Prospect Info: New Jersey Devils Draft Simon Nemec, 2nd Overall

[Clam Jensen]

What the heck I love bader now (sorry @StevenToddIves)

 

[StevenToddIves]

What the heck I love bader now (sorry @StevenToddIves)

Bader liking a prospect who everyone thinks is a top prospect does not make him worthwhile. The only thing which could make Bader bearable is probably a three-year case of laryngitis.

 

[Japam]

Wrong thread

 

[NHL Fanatik]

Ignoring roster makeup, could Nemec hang in the NHL next seasons start?

 

[Clam Jensen]

Ignoring roster makeup, could Nemec hang in the NHL next seasons start?

Could he based on how he finished the season? Yes.

Will he? I don’t think so.

I don’t see them throwing him and Hughes out game 1 in October.

 

[vlady]

New edition of Simon's column

Stĺpček Šimona Nemca: Myslel som si, že mi dajú pár zápasov v NHL | Šport.sk

Marec a apríl sú moje mesiace, bol som v nich produktívny už vlani. Konečne sa mi začalo bodovo dariť, lebo hra bola dobrá aj predtým. Som na ľade ...

sport.aktuality.sk

Brief summary
- he enjoyed March and April, just like last year, these have been his best months of the season
- even he didn't expect to score 12 goals, but he said he did improve his shot over the summer and that he is much stronger in his upper body this year
- he thought he would get a couple of games in the NHL, but he doesn't take it tragically that it didn't happen
- he says straight up that if they get eliminated from the AHL playoffs, he would much rather go to the World Championships than just train with the Devils. He knows, however, that it's not his call and nobody talked to him about this.

 

[Devils731]

I think the Devils let him go to the World Championships if that is his preference. Allowing it shows a good partnership/relationship to the player.

 

[JimEIV]

I personally think playing hockey is better than any sort of training.

Edit:
I should add playing "competitive hockey" is better than any sort of training.

 

[R8Devs]

I think he probably would have gotten an NHL game in if the Devils clinched home-ice advantage sooner/Utica clinched playoffs earlier but Utica only clinched after the Devils regular season ended

Fitz said on the day Luke signed he'd like to get some guys from Utica at the end of the season but the only one who was called up was Akira.

 

[Hockey Sports Fan]

with the AHL regular season wrapping up i wanted to share my updated thoughts on the nemec vs jiricek debate, going over their seasons, talking about developmental progress ive seen, and looking at how things might wind up down the road. i usually mainly focus on undrafted prospects, so this was a fun project for me to evaluate progress over a number of years of watching them. hope everyone enjoys

Prospect Development: Jiricek and Nemec

Prospect Development: Jiricek and Nemec With how hotly contested the Jiricek vs Nemec debate ran last year, and with how inescapable it’ll be for New Jersey having been the team to choose one over the other, I made it a point to follow their D+1 seasons about as closely as I’ve ever followed ...

docs.google.com

Absolutely love the connection of Nemec scoring the goal that knocked Columbus’s AHL team out of playoff contention. That’s a hell of a tidbit. Also this write up was excellent, thank you!

 

[Triumph]

If Nemec is the 10th D on the depth chart, he should stay with the Devils. If they would plan to instead play Wotherspoon or Russo over him were it to come to that, he should go - but also the AHL's season isn't over, either.

 

[Xirik]

I personally think playing hockey is better than any sort of training.

Edit:
I should add playing "competitive hockey" is better than any sort of training.

Also helps build his leadership qualities qualities which is always nice.

 

[Devs3cups]

Simon with a +3 and 1 shot in Utica's playoff win in Game 1 against Laval.

 

[Xirik]

Simon with a +3 and 1 shot in Utica's playoff win in Game 1 against Laval.

Did Slafkovsky play for Laval?

Oh wait Montreal rushed him and got him injured.

 

[PizzaAndPucks]

I was shockedoke everyone else when we took Nemec but it's been so far so good with him. If we take Slafkovsky than we might not get Meier. Wright didn't have the best D+1 season either. Cooley would of been a great pick or Jiriceck but I'm not over the moon thinking they are going to be much better than Nemec. Nemec hopefully turns into a Heiskanen like Defensman while Luke Hughes turns into a Quinn Hughes/Makar like player.

 

[Xirik]

I was shockedoke everyone else when we took Nemec but it's been so far so good with him. If we take Slafkovsky than we might not get Meier. Wright didn't have the best D+1 season either. Cooley would of been a great pick or Jiriceck but I'm not over the moon thinking they are going to be much better than Nemec. Nemec hopefully turns into a Heiskanen like Defensman while Luke Hughes turns into a Quinn Hughes/Makar like player.

Or perhaps a Rafalski and Niedermayer?

 

[Guadana]

New edition of Simon's column

Stĺpček Šimona Nemca: Myslel som si, že mi dajú pár zápasov v NHL | Šport.sk

Marec a apríl sú moje mesiace, bol som v nich produktívny už vlani. Konečne sa mi začalo bodovo dariť, lebo hra bola dobrá aj predtým. Som na ľade ...

sport.aktuality.sk

Brief summary
- he enjoyed March and April, just like last year, these have been his best months of the season
- even he didn't expect to score 12 goals, but he said he did improve his shot over the summer and that he is much stronger in his upper body this year
- he thought he would get a couple of games in the NHL, but he doesn't take it tragically that it didn't happen
- he says straight up that if they get eliminated from the AHL playoffs, he would much rather go to the World Championships than just train with the Devils. He knows, however, that it's not his call and nobody talked to him about this.

I didn't know but its huge for me that second "E" miss in this sentence. Because its genitive case. The transition to the Latin alphabet and a lot of other things worked. very sorry.

 

[Jason MacIsaac]

Simon with a +