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

[Rybo]

Not every player's top motivation is money although I'm sure he's not gonna give us much of a discount (if any) either.

Plus were good, young, and it helps having some friends to acclimate yourself!

Wonder if hes ever been to Jersey

 

[My3Sons]

I think the issue is more San Jose wants multiple bidders putting out big bids and are willing to wait to see if someone gets desperate and drives the price up

If SJ doesn’t let anyone talk extension with Claude they are limiting themselves. At some point the offers are what they are. They can expect a Horvat like return presumably if they send him on as a rental with a 10 mil QO. Why does a team offer anything more without any ability to explore an extension?

 

[Incharge1976]

But couldnt this also mean Fitzgerald can jump the gun?

Im sure the players were in his ear after their vacation together (or at least near each other)!

If Fitz knows.. or has a 'feel'.. that Meier would sign, why wait?! Offer a big package now and play hard ball with a threat to lower it later on (this would work off the suspicions you speak of teams maybe having)

It's tempting to do that but the worst thing you can do is bid against yourself.

 

[Incharge1976]

Wonder if hes ever been to Jersey

Definitely not. He parachutes out in Pennsylvania before the San Jose plane reaches here.

 

[Nubmer6]

I feel like both the Devils and Timo have been communicating to each other with hints in the media.

Fitz saying he wants to add a scoring forward with size and a non-rental was kind of saying to Timo "Hey, we want you here!"

Timo saying he would sign an extension with a contender at a discount, but not with a non-contender was almost like saying "Hey Fitz, I'm doing what I can to force them to trade me to you!"

 

[MadDevil]

I feel like both the Devils and Timo have been communicating to each other with hints in the media.

Fitz saying he wants to add a scoring forward with size and a non-rental was kind of saying to Timo "Hey, we want you here!"

Timo saying he would sign an extension with a contender at a discount, but not with a non-contender was almost like saying "Hey Fitz, I'm doing what I can to force them to trade me to you!"

If Lou was still here the deal would be dead because of how much people are talking about it.

 

[nugg]

I feel like both the Devils and Timo have been communicating to each other with hints in the media.

Fitz saying he wants to add a scoring forward with size and a non-rental was kind of saying to Timo "Hey, we want you here!"

Timo saying he would sign an extension with a contender at a discount, but not with a non-contender was almost like saying "Hey Fitz, I'm doing what I can to force them to trade me to you!"

It would be nice if it's like how Zidlicky basically forced a trade with Jersey because he said he only wanted to play there. That one certainly worked out.

 

[Guttersniped]

I think it's a great trade, but it is much easier to sell high on prospects when you have a bunch more arriving. We were all hoping the Devils would move on from Smith, he was bad and Ruff was still here, but the Devils just didn't have a similar luxury with e.g. Pavel Zacha a few years back.



At some level, yes. The market has been far softer, COVID created some weird situations - is Siegenthaler sitting out every game for the Capitals in an 82 game season? Are the Penguins ditching Marino if the cap isn't flat? Both Shero and Fitz made a deal before the expansion draft, but it turns out that Vegas refused to deal with any team who made a trade before the draft, greatly reducing NJ's potential trade partners - there was no such thing happening with Seattle, who never made a deal with anybody. All of these are excellent trades, but there's some luck in there too.



Fitz deserves lots of credit. I just think he's also working from a much more stable situation than Shero walked into - the path forward is much more obvious.

I thought Shero made moves that signaled he thought the team was better than it was. It was poor asset management and poor team building.

He was in a tougher spot but he also was able to have a dog shit team on the ice for several years in a row.

Making more long-term rebuilding moves when he could have, instead of short-term ones that failed, would have helped a whole hell of a lot.

Other than Palms he didn’t do much that really impressed me.*

Stempniak was in 2015 and I kept waiting for him to make a similar nice find with a UFA and it never happened.

He was a very good deal maker but the Hall trade seemed like a product of Chia’s weird fixation on Larsson as his defensive savior more than anything else.

Lovejoy was a good signing but it was the 4th contract he signed with Shero.

If we didn’t win the lotteries and drafted Casey Mittelstadt and Dylan Cozens lol.

*I mean in terms of moves. He seemed to do a good job as an executive, GMs aren’t just trade simulators come to life. He ran his drafts well (I think I’ll miss you most of all Scarecrow Shero’s pick trades.)

What’s that story with Vegas?

 

[Guttersniped]

I feel like both the Devils and Timo have been communicating to each other with hints in the media.

Fitz saying he wants to add a scoring forward with size and a non-rental was kind of saying to Timo "Hey, we want you here!"

Timo saying he would sign an extension with a contender at a discount, but not with a non-contender was almost like saying "Hey Fitz, I'm doing what I can to force them to trade me to you!"

