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

[devilsblood]

Rango hasn’t been put in a position to play to his strengths and it’s costing the team. He had a very good game last night and he clicked with Bratt. He got 3-4 good looks. If he keeps getting looks like those, the pucks will start going in.

Mercer has looked fine, I rarely come out of games thinking he played poorly. Yesterday was another strong game for him.

Mercer? I think Mercer and Sharangovich are producing inline with their current roles and usage. Mercer is on pace to score 45 points mostly from the 3rd line... I'm not sure how much more you can ask from him in his second year.

Sharangovich is different in that he's a shooter/goal scorer and that tends to be a bit more streaky...still 11 goals in his diminished role is not terrible. The game he played last night along with 5 shots to go with it looks like he might be coming into a good stretch's...these two don't belong in the same conversation as the others for not doing enough.

I'm talking goal scoring. I know I expected more from Shara.

I think Mercer is a good young player, and maybe he shouldn't be viewed as a "goal scorer" but when looking for the lack of depth scoring, I think you have to look at everyone. He's on pace for 18ish, that's pretty good. Given his most common linemate is Jack Hughes maybe we expect more? though admittedly that hasn't been the goal scoring boon for linemates that one may have expected.

Still if I'm looking for depth scoring, am I singling out a buy like Boq who gets the least amount of TOI while playing exclusively in the bottom 6, and get's no pp time? No I look further up the food chain.

 

[SteveCangialosi123]

To Haulas credit, Bratt wasted an incredible pass from Haula as well. In the slot, in the 3rd, Bratt passed off once again.

Wasn’t that the play where Bratt got it over to Sharangovich who hesitated and failed to convert yet again?

 

[Guttersniped]

Haula is in a class by himself, there’s no way on earth he should have only 2 5v5 goals and 4 goals all together.

The dude’s shooting 2.38% 5v5 now, it’s just so grim.

Haula’s had
151 shot attempts 5v5.
122 unblocked shot attempts 5v5.
84 shots 5v5.
90 individual Scoring Chances 5v5
47 individual High Danger Scoring Chances 5v5.
= 2 f***ing goals.

And it feels like he’s gotten worse at it lol, he just shoots directly at the goalie or misses the net.

I’m convinced that early in the season he looked like an actual scoring threat that was just snakebit.

The lack of success broke him at some point and I have no hope for him this season. He needs to start meditating or something.

Haula is up to ~9 individual Expected Goal for just 5v5.

McLeod is shooting 5.45% 5v5 and has 3 goals but his ixG 5v5 is only ~5 goals. I mean, it’s McLeod lol.

 

[devilsblood]

Of the bottom 100 forwards in points/60 this season (minimum 200 minutes) exactly 0 are Devils, Boqvist is lowest. The Devils do not really have issues with depth scoring per se, it is more that they only have four players on pace for 20 or more goals. They're missing a 20 goal scorer or two; people scoring at a second line rate.

Maybe points to the vagueness of "depth" but I was kind of thinking of those missing 20 goal scorers when posting above. Again, Shara stands out there. Tatar too probably.

I'd also say goals/60 would be more relevant here.

And parsing that out in terms of first 25 vs last 25 would highlight the issues which pertain to our "struggles" of late.

I don't think Boqvist is similar to Josefson at all, and the only thing that could produce such a thought is that they come from the same country. Boqvist is far and away a better goal scorer.

Definitely some similarities, smooth skating centers with offensive skills who don't produce as much as their skillset seems to indicate, but yeah, Boq is way more productive then JJ was.

 

[NjDevsRR]

Wasn’t that the play where Bratt got it over to Sharangovich who hesitated and failed to convert yet again?

Yes, Erik did a nice sauce through a defender to the slot to Bratt. I’d love for Bratt to shoot from there, especially with two other forwards crashing the net, could get a rebound. He also has one of the best releases on the team. He passes up a ton of opportunities from the slot.

 

[MadDevil]

This seems to be a never ending theme of Hockey's Futures...almost like the chicken or the egg scenario.

