Devils team discussion (news, notes and speculation) - offseason part III

[Forge]

At first I thought you were just listing forwards and defensemen, then I saw Schmid listed. Including Schmid but not Markstrom seems like a bit of a miss. And even though McLeod is gone that's hardly on Fitz.

Some steps haven't been taken yet but it seems very likely by all accounts that we're going to sign Pesce and Dillon on Monday. We'll see if that actually happens though.

Jim with a disingenuous argument?

I can't believe it.

 

[Captain3rdLine]

Stenlund from Florida maybe? Big, solid PKer and face-off guy. I believe he was on the FLA PK2 this entire playoff run.

Doesn't put up a lot of points though and only had 1 point in the playoffs. Was pretty much a ghost out there unless on the PK

Thank you. Any speed to his game?

 

[Bcap88]

Purposely...not conveniently. Because that's another can of 35 year old worms

You are going to always have your gripes with this team no matter what. I think everyone has come to realization with that

 

[Forge]

Forward depth still seems not great to me. And there’s (currently) no replacement for Toffoli in the top 6 either.

Forward depth probably won't be great. Wasn't great last year either because guys like Holtz just sucked.

Banking on improvements from existing guys, health, and a stronger defense.

It is what it is.

 

[Unknown Caller]

Forward depth probably won't be great. Wasn't great last year either because guys like Holtz just sucked.

Banking on improvements from existing guys, health, and a stronger defense.

It is what it is.

Not a great strategy and not a contending forward core right now. Some guys like Mercer may improve, but you’re also likely getting some age regression from Haula and Palat.

They need probably 2-3 forwards after signing Pesce, Dillon, Mercer and Foote.

 

[JimEIV]

You are going to always have your gripes with this team no matter what. I think everyone has come to realization with that

I adored the defense we had going into 2023...the team wasn't a cup contender but it was lightyears above what we have right now.

But if you really want to get down to the nitty-gritty, you're right I will have always have gripes with this current roster... because I think a major potion of its flaws lie in the core. And that is why so much supplementation is needed

 

[Captain3rdLine]

Not a great strategy and not a contending forward core right now. Some guys like Mercer may improve, but you’re also likely getting some age regression from Haula and Palat.

They need probably 2-3 forwards after signing Pesce, Dillon, Mercer and Foote.

They need/have room for 2. Probably anywhere from 5.5 to 7.5 in cap space to do so. Debrusk and someone else cheap (a center maybe?) is what I would go for.

 

[NJDevs26]

there's still free agency. not the best way to build a team obviously but let's hope fitz chooses wisely

Well we already know two guys they're 'likely' to sign. It is a little disconcerting the only forward add imminent is Cotter who doesn't even really replace McLeod but I don't think you can literally fix everything in one offseason. Fitz is definitely overhauling the D/Goaltending and hoping the forwards already here either stay healthy (Hughes, Timo) or play better (Mercer) this year. I do think he'll eventually have to come up with something up front but I don't know how much cap room we'll have if we sign the two guys we're rumored on.

 

[Triumph]

I think the mood around here will improve dramatically when Pesce and Dillon put pen to paper on Monday.

But I really don't like how Fitz wildly overcorrects when the team has a flaw. His first few years he made some really shrewd moves, but the last year or so it seems like he's been very reactionary. This roster is significantly different from the one we had 14 months ago that set a franchise wins record and I genuinely can't tell if that's a good thing.

We gave this team around fast, skilled transition players and gave them big contracts, but now it's being transformed into a heavy mean possession team....with the same small skilled guys at the core.

Hopefully this was just a phase, and now that he's gotten his fill of goalies and shitty grinders he can go back to adding talent.

I don't really think this is accurate - I think it's looking at the thing that's happening because it's the thing that's happening and ignoring that the core of the team is largely the same guys as last season. Yeah, that team set a record for franchise wins, but the danger is thinking that's the thing to get back to. I'd rather Fitzgerald look forward, rather than backward. Do I love getting more physical? No, but also I saw how Florida won the Stanley Cup, and it wasn't by playing an uptempo, slick offensive game. They had elements of that obviously but they were also playing quite physical.

 

[AfroThunder396]

Marino had one good year and one bad year. Weird to assume that Marino will bounce back from his bad year and Pesce won't.

 

[Devilsgrl35]

Holtz has got to have some kind of attitude or work ethic problem (or both) for him to not have made that Sweden worlds roster. Honestly, it says a lot about him that he couldn't make that team. That might sound harsh but...

 

[Captain3rdLine]

Well we already know two guys they're 'likely' to sign. It is a little disconcerting the only forward add imminent is Cotter who doesn't even really replace McLeod but I don't think you can literally fix everything in one offseason. Fitz is definitely overhauling the D/Goaltending and hoping the forwards already here either stay healthy (Hughes, Timo) or play better (Mercer) this year. I do think he'll eventually have to come up with something up front but I don't know how much cap room we'll have if we sign the two guys we're rumored on.

5.5M - 7.5M I’m estimating. Probably for 2 forwards.

 

[Forge]

They need/have room for 2. Probably anywhere from 5.5 to 7.5 in cap space to do so. Debrusk and someone else cheap (a center maybe?) is what I would go for.