 

[SJinNewJersey]

​

Has this been posted here and is it credible? I’ve seen people talk about Devilswede on here and I believe this is him.

He's a Devils fan so I would be a bit skeptical about this. Also, from a tweet of his from December he says Bratt shouldn't get more than 7 million a season.

 

[Bleedred]

​

He's a Devils fan so I would be a bit skeptical about this. Also, from a tweet of his from December he says Bratt shouldn't get more than 7 million a season.

I don’t wanna start slandering posters/former posters here, but I can remember the poster DevilsSwede (assuming this is him) being very reactionary and fiery and sometimes very jaded, even in the years we were still competitive. He was ultra pessimistic and negative and would call out even the good players and sometimes complain about their salaries if they didn’t score a point for 2 or 3 games and I’m pretty sure he said similar stuff about Parise before his UFA year (he isn’t even worth x amount of million) and maybe even Kovalchuk back in 2010, but I can’t say for sure.

If Marty let in a bad goal he would eviscerate him the way I would Blackwood and this was even before Marty really started to fall apart.

I just remember him as very reactionary and he would have some really hyperbolic and extreme takes. And saying he wouldn’t go over $7 million for Bratt would be the most Devils Swede thing ever.

 

[Devils731]

Scott Wheeler’s top 10 drafted NHL goalie prospects ranking, 2023 edition

The Athletic's Scott Wheeler ranks the league's top 10 drafted goalie prospects.

theathletic.com

Schmid is the 8th ranked goalie on Wheeler’s goalie prospect list.

 

[Jersey Fan 12]

​

He's a Devils fan so I would be a bit skeptical about this. Also, from a tweet of his from December he says Bratt shouldn't get more than 7 million a season.

That's not going to be a popular tweet amongst this crowd. But I'd agree.

 

[Nubmer6]

Scott Wheeler’s top 10 drafted NHL goalie prospects ranking, 2023 edition

The Athletic's Scott Wheeler ranks the league's top 10 drafted goalie prospects.

theathletic.com

Schmid is the 8th ranked goalie on Wheeler’s goalie prospect list.

Schmiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiid.....

 

[Stephen Gionta]

I am getting worried that Meier will be a Carolina Hurricane on March 3.

 

[Guttersniped]

I don’t wanna start slandering posters/former posters here, but I can remember the poster DevilsSwede (assuming this is him) being very reactionary and fiery and sometimes very jaded, even in the years we were still competitive. He was ultra pessimistic and negative and would call out even the good players and sometimes complain about their salaries if they didn’t score a point for 2 or 3 games and I’m pretty sure he said similar stuff about Parise before his UFA year (he isn’t even worth x amount of million) and maybe even Kovalchuk back in 2010, but I can’t say for sure.

If Marty let in a bad goal he would eviscerate him the way I would Blackwood and this was even before Marty really started to fall apart.

I just remember him as very reactionary and he would have some really hyperbolic and extreme takes. And saying he wouldn’t go over $7 million for Bratt would be the most Devils Swede thing ever.

His twitter feed has that tone but he links to this



How have I not seen this lol.

I am getting worried that Meier will be a Carolina Hurricane on March 3.

Just on vibes?

 

[AfroThunder396]

I'm just baffled every time I see Bratt get slandered. I don't think I've ever seen a Devils player be this disrespected. The closest I can remember is when select Devils fans were dogpiling on Elias when he became captain. He is a top-30 winger in the NHL, a homegrown player scoring at a point pre game and people act like he's Pierre Dagenais.

We have played 16 games in calendar year 2023 and he 18 points. He has only failed to record a point in 3 of those 16 games. Yet all I hear in these threads is people talking about him disappearing and not stepping up.

Is it really just because he's small? Is it really just because he's European? Is your eye test really that bad?

How can people really watch this incredibly talented and dynamic forward work his ass off and go from 6th round pick to top line forward and think "soft lazy p***y bitch"? Like, do you people actually have brain damage? You really don't think a homegrown guy with 155 points in his last 158 games deserves more money than James van Riemsdyk or Ryan Johansen?

 

[HoliksGhost]

I am getting worried that Meier will be a Carolina Hurricane on March 3.

I was worried about that but ultimately we are just starting to bloom as a young team and I don’t have Cup dreams.. so be it

 

[Stephen Gionta]

Just on vibes?

Yes just on vibes - and that Athletic article this morning with quotes from Waddell really worries me.

Not to mention, when was the last time a player was CONSTANTLY rumored to be traded to a destination and then actually got traded to that team? I feel that it's almost never the heavily long time rumored team that acquires the player. Free agent signings - sure, but rarely ever via trades.

