Devils team discussion (news, notes and speculation) - season begins!

[Cheddabombs]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1851640381319839925

Goals per 20? What happened to goals per 60, are we downsizing?

 

[My3Sons]

Goals per 20? What happened to goals per 60, are we downsizing?

Nobody would believe the goals per 60 numbers.

 

[Zippy316]

Why in God's name would you trade one or both of Nemec and Casey to accomodate an an old, high paid, waning D-man for a year or 2 when the 2 you talk about moving, are going to be very good NHL D-men for the next 10-15 years (give or take a couple)? Kovy won't be in NJ much longer either, if at all after this season. The 2 you put on the blocks will be big pieces in a short period of time and add in the big Russian and the NJ Devils will have one of the NHL's finest, while being among the youngest, D-corps under contract for a long time. It also won't have a negative effect on the team's cup window. The overall team will still be young when considering a team's window for cup contention.

I’m not saying it will or should happen, but it could happen. They will be highly valuable assets that could bring in a missing piece.

The most plausible scenario for me would be if Nemec or Casey is the main piece in a deal to bring Quinn to NJ. He would have one year left in 26-27 and if Vancouver thinks he’s on the outs at the end of the year, they could recoup some assets.

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1851640381319839925

*eyeball emoji*

 

[JrFischer54]

Why in God's name would you trade one or both of Nemec and Casey to accomodate an an old, high paid, waning D-man for a year or 2 when the 2 you talk about moving, are going to be very good NHL D-men for the next 10-15 years (give or take a couple)? Kovy won't be in NJ much longer either, if at all after this season. The 2 you put on the blocks will be big pieces in a short period of time and add in the big Russian and the NJ Devils will have one of the NHL's finest, while being among the youngest, D-corps under contract for a long time. It also won't have a negative effect on the team's cup window. The overall team will still be young when considering a team's window for cup contention.

being a realist i dont see the devils in a couple years having all these young d men on the ice at the same time. if everything goes to plan on their development including the one they drafted last year also. its a great problem to have and i just think they ship someone off for help in other area/s

I’m not saying it will or should happen, but it could happen. They will be highly valuable assets that could bring in a missing piece.

The most plausible scenario for me would be if Nemec or Casey is the main piece in a deal to bring Quinn to NJ. He would have one year left in 26-27 and if Vancouver thinks he’s on the outs at the end of the year, they could recoup some assets.

i do agree with you about them trading at some point but i dont see them trading for quinn knowing that he will all but eventually end up here anyway for free.

 

[Guttersniped]

it's early so maybe i'm reading this wrong but it seems like almost every team increased a ridiculous amount YOY. the bruins for example increased their value by 1.3 BILLION dollars in a year? that can't be right.

This is actually the 1st list I’ve seen that had all the NHL teams over 1b.

Here’s Forbes list from Dec 2023

https://www.forbes.com/lists/nhl-valuations/

As you can see, the bottom tier on that was pretty pathetic.

The sale prices of the Sens (950m) and the Coyotes (1.2B), and the Panthers winning the Cup, jacked up the value of the bottom tier on this though.

If the least valuable teams are worth 1b then the top teams are worth a lot more.

This list doesn’t only reflect the insane sale prices for some of the least enticing franchises in the NHL but that has to be a big factor.

I don’t subscribe to Sportico so I can’t read the article.

 

[Satans Hockey]

Devils franchise value increased 47% over last year. Top 5 increase in the NHL.

https://x.com/i/web/status/1851608121065500918

Besides the team not leaving I find it impossible to find this as a good thing when the fans don't see any benefit from it. Lower costs of tickets? Nope, higher. Lower costs of concessions? Nope, higher. Lower costs of merch? Nope, higher.

Maybe everyone's actually been buying the ridiculously priced item of the games...

 

[Ripshot 43]

Besides the team not leaving I find it impossible to find this as a good thing when the fans don't see any benefit from it. Lower costs of tickets? Nope, higher. Lower costs of concessions? Nope, higher. Lower costs of merch? Nope, higher.

Maybe everyone's actually been buying the ridiculously priced item of the games...

View attachment 923903View attachment 923904

Was thinking very similarly to you. The NHL just released a Lululemon line too and it’s $150 for the tiniest jacket/top I’ve ever seen. Less material, more cost!

