Devils team discussion (news, notes and speculation) - 2023-24 season part III

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Ripshot 43

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In the pregame clips from inside the locker room, it looks like Jack has protective padding covering the shoulder inside his base layer. The shirt is actually ripped open for the protective insert.

I think it's the initial shoulder injury he suffered in St. Louis that's hampering him more than the second arm injury he had at home. He hasn't been the same since the shoulder even before the second injury.
I noticed the ripped shirt in the pregame locker room too. Here I thought Jack was just trying to look like a cool Vet but your explanation probably makes more sense. :laugh:
 

Triumph

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I think it's more mental than physical at this point when I watch him. He had a play last night where he chipped the puck into the defensive zone and spun around a defender where a more confident Hughes would drive up the wing for it

I don't think it's mental. He's just watching his back any time he gets near the boards or the corners and trying to shift out of contact even if it means giving up the puck.
 

Devils731

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I don't think it's mental. He's just watching his back any time he gets near the boards or the corners and trying to shift out of contact even if it means giving up the puck.
That’s all true and I also think both the team and Jack want Jack acting like that.

They know he isn’t as effective playing that way but he’s still a good player, even sacrificing those moments.
 
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Patrik26

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He needs to workout in the off-season, get stronger.... It could be a long term problem if he doesn't get stronger.

Like, take Bratt. Similar size but he bulked up tremendously and seems to be fairly durable now.

Jack's gotten by on talent alone his entire life. It's time to stop relying a talent alone.
 
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Hockey Sports Fan

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He’s been in the league over 40 years and never won a cup. Might be one of the most accomplished players/coaches to never get one. I don’t think he’s voluntarily hanging them up before he gets there.
i still can’t believe we’re gonna potentially get 5 years of THIS guy. Never should’ve hired him in the first place.

IMG_5436.jpeg
 

Bleedred

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Kahkonen is only useful here if it means Vitek is either going the other way or he's out long term. And they don't send Daws back when he returns, and he just becomes the odd man out.

I really don't believe in Kahkonen, as his career is pretty meh (inflated numbers behind Minnesota, who inflated everybody for a few years there), but he's been really good this year. So good that this is a career year for him, as he has better numbers behind the Sharks and this year's Sharks are probably the worst team he's ever played on. Probably even worse than last year's team, where he was absolutely brutal.

He would be a fine stop gap option for the remainder of the year, but only if the tandem we see down the stretch is Daws/Kahkonen and not Kahkonen/Vanecek.
 

Unknown Caller

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i still can’t believe we’re gonna potentially get 5 years of THIS guy. Never should’ve hired him in the first place.

View attachment 821829
Way better than 99% of coaching resumes you could throw out there. A lot of his teams in Buffalo were phenomenal and should have won a cup. His 2007 Sabres team were a wagon. Like him or not, he deserves one.
 

Devils731

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Jack's gotten by on talent alone his entire life. It's time to stop relying a talent alone.
I don’t think that’s true at all.

After the first season he came back with a ton of extra weight from working out.

He’s obviously worked very hard on his shot.

We’ve seen videos of his skating training and it looks intense.

He works hard during the games and goes to the dirty areas of the ice when he’s healthy.

So those are the reasons I don’t think he relies just on talent. Why do you think he relies only on talent?
 

Bleedred

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Mercer for Saros seems a little more fair. I'm not saying I would do it or be particularly happy about it, but if he's going for a goalie then I can't see it being any name other than Saros and maybe a few other guys who aren't gonna realistically be on the market.

Mercer for Gibson is an absolute JOKE. Stillman for Gibson is more like it. Or better yet, Palat if he were actually having a bad season for Gibson would be more like it. But Palat is a much better player at his position than Gibson is at his.

Mercer for Markstrom is way too much. It feels like Mercer is half Markstrom's age. In hockey years he's significantly less than half of Markstrom's age.
 

Triumph

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Jack's gotten by on talent alone his entire life. It's time to stop relying a talent alone.

This is a ridiculous assertion. Jack may need to bulk up - if he does, he will almost certainly lose speed. That said, classifying what has got him to this point as mere talent is discounting everything that didn't come natural to him - especially shooting the puck.
 

My3Sons

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I don’t think that’s true at all.

After the first season he came back with a ton of extra weight from working out.

He’s obviously worked very hard on his shot.

We’ve seen videos of his skating training and it looks intense.

He works hard during the games and goes to the dirty areas of the ice when he’s healthy.