Player doesn't produce...he sits or has time limited = he's being "jerked around"

Sure, but at the same time you need to put players in situations where they at least have a chance at success. Playing a goal scorer ~10 minutes a game, often with lesser skilled players while you have elite playdrivers that could probably get more out of that player doesn't seem like setting them up for success.

And I get it, we're beyond the "it's a development year" stage, and most coaches are going to lean towards vets and/or safer players, but I think there's more opportunity to let a kid like Holtz play with a Bratt or a Jack than they're doing. I mean Christ, we've got Haula flubbing chances from those guys left and right. I'm fairly certain if Holtz had those chances he'd have more than the 4 goals Haula has this season. And before I hear it, yes I know Haula is good at other things and I'm not suggesting Holtz be stapled to Jack or be "gifted" regular top 6 minutes. I just think they could be giving him more of an opportunity than they are.

 

[Billdo]

Of the bottom 100 forwards in points/60 this season (minimum 200 minutes) exactly 0 are Devils, Boqvist is lowest. The Devils do not really have issues with depth scoring per se, it is more that they only have four players on pace for 20 or more goals. They're missing a 20 goal scorer or two; people scoring at a second line rate.



I don't think Boqvist is similar to Josefson at all, and the only thing that could produce such a thought is that they come from the same country. Boqvist is far and away a better goal scorer.

I think they could be viewed as similar because they both look like they've got another level that they're super close to getting to but haven't. Boqvist is clearly the better player though for sure.

 

[JimEIV]

On Boqvist vs Josefson there are a lot similarities

size
Josefson- 6'0 - 187
Boqvist 6'0 - 180

There is also the quasi Center/wing thing going on and both weren't/aren't very good at faceoffs

There is the attention to the two way game both had/have that seems to be at the expense of offense.

There is also relatively close draft position #20 - #36

Those are minor things that make me think of Josefson.

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

Boqvist already has more goals than Josefson did in his entire NHL career in ~half the games

its a silly comparison

 

[NjDevsRR]

Boqvist is someone I can see becoming a solid bottom 6 for the foreseeable future. And will be cheap to keep. You need players like that when competing.

 

[Better Call Sal]

Boqvist and Josefson are always being compared because they’re both Swedish centers whose names start with J, just admit it already.

 

[JimEIV]

Sure, but at the same time you need to put players in situations where they at least have a chance at success. Playing a goal scorer ~10 minutes a game, often with lesser skilled players while you have elite playdrivers that could probably get more out of that player doesn't seem like setting them up for success.

And I get it, we're beyond the "it's a development year" stage, and most coaches are going to lean towards vets and/or safer players, but I think there's more opportunity to let a kid like Holtz play with a Bratt or a Jack than they're doing. I mean Christ, we've got Haula flubbing chances from those guys left and right. I'm fairly certain if Holtz had those chances he'd have more than the 4 goals Haula has this season. And before I hear it, yes I know Haula is good at other things and I'm not suggesting Holtz be stapled to Jack or be "gifted" regular top 6 minutes. I just think they could be giving him more of an opportunity than they are.

You don't think Holtz has that opportunity. I know people want to focus on the games with limited minutes but look at his game logs

First game 14:36, next game 9:55, 3rd game 5:55...is that being jerked around or misused or playing your way out of an opportunity?

He's played over 13 minutes 5 times this season and almost every single time he has, his next game his minutes have been cut significantly.

14:36 to 9:55 the very next game

15:07 to 7:13 the very next game

15:08 to 9:51 the very next game

13:21 to 13:34 to 8:55. Two games then drop

That looks more like playing your way out of opportunity to me than being jerked around or misused.

 

[TrufleShufle]

Boqvist already has more goals than Josefson did in his entire NHL career in ~half the games

its a silly comparison

23 goals over 161 games is definitely not a stat to use to hand wave away this comparison....

There is still time do let Jesper find his groove, but in no way should anyone be offended by someone comparing him to Yayo....

People were saying the same things both for and against Josefson in his first few years.

 

[HoliksGhost]

Love Weeksie talking up Timo and NJ during the Sharks game ; )

 

[TrufleShufle]

Boqvist and Josefson are always being compared because they’re both Swedish centers whose names start with J, just admit it already.