 

[Its Always Sundstrom]

Was thinking very similarly to you. The NHL just released a Lululemon line too and it’s $150 for the tiniest jacket/top I’ve ever seen. Less material, more cost!

Yeah but that gusset is priceless.

 

[NjDevsRR]

*eyeball emoji*

 

[Ripshot 43]

Yeah but that gusset is priceless.

*Bing search activated*

 

[dgibb10]

Dillon is down to 13:39 of 5v5 toi since Hughes Pesce arrived, lowest on the team. Hamilton is at 15:49, 2nd lowest.

Only a 3 game sample and definitely skewed a bit by special teams, but I expect Hughes and Pesce to play more as they get up to speed.

In all situations Dillon is again 6th in TOI at 16:28. Hughes is 5th at 17:45, while the other 4 are in that 20-21 minute range.

So Dillon is already playing "bottom pair minutes" and again, I expect Hughes's minutes to go up. Though not quite sure where, 5v5 or eventually PP1.

Also, and again, super small sample, but does Pesce not look like the perfect partner for Luke thus far? Even in theory it makes great sense. So if you can play them fairly big minutes, but not the heavy defensive minutes that Sieg's and Kova play, that puts Hughes Pesce in a great spot. And then we roll out Hamilton on the "3rd pair"? Seems a little unfair really.

Then you break up Siegs Kovacevic and play Siegs and Hamilton in top pairing minutes.

Kovacevic is a nice story through 12 games, but he's not the long term top pairing, second pairing, or even third pairing RD on this team.

If playing Siegs and Hamilton together is better for Hamilton, that's the move you make

 

[devilsblood]

Then you break up Siegs Kovacevic and play Siegs and Hamilton in top pairing minutes.

Kovacevic is a nice story through 12 games, but he's not the long term top pairing, second pairing, or even third pairing RD on this team.

If playing Siegs and Hamilton together is better for Hamilton, that's the move you make

Coaches like a defensive pairing that they can roll out in tough defensive minutes.

We saw it with Graves Marino a couple years back, Siegs Marino last year, and now Siegs Kova this year.

And when those pairings are playing well in those tough minutes it's very valuable.

Do you break that up to get Hamilton going? I don't know if we have to do that. Dillon Hamilton could get going on it's own, especially if they get some easier minutes.

On the other hand, Dillon Kova theoretically could also be a decent defensive pairing, so that wouldn't be crazy either.

As per Kova and his long term fit on the team. Do note Keefe is leaning on him pretty heavy 5v5, and he's also leaning very heavy on him on the PK. Currently leading the team in TOI per game. I know fans don't put much credence in a d-first dman who plays heavy PK minutes but coaches do.

Edit: when I said "seems unfair" that Hamilton is on the 3rd pair, I meant for our opponents. It's why I put "3rd pair" in quotes, as I figure they still get a fair amount of minutes

 

[Emperoreddy]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1851709340551647393

 

[devilsblood]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1851709340551647393

Todd giving us permission to debate the topic. Nice.

I'm here if any one wants in.

 

[JrFischer54]

Besides the team not leaving I find it impossible to find this as a good thing when the fans don't see any benefit from it. Lower costs of tickets? Nope, higher. Lower costs of concessions? Nope, higher. Lower costs of merch? Nope, higher.

Maybe everyone's actually been buying the ridiculously priced item of the games...

View attachment 923903View attachment 923904

would love to know how much the team actually makes off concessions every game

 

[dzubrus8]

being a realist i dont see the devils in a couple years having all these young d men on the ice at the same time. if everything goes to plan on their development including the one they drafted last year also. its a great problem to have and i just think they ship someone off for help in other area/s


i do agree with you about them trading at some point but i dont see them trading for quinn knowing that he will all but eventually end up here anyway for free.

if I could trade Casey for a young or cost controlled top-6 C that can play on the third-line, I make that move everytime. I can understand the argument that they should wait to see who is better between Nemec and Casey (and also to let their trade values appreciate) before making that move but given this team's desperate need for center help I'd rather pull the trigger earlier.