So those are the reasons I don’t think he relies just on talent. Why do you think he relies only on talent?

He’s also tougher than he gets credit for. He’s probably always been one of the smallest guys on the ice and is always a target. He doesn’t let it stop him and that’s not easy.
 

Lou Bloom

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I wouldn't be so quick to anoint Daws. Just last season Schmid was putting up even better numbers over a larger sample size and now he's not even in the conversation at goalie.

Kahkonen was one of the worst goaltenders in the league last season, it seems like a coin flip that he'd even be better than Vanecek moving forward.

I get not wanting to pay the price but someone like Saros immediately stabilizes goaltender moving forward. Not to mention that the money that would go to a Mercer extension would just be reinvested in Saros which means you're not even affecting your cap situation all that much moving forward.
 

ZachaFlockaFlame

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Kahkonen is only useful here if it means Vitek is either going the other way or he's out long term. And they don't send Daws back when he returns, and he just becomes the odd man out.

I really don't believe in Kahkonen, as his career is pretty meh (inflated numbers behind Minnesota, who inflated everybody for a few years there), but he's been really good this year. So good that this is a career year for him, as he has better numbers behind the Sharks and this year's Sharks are probably the worst team he's ever played on. Probably even worse than last year's team, where he was absolutely brutal.

He would be a fine stop gap option for the remainder of the year, but only if the tandem we see down the stretch is Daws/Kahkonen and not Kahkonen/Vanecek.

Have Bastian take him out like Silvio did to Adrianna since we're all souped on this Sopranos theme :laugh:
 

ZachaFlockaFlame

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I wouldn't be so quick to anoint Daws. Just last season Schmid was putting up even better numbers over a larger sample size and now he's not even in the conversation at goalie.

Kahkonen was one of the worst goaltenders in the league last season, it seems like a coin flip that he'd even be better than Vanecek moving forward.

I get not wanting to pay the price but someone like Saros immediately stabilizes goaltender moving forward. Not to mention that the money that would go to a Mercer extension would just be reinvested in Saros which means you're not even affecting your cap situation all that much moving forward.

This is pretty fair but I don't think any Devils fan wouldn't want a starter in front of Daws/Schmid. Goalie trade + one of them will be the ideal thing for 24-25. I have no issue getting a better backup for the rest of the year at the deadline and tell Calgary/Nashville to suck wind for Saros/Markstrom for the time being
 

Devils Trap

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I wouldn't be so quick to anoint Daws. Just last season Schmid was putting up even better numbers over a larger sample size and now he's not even in the conversation at goalie.

Kahkonen was one of the worst goaltenders in the league last season, it seems like a coin flip that he'd even be better than Vanecek moving forward.

I get not wanting to pay the price but someone like Saros immediately stabilizes goaltender moving forward. Not to mention that the money that would go to a Mercer extension would just be reinvested in Saros which means you're not even affecting your cap situation all that much moving forward.
Problem is when the market to get one is asking for Holtz, Mercer, 1sts its hard to stomach to acquire them
 

Lou Bloom

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This is pretty fair but I don't think any Devils fan wouldn't want a starter in front of Daws/Schmid. Goalie trade + one of them will be the ideal thing for 24-25. I have no issue getting a better backup for the rest of the year at the deadline and tell Calgary/Nashville to suck wind for Saros/Markstrom for the time being
If the asking prices are too expensive I understand not making a move (thought that depends on what we'd consider too expensive), but I don't think Daws' recent play should in anyway factor on this decision.

I also don't think there's an obvious improvement at backup goaltender on the market. What goalie that isn't going to cost much is going to be a clear cut improvement over Vancecek moving forward? Players like Allen or Kahkonen have even worse recent track records at goalie than Vanecek.
Problem is when the market to get one is asking for Holtz, Mercer, 1sts its hard to stomach to acquire them
For Markstrom I'm not paying those prices but for Saros I'd certainly be willing to pay up. We're talking about a player that has been a consistent top 5 goalie in the NHL and who's only 28 years old.
 
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britdevil

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This is a ridiculous assertion. Jack may need to bulk up - if he does, he will almost certainly lose speed. That said, classifying what has got him to this point as mere talent is discounting everything that didn't come natural to him - especially shooting the puck.

He's one of those guys that is insanely athletic, but cannot keep muscle mass to save his life. It'll come with age as his metabolism slows down.

Like myself, I only have to look at a doughnut and i'll put on a couple tree pounds.
 
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