That might be true, but seriously I think it has more to do with the fact that if you zoom in on any moment they are playing, they look like legit hockey players and you would think they would be producing at a decent clip. But if you back up and look at their entire body of work, there is just not much there. It's frustrating because both players are, at the same time, both easy to defend and crap on. And both sides can be right.

 

[devilsblood]

Boqvist already has more goals than Josefson did in his entire NHL career in ~half the games

its a silly comparison

Goal scoring is the one area where he separates himself from JJ. And its not like Boq is a goal scoring ace, moreso jj was completely inept.

Otherwise the comparison is pretty apt.

 

[Better Call Sal]

That might be true, but seriously I think it has more to do with the fact that if you zoom in on any moment they are playing, they look like legit hockey players and you would think they would be producing at a decent clip. But if you back up and look at their entire body of work, there is just not much there. It's frustrating because both players are at the same time both easy to defend and crap on. And both sides can be right.

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

23 goals over 161 games is definitely not a stat to use to hand wave away this comparison....

There is still time do let Jesper find his groove, but in no way should anyone be offended by someone comparing him to Yayo....

People were saying the same things both for and against Josefson in his first few years.

Goal scoring is the one area where he separates himself from JJ. And its not like Boq is a goal scoring ace, moreso jj was completely inept.

Otherwise the comparison is pretty apt.

theyre both Swedish and built similarly. Thats where the comparison ends.

I dont think they play similarly whatsoever.

 

[TrufleShufle]

theyre both Swedish and built similarly. Thats where the comparison ends.

I dont think they play similarly whatsoever.

We are all wrong sometimes, no big deal.

 

[Zacha37]

theyre both Swedish and built similarly. Thats where the comparison ends.

I dont think they play similarly whatsoever.

This is totally gonna end up like Gaudreau and we’re gonna get our hearts broken

 

[devilsblood]

theyre both Swedish and built similarly. Thats where the comparison ends.

I dont think they play similarly whatsoever.

Smooth skating center/wings with offensive skills who lack actual offensive production.

Boq is better but they are pretty similar.

 

[Guadana]

This is totally gonna end up like Gaudreau and we’re gonna get our hearts broken

A lot of people were happy to stay away from Johnny Gaudreaunee. and the one reason why is how we have an option to land Meier now.

 

[Zacha37]

A lot of people were happy to stay away from Johnny Gaudreaunee. and the one reason why is how we have an option to land Meier now.

Me as well for sure, but I meant it more that it was so much smoke and it never ended up happening.

 

[JimEIV]

Maybe points to the vagueness of "depth" but I was kind of thinking of those missing 20 goal scorers when posting above. Again, Shara stands out there. Tatar too probably.

I'd also say goals/60 would be more relevant here.

And parsing that out in terms of first 25 vs last 25 would highlight the issues which pertain to our "struggles" of late.




Definitely some similarities, smooth skating centers with offensive skills who don't produce as much as their skillset seems to indicate, but yeah, Boq is way more productive then JJ was.

Not really much more productive...not anymore productive than league scoring and team success and style of play can account for anyway.

Josefson all situation P/60
19 years old 1.6
20 years old 1.1
21 years old .6
22 years old No stats for some reason?
23 years old .9
24 years old .9
25 years old 1.3

Jacob Josefson Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Salary, Title | Hockey-Reference.com

Checkout the latest stats of Jacob Josefson. Get info about his position, age, height, weight, trade, draft, salary and more on Hockey-Reference.com

www.hockey-reference.com

Boqvist all situation P/60
21 years old .6
22 years old 1.3
23 years old 1.9
24 years old 1.2

Jesper Boqvist Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Salary, Title | Hockey-Reference.com

Checkout the latest stats of Jesper Boqvist. Get info about his position, age, height, weight, trade, draft, salary and more on Hockey-Reference.com

www.hockey-reference.com

 

[Guadana]

Me as well for sure, but I meant it more that it was so much smoke and it never ended up happening.

I think Meier story could be more disappointing. I don’t see many people who don’t want to land timmo