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

[Hisch13r]

With San Jose, does Nick Bonino make sense? Two-time Stanley Cup champion, great defense-first penalty killing wing/center. Immediately helps our bottom-6, which will need to be impactful if the Devils are going to make any run.

What about: Sharangovich, Holtz, Mukhmadulin and a 1st for Meier and Bonino? Obviously San Jose would need to add another contract or make a move beforehand, but it certainly helps fill out the roster.

Palat-Hischier-Meier
Bratt-Hughes-Mercer
Tatar-Haula-Bonino
Wood/Zetterlund-McLeod-Bastian

I'd rather just keep Yegor than add Bonino. Also if that was the trade that's made Zetterlund>>>Bonino and Z should be the 3RW

 

[Nubmer6]

With San Jose, does Nick Bonino make sense? Two-time Stanley Cup champion, great defense-first penalty killing wing/center. Immediately helps our bottom-6, which will need to be impactful if the Devils are going to make any run.

What about: Sharangovich, Holtz, Mukhmadulin and a 1st for Meier and Bonino? Obviously San Jose would need to add another contract or make a move beforehand, but it certainly helps fill out the roster.

Palat-Hischier-Meier
Bratt-Hughes-Mercer
Tatar-Haula-Bonino
Wood/Zetterlund-McLeod-Bastian

I feel like the problem with our bottom 6, and specifically the 3rd line, us that they have no identity (ugh, yeah, I used THAT word). Is it a 3rd scoring line? Is it a checking line? The wings are too inexperienced to be relied on to shut down the opponent, and the centers are not good enough to make them a consistent scoring line.

 

[Mgd31]

With San Jose, does Nick Bonino make sense? Two-time Stanley Cup champion, great defense-first penalty killing wing/center. Immediately helps our bottom-6, which will need to be impactful if the Devils are going to make any run.

What about: Sharangovich, Holtz, Mukhmadulin and a 1st for Meier and Bonino? Obviously San Jose would need to add another contract or make a move beforehand, but it certainly helps fill out the roster.

Palat-Hischier-Meier
Bratt-Hughes-Mercer
Tatar-Haula-Bonino
Wood/Zetterlund-McLeod-Bastian

I think Bonino kind of stinks now. Maybe a couple years ago I would have entertained this, but I don't think he would be an upgrade to the bottom 6.

 

[JimEIV]

Skater talent has greatly increased over the past decade while goaltending has gotten steadily worst. Kids growing up in the 90's and 00's wanted to be Brodeur, Hasek, Roy, Luongo, Cujo, Belfour, etc. But kids who grew up in the 2010's grew up wanting to be McDavid, Crosby, Ovechkin, Pat Kane, etc.

The goalies of the late 00's and '10s were boring, just giant pad monsters with little flair or excitement. It made the position seem very boring, while the skaters were doing things that had never been seen before. Obviously there were some exceptional goalies during this time, but most didn't feel very fun to watch.

All of the young athletic talent is going into skaters and very little is going into goaltending these days. Goalie development is fickle enough as is, now factor in loss of playing time due to the pandemic and it's going to get worse before it gets better. Kids can practice stickhandling in their garage, but goalies can't simulate stopping pucks without actually playing the game. Juggling tennis balls only does so much.

GMs are also getting far more cautious with goalie contracts these days. There is far more money to be made being a star forward/defenseman as opposed to a star goalie. Guys are pretty routinely getting 6-7M AAV on their second deal at 21-23. A goalie today might not ever get an AAV that high in their career, and if they do it will be on a 3-5 year deal after they turn 25.

So it's not surprise. Skater talent has gone through the roof and goaltending talent has collapsed.

I grew up wanting to be Joe Cirella

 

[billingtons ghost]

It wasn't only Burke though...Burke took the brunt of the blame...he did lead the league in Goals Against in 89(the bad way not the good way ) but go look at the entire team's numbers... especially the big guns...they all disappeared after the 88 run and that's when some rumblings of a "country club atmosphere" started. Verbeek, Muller, Broten just didn't show up the next year...and the goaltender took the blame...