As ZBC mentioned several times over the summer, teams are built around a top-9 now. Many cup winners had 3+ good lines on their way to a win and it wasn't just having a line become hot at the right time it was about having 6-8 good forwards that you could mix and match with a high emphasis on centers:

Florida last year: Barkov, Tkachuk, Reinhart, Bennett, Lundell, Verhaeghe, Luostarainen, Tarasenko, Rodriguez, and then a solid 4th line of Okposo/Stenlund/Lorentz/Lomberg/Cousins

Vegas 23: Marchessault, Eichel, Stone, Stephenson, Karlsson, Barbashev, Smith, Roy, Blueger, and then solid 4th line options of Howden/Carrier/Kolesar/Amadio

Colorado 22: MacKinnon, Rantanen, Landeskog, Nichushkin, Kadri, Burakovsky, Compher, Lehkonen, and 4th line options of Cogliano/Helm/O'Conner/Aube-Kubel/Newhook/Sturm

I'd say more than anything (not G related at least) the Devils need players that can line up at C, drive a line's possession, and improve the players around them. A Travis Zajac clone would be great right now even with the slow footspeed.

Defensively I think this team is set with a top-4 of Hughes, Nemec, Pesce, and Siegs for now and then penciling in Silayev in a few years.

 

[Poppy Whoa Sonnet]

They need to find some way to get Nemec into games, can't count on Kovacevic falling off or injuries necessarily happening anytime soon. He's waiver exempt so going back to the AHL might be what's best.

 

[devilsfan950003]

Okay, I don't know anything about Justin Dowling other than that he's old. Is he a solid center? Lazar is a better winger to me. Could Dowling be the answer on this fourth line? I originally thought Bowers would be called up first. He would add some speed to the fourth line.

 

[My3Sons]

would love to know how much the team actually makes off concessions every game

Last season the alleged average attendance was 16.3k in round numbers. Let's scale that back to 16k even to make this easy. They probably get on average about $25 per head in concessions. Some spend nothing but plenty spend well north of that with beer and food. My guess is that my estimate is conservative. That would total about $400k per game. Figure they spend something less than half that to get the food and beer to the customers. So that leaves about $200k to $250k per game on beer and food profit? Over 41 games that's approximately $10,250,000. That's not chump change but it's also not paying much more than Dougie's salary. I'm guessing they made more but that's possibly a baseline.

 

[Whaddagoal]

Thought exercise. If Kova stays so successful here, what would be the reason to not try to re-up him on a team friendly deal?

I know our pipeline is stacked, but let's say we are winning nicely with him forging a role that undeniably part of the key success. I hate to lose nice things, that's how you build a good team too. You find unexpected gems that become core of the team.

Is it that we would expect him to be priced out based on such a successful year? Or we just have so much faith in the pipeline being even better?

Realistically I get that Kovacevic may not carry this forward all year, but what if he does?

 

[Ripshot 43]

Thought exercise. If Kova stays so successful here, what would be the reason to not try to re-up him on a team friendly deal?

I know our pipeline is stacked, but let's say we are winning nicely with him forging a role that undeniably part of the key success. I hate to lose nice things, that's how you build a good team too. You find unexpected gems that become core of the team.

Is it that we would expect him to be priced out based on such a successful year? Or we just have so much faith in the pipeline being even better?

Realistically I get that Kovacevic may not carry this forward all year, but what if he does?

No reason not to try but it really does become a numbers game for roster spots and Cap space.

Hughes, Nemec, Pesce, Siegenthaler, Hamilton, Dillon are all under contract or team control for next year. Cant pay Kovacevic much more than league minimum. If he has a full season of playing like a low points defensive defencemen, I always find those guys to be underrated and worth filling out a roster with, so I would love to figure out a way to keep him. I think that involves the much talked about moving of Hamilton or a higher end prospect.

 

[Bleedred]

Okay, I don't know anything about Justin Dowling other than that he's old. Is he a solid center? Lazar is a better winger to me. Could Dowling be the answer on this fourth line? I originally thought Bowers would be called up first. He would add some speed to the fourth line.

I watched the post practice interview with him yesterday and didn't know who he was at first. I was like ''Who is this new guy? I don't remember seeing him before. He's definitely no kid, that's for sure''.