I'm going to be somewhat shocked if Debrusk isn't a Flame

 

[Captain3rdLine]

Holtz has got to have some kind of attitude or work ethic problem (or both) for him to not have made that Sweden worlds roster. Honestly, it says a lot about him that he couldn't make that team. That might sound harsh but...

I think he’s just not a good enough hockey player

I'm going to be somewhat shocked if Debrusk isn't a Flame

Why?

 

[NJDevs26]

Marino had one good year and one bad year. Weird to assume that Marino will bounce back from his bad year and Pesce won't.

Pesce is older though, younger guys tend to get the benefit of the doubt in terms of bouncing back. Especially ones with only three-year deals as opposed to the likely six Pesce will sign.

 

[Traitor Zach]

People losing their minds over Holtz need to recalibrate, put the “babying” and “blame” emotional overreactions aside and see that the league evaluated Holtz to frankly a pretty poor level themselves given he was being shopped for a year and now 4 years in from draft year showed almost no improvement in committing himself to a 200ft game and playing the way a team needs its wingers to.

 

[Zippy316]

The depth up front does worry me, dependent on moves Fitzgerald makes.

Palat - Hischier - Meier
XXXX - Hughes - Bratt
XXXX - Haula - Mercer
Cotter - Lazar - Bastian
MacDermid - Foote


There’s a lack of dynamic skill sets up front that we’ve had in recent years. Maybe you’re banking on a strong defense and goaltending offsetting that, but aside from Foote, we’re lacking any young guys that could contribute offensively.

I think this team at the minimum needs two more Haula types, with only about 6 million to get that done, assuming 9 million goes to 3LD + Pesce and 3.5 million goes to Mercer. I would have to imagine it ends up being something like Henrique + Trenin, but not sure if that’s enough quality.

 

[Forge]

Not a great strategy and not a contending forward core right now. Some guys like Mercer may improve, but you’re also likely getting some age regression from Haula and Palat.

They need probably 2-3 forwards after signing Pesce, Dillon, Mercer and Foote.

I mean, if you're not healthy and your top prospects aren't getting better, then you're cooked anyway. So i think depending on those things to make you bounce back from a terrible season is fine, especially since they are a requirement if you want to be competitive.

They do need 1-2 forwards. We'll see what they acquire....FA hasn't even started yet, which is why its ridiculous to bitch about what hasn't been done yet lol. p

The top 6

Timo - Nico - Mercer?

??? / Bratt - Hughes - Bratt / ???

Will either be good enough or not. If that's not good enough for a contending team, there are much larger problems that aren't going to be solved any time soon. So time to just pack it in for half a decade.

The bottom six needs to be filled out more, maybe....though I think people greatly overrate how much damage over a season those lines do. If the third line is putting up 30-35 points, you're in real good shape offensively.

 

[JimEIV]

People losing their minds over Holtz need to recalibrate, put the “babying” and “blame” emotional overreactions aside and see that the league evaluated Holtz to frankly a pretty poor level themselves given he was being shopped for a year and now 4 years in from draft year showed almost no improvement in committing himself to a 200ft game and playing the way a team needs its wingers to.

I don't think the issue is Holtz here...

It's how the entire off season is shaping up. From the draft to the trades...

Still free agency to come, sure but we have a lot to build back and that needed to start with a bang. It hasn't.

 

[WetWholphin]

Is luke getting his extension this off season? If so how much?

 

[Forge]

Why?

Seems to be getting the same type of talk as Pesce / Devils. I think there's just been a lot of rumors there, though I believe Elliotte (or someone) indicated that Calgary wouldn't do long term, so we'll see if it shakes out.

 

[JimEIV]

The depth up front does worry me, dependent on moves Fitzgerald makes.

Palat - Hischier - Meier
XXXX - Hughes - Bratt
XXXX - Haula - Mercer
Cotter - Lazar - Bastian
MacDermid - Foote


There’s a lack of dynamic skill sets up front that we’ve had in recent years. Maybe you’re banking on a strong defense and goaltending offsetting that, but aside from Foote, we’re lacking any young guys that could contribute offensively.

I think this team at the minimum needs two more Haula types, with only about 6 million to get that done. I would have to imagine it ends up being something like Henrique + Trenin, but not sure if that’s enough quality.

Palat shouldn't be anywhere near the top 6..just saying.

 

[Captain3rdLine]

Seems to be getting the same type of talk as Pesce / Devils. I think there's just been a lot of rumors there, though I believe Elliotte (or someone) indicated that Calgary wouldn't do long term, so we'll see if it shakes out.

Not sure why he’d want to go there but fair enough

 

[Zippy316]

Palat shouldn't be anywhere near the top 6..just saying.

I think the top six is going to be duos of Hischier, Bratt, Meier, and Hughes with a complimentary forward as the third, whether that’s Palat, Haula, Mercer or additional forwards.

I’m assuming the narrative will be that’s good enough for a playoff team and additional scoring can always be found at the deadline.

 

[BurntToast]

Was way more worried about the middle six forwards than the D. Really just wanted to sign Dillon and that's it but I guess Fitz's vision is what it is.

I hate the drafting past the first or second rounds, though. That's way more troublesome. Not getting ELC contributors 3-4 years from now will be a problem.

Or that is sustainability..