Truth be told, it was those guys that made the 88 run not Burke and it was those guys that made Burke look both good and bad.

Edit:. Not only Burke, that core group made Shoenfeld look like a genius in 88 and a bum in 89.

Not how I remember it at all.

Burke gave us the first real goaltender to believe in. Chico was a folk hero and there were other guys that had some talent but clearly Burke was our first 'modern' goaltender who carried us during the '88 run.

I'll agree that the whole team took a vacation after that, and Burke was a malcontent that had to go.

But you can't belittle what he did.

 

[Nubmer6]

He and I have the same normal color hair combined with a completely white beard.

Somehow I'm 54 and still have only a little white in my hair.

I really wish I could recapture that feeling of the magical 88 run. That and 95 were the happiest I've been in my life. I'm hoping this year creates that for the younger fans that never got to experience it.

 

[Hisch13r]

I think Bonino kind of stinks now. Maybe a couple years ago I would have entertained this, but I don't think he would be an upgrade to the bottom 6.

Yeah I was the guy who wanted him most in the 2021 offseason but at this point he's nothing more than a guy. Parise would be a much better vet bottom 6 add. He's actually been pretty good

 

[Nubmer6]

I grew up wanting to be Joe Cirella

When I grow up I want to be a PowerPuff girl.

 

[glenwo2]

If Casey is demanded as the big piece in a trade for Timo Meier, the Devils would be stupid not to make that trade. Casey seems like a man without a position right now with the way the blueline has been set up, and it makes no sense not to make a run at the thing this year with the group we have.

Meier helps tremendously with the top-6 of course, but he also helps push Haula (or Tatar, or whoever else is currently playing top-6 minutes out of necessity) into the bottom 6. He's exactly the type of player the Devils need, and he's exactly the type of player the Devils should aggressively pursue.

Welcome to the NJ HFBoards section, new member.

And I wonder if they even heard of Casey to demand he be included in a trade for Timo....

Chances are they'd be more interested in more NHL-ready (or close to ready prospects) players.

 

[Mgd31]

Yeah I was the guy who wanted him most in the 2021 offseason but at this point he's nothing more than a guy. Parise would be a much better vet bottom 6 add. He's actually been pretty good

Yea if we strike out on Meier, I want Henrique and Parise. Actually, I'd take Parise for the bottom 6 even if we get Meier.

 

[billingtons ghost]

I put in some real work to finally “get” the post Asylum-years Tom Waits. I immediately loved The Heart of Saturday Night the first time I heard it. It took some time to like the subsequent Asylum releases and acquire a taste for “the voice,” but I eventually came around. Then it probably took months and multiple re-listens to finally like the Island Record releases and beyond. Swordfishtrombone was the one that did it. I’d say the boozy bar-room Asylum era is still my favorite, but depends on my mood. There was a year of my life where I couldn’t listen to anything other than Tom Waits because everything else just seemed plain and boring

I heard Sheryl Crow credit him for her Grammy at her acceptance and was like 'who?' so I sicked Napster on downloading everything I could find and as you might imagine thought it f*cked up and there were three or four different Tom Waits out there. All the prepared instruments and the voice got me immediately and as with most stuff I hated it vehemently until I loved it. You can just keep going deeper and deeper and find another song or album or lyric to love. Even my wife has told the kids the other day she's going "to shoot pool with a midget until the rain stops."

 

[JimEIV]

Not how I remember it at all.

Burke gave us the first real goaltender to believe in. Chico was a folk hero and there were other guys that had some talent but clearly Burke was our first 'modern' goaltender who carried us during the '88 run.

I'll agree that the whole team took a vacation after that, and Burke was a malcontent that had to go.

But you can't belittle what he did.

Billington was better Shame we lost him in the expansion draft.

 

[Hisch13r]

Yea if we strike out on Meier, I want Henrique and Parise. Actually, I'd take Parise for the bottom 6 even if we get Meier.