I'm just baffled every time I see Bratt get slandered. I don't think I've ever seen a Devils player be this disrespected. The closest I can remember is when select Devils fans were dogpiling on Elias when he became captain. He is a top-30 winger in the NHL, a homegrown player scoring at a point pre game and people act like he's Pierre Dagenais.

We have played 16 games in calendar year 2023 and he 18 points. He has only failed to record a point in 3 of those 16 games. Yet all I hear in these threads is people talking about him disappearing and not stepping up.

Is it really just because he's small? Is it really just because he's European? Is your eye test really that bad?

How can people really watch this incredibly talented and dynamic forward work his ass off and go from 6th round pick to top line forward and think "soft lazy p***y bitch"? Like, do you people actually have brain damage? You really don't think a homegrown guy with 155 points in his last 158 games deserves more money than James van Riemsdyk or Ryan Johansen?

I think it could be a reflection of what our fan base has come to expect of him. Maybe a lot of people see even more potential in him? I don't know. I'm certainly happy with his play this season - but I'd be lying if I said I think this is his ceiling. I am a believer that Bratt still has another level to get to. And I hope that happens in a Devils uniform on an 8x8 contract.

 

[Zacha37]

Yes just on vibes - and that Athletic article this morning with quotes from Waddell really worries me.

Not to mention, when was the last time a player was CONSTANTLY rumored to be traded to a destination and then actually got traded to that team? I feel that it's almost never the heavily long time rumored team that acquires the player. Free agent signings - sure, but rarely ever via trades.

I was thinking the same, but we also saw Fitz say he wants a “top 6 winger with term” in his interview with Lebrun. Im sure we’d be nervous as Canes fans too if we saw that come out today as well. I also would consider them a “long time rumored team” in the sweepstakes, so maybe it’s not something huge to look into.

 

[Stephen Gionta]

I was worried about that but ultimately we are just starting to bloom as a young team and I don’t have Cup dreams.. so be it

Just such a perfect fit.

David Pastrnak is the only other player I could think of that might be even somewhat realistically attainable that is as good of a fit as Meier.

 

[Devs3cups]

If we get Meier, we get him. If not, it’s not the end of the world. Our time will come. Canes aren’t at the same stage as us.

 

[JimEIV]

I don’t wanna start slandering posters/former posters here, but I can remember the poster DevilsSwede (assuming this is him) being very reactionary and fiery and sometimes very jaded, even in the years we were still competitive. He was ultra pessimistic and negative and would call out even the good players and sometimes complain about their salaries if they didn’t score a point for 2 or 3 games and I’m pretty sure he said similar stuff about Parise before his UFA year (he isn’t even worth x amount of million) and maybe even Kovalchuk back in 2010, but I can’t say for sure.

If Marty let in a bad goal he would eviscerate him the way I would Blackwood and this was even before Marty really started to fall apart.

I just remember him as very reactionary and he would have some really hyperbolic and extreme takes. And saying he wouldn’t go over $7 million for Bratt would be the most Devils Swede thing ever.

Don't you eviscerate players on a daily basis? There's been at least a half dozen Pandoldfo rants this week and it's only Tuesday.

Not to mention White before that, Blackwood is a mainstay for you but so was Steve Bernier which I believe the term space junk was coined, little Gio,
Zubrus at a time, various other 4th liners/career AHLers

You just do the guys that are safe to eviscerate without too much push back. It's not really different.

 

[Stephen Gionta]

I was thinking the same, but we also saw Fitz say he wants a “top 6 winger with term” in his interview with Lebrun. Im sure we’d be nervous as Canes fans too if we saw that come out today as well. I also would consider them a “long time rumored team” in the sweepstakes, so maybe it’s not something huge to look into.

They are rumored to land him for sure, but nothing close to the extent that we are. 80%+ of media members/analysts/etc. would say we are the favorite - with Carolina trailing behind as the 2nd favorite landing spot.

 

[Devs3cups]

I'm just baffled every time I see Bratt get slandered. I don't think I've ever seen a Devils player be this disrespected. The closest I can remember is when select Devils fans were dogpiling on Elias when he became captain. He is a top-30 winger in the NHL, a homegrown player scoring at a point pre game and people act like he's Pierre Dagenais.

We have played 16 games in calendar year 2023 and he 18 points. He has only failed to record a point in 3 of those 16 games. Yet all I hear in these threads is people talking about him disappearing and not stepping up.

Is it really just because he's small? Is it really just because he's European? Is your eye test really that bad?

How can people really watch this incredibly talented and dynamic forward work his ass off and go from 6th round pick to top line forward and think "soft lazy p***y bitch"? Like, do you people actually have brain damage? You really don't think a homegrown guy with 155 points in his last 158 games deserves more money than James van Riemsdyk or Ryan Johansen?