I think everyone is going to interpret this play differently anyways haha!

 

[Devils731]

What are you talking about? Lindy said in the post-game he had just talked to the entire bench about not playing risky given the context of the game at that point.

I don’t have the exact game on hand. It was a few weeks ago where the Devils had a powerplay late while leading, Ruff put out non-PP players on it, Devils played conservative on the PP, opponents came back, and Ruff ripped the team for not being aggressive on the PP.

And Lindy is wanting to have his cake and eat it too. He can’t rip the team for being cautious while having a lead and rip the team for being aggressive when tied with 8.5 minutes left in the game.

 

[JK3]

Just before the Severson f*** up Ruff was going up and down the bench telling everyone they didn't give them any chances at all during the third and don't try to make any plays that aren't there or anything high risk. Low and behold what does dumb dumb do the next shift lmao, you can't try to make that pass with a guy on top of you. Ruff said it's a not a play that's even in their playbook, that really pissed him off, I have no problem with sitting Severson.

He wasn't too pleased with the Haula penalty either, he said they just talked about the whole stick throwing thing two days ago from a play during the Penguins game the other night haha.

 

[guitarguyvic]

It's also laughable that anyone compares Dougie's errors to Damon's. Hamilton has 23 points in 30 games and is a +14 playing against better QoC.

 

[Blackjack]

That's an impressive take.

Do you not think Severson is in the top half of NHL defensemen?

 

[NJDevs26]

You have to be a Severson stan to interpret a desperation heave into the middle of the ice as anything but royally dumb, or to still think he’s one of the better defensemen in the league when the GM basically signed and traded for better replacements in two offseasons.

 

[guitarguyvic]

You can't play Severson next game. You just can't. Guy on paper decent player, but how many time does he make back breaking turnover after back breaking turnover, year after year?

His whole NY times article quote, then going "what are ya gonna do?" is a real life spiderman meme. f***ing send him to the moon. I'm sick of his shit for the past 10 years has it been? feels like 30

Wait, what is this??

 

[Devils731]

It’s not really the slot though, he’s close to the blue line and it’s a pass right next to him, he should know he’s the last line of defense there. I think everyone is going to interpret this play differently anyways haha!

Severson isn’t passing to Hamilton, he’s passing the player in the high slot. The Devils is in the middle of the ice and open, I think that’s a player in the slot but I get that’s he’s high.

Hamilton was the last line of defense and had also decided to play offense.

If you don’t want players attempting passes like this then you’ll find the Devils need to change their style drastically for 16% of the game when close. I think the Devils are more likely to garner more points by being themselves rather than turn into a different team once the 10 minute mark hits.