I can agree with this. You could add Parise either way and with Rico you wouldn't be able to him with Meier.

 

[billingtons ghost]

Why isn’t Wood on the PK? His skill set seems like it should be a fit. I know, hockey iq, but PK seems like a learned skill, so should that totally matter?

Not a stopstart guy, maybe?

 

[Hisch13r]

If Casey is demanded as the big piece in a trade for Timo Meier, the Devils would be stupid not to make that trade. Casey seems like a man without a position right now with the way the blueline has been set up, and it makes no sense not to make a run at the thing this year with the group we have.

Meier helps tremendously with the top-6 of course, but he also helps push Haula (or Tatar, or whoever else is currently playing top-6 minutes out of necessity) into the bottom 6. He's exactly the type of player the Devils need, and he's exactly the type of player the Devils should aggressively pursue.

Well yeah if they're demanding Casey as a big piece that's one thing and I don't know if anyone is really arguing against that. I think the issue is that he wouldn't be viewed as a big piece and at that point you'd be better off adding say Muk instead. From what I've seen people say Grier seems to be in the Ranger mold of valuing size so I can't imagine he'd be super high on Casey.

 

[JimEIV]

Somehow I'm 54 and still have only a little white in my hair.

I really wish I could recapture that feeling of the magical 88 run. That and 95 were the happiest I've been in my life. I'm hoping this year creates that for the younger fans that never got to experience it.

Absolutely! Me and a highschool buddy go back and forth all the time what our favorite was 88 or 95....95 always wins because well, duh, a Cup?

But 1988...at the time was just incredible...we used sit around in home room in highschool with 10 other kids and two teachers talking about the Devil's every morning before school started in 1988... honestly everyone around was talking about hockey for the first time in my life. It was like a cultural shift.

 

[JimEIV]

Well yeah if they're demanding Casey as a big piece that's one thing and I don't know if anyone is really arguing against that. I think the issue is that he wouldn't be viewed as a big piece and at that point you'd be better off adding say Muk instead. From what I've seen people say Grier seems to be in the Ranger mold of valuing size so I can't imagine he'd be super high on Casey.

I would imagine Grier values size...

Beanpot 1995.

"Paint an Amtrak sign on him because he just railroaded Callahan".

242 lbs in college hockey, imagine that.

 

[RSeen]

I can agree with this. You could add Parise either way and with Rico you wouldn't be able to him with Meier.

I wouldn't mind this scenario. Rico's contract going into next year is an issue though so there would need to be retention IMO of at least $2 million. But if we are adding two pieces, you probably can't have to trade at least one forward.

Someone like Yegor could be on the way out I'd think if we get Meier.

 

[Nocashstyle]

I heard Sheryl Crow credit him for her Grammy at her acceptance and was like 'who?' so I sicked Napster on downloading everything I could find and as you might imagine thought it f*cked up and there were three or four different Tom Waits out there. All the prepared instruments and the voice got me immediately and as with most stuff I hated it vehemently until I loved it. You can just keep going deeper and deeper and find another song or album or lyric to love. Even my wife has told the kids the other day she's going "to shoot pool with a midget until the rain stops."

My wife is not a fan, so naturally she has a “no Tom Waits” policy whenever she is around to enforce it lol

 

[billingtons ghost]

Somehow I'm 54 and still have only a little white in my hair.

I really wish I could recapture that feeling of the magical 88 run. That and 95 were the happiest I've been in my life. I'm hoping this year creates that for the younger fans that never got to experience it.

I had blonde hair with a black beard, now I'm blonde with a grey beard.

I'll say that '88 thing was so wild and unexpected and pure fun like we shouldn't have been there with the kids.

The 93-94 run was my favorite bc that was man shit and we just wouldn't quit despite everything against us. The frigging fistfights in the cattle chute and Flyers/Rangers fans everywhere. Siege mentality. And Marty was sooooooo good.

The 94-95 was as sweet as it gets bc we just fulfilled prophecy. After the previous years baptism by fire... By the time the first round was done we were going to win the cup. It wasn't going to be easy, but that and the '86 Celtics and maybe one of the Golden State teams were as close as I've seen to just a pure winning machine. If we got one goal it was over.

The Stevens 2000 year was almost as great bc of the ALine and seeing one player on defense just singlehandedly devastate opponent after opponent.

Nothing tops being in the building that 95 year though. That quiet old barn where the top marketing/entertainment effort was one guy with a trumpet was an absolute madhouse and the parking lot was even better.

2023? I am in. After how tough this has been the past ten, it's going to be fun watch this team climb that mountain. It's a tall one.

 

[JimEIV]

I had blonde hair with a black beard, now I'm blonde with a grey beard.

I'll say that '88 thing was so wild and unexpected and pure fun like we shouldn't have been there with the kids.

The 93-94 run was my favorite bc that was man shit and we just wouldn't quit despite everything against us. The frigging fistfights in the cattle chute and Flyers/Rangers fans everywhere. Siege mentality. And Marty was sooooooo good.

The 94-95 was as sweet as it gets bc we just fulfilled prophecy. After the previous years baptism by fire... By the time the first round was done we were going to win the cup. It wasn't going to be easy, but that and the '86 Celtics and maybe one of the Golden State teams were as close as I've seen to just a pure winning machine. If we got one goal it was over.

The Stevens 2000 year was almost as great bc of the ALine and seeing one player on defense just singlehandedly devastate opponent after opponent.

Nothing tops being in the building that 95 year though. That quiet old barn where the top marketing/entertainment effort was one guy with a trumpet was an absolute madhouse and the parking lot was even better.

2023? I am in. After how tough this has been the past ten, it's going to be fun watch this team climb that mountain. It's a tall one.

"That quiet old barn where the top marketing/entertainment effort was one guy with a trumpet was an absolute madhouse and the parking lot was even better."

Holy smokes this is a great line. It's so simple, descriptive and accurate that I can almost see it and smell it


My photo from my parade album.

 

[MB3]

Welcome to the NJ HFBoards section, new member.

And I wonder if they even heard of Casey to demand he be included in a trade for Timo....

Chances are they'd be more interested in more NHL-ready (or close to ready prospects) players.

I'd sort of assume that the Sharks have scouts, and that those scouts see/hear the same things us fans hear. Casey's ceiling is dramatically bigger than Muk, so it wouldn't surprise me all too much if that's who they target.

They won't compete for a few years, I'd be surprised if NHL-readiness is something they care much about. They probably say that out loud as lip-service to their fans, though.

 

[Emperoreddy]

Still not Timo time?

 

[Alaskanice]

With San Jose, does Nick Bonino make sense? Two-time Stanley Cup champion, great defense-first penalty killing wing/center. Immediately helps our bottom-6, which will need to be impactful if the Devils are going to make any run.

What about: Sharangovich, Holtz, Mukhmadulin and a 1st for Meier and Bonino? Obviously San Jose would need to add another contract or make a move beforehand, but it certainly helps fill out the roster.

Palat-Hischier-Meier
Bratt-Hughes-Mercer
Tatar-Haula-Bonino
Wood/Zetterlund-McLeod-Bastian

I’m a San Jose Sharks fan. I’ve been lurking here to gauge how Devils fans see this trade.
Your proposal here works for me. I truly believe that both players could help your playoff run. It gives us some young guys to give chances to.

 

[MB3]

I think Bonino kind of stinks now. Maybe a couple years ago I would have entertained this, but I don't think he would be an upgrade to the bottom 6.

Experience and veteran leadership are huge in the playoffs, especially on a team that won't have very many people who have been there/done that. Maybe putting him on the 3rd line was relying too much on my memory of him being a stellar defensive pest for those Penguins cups, but I don't imagine he'll be all that expensive. He's an upgrade over Miles Wood, that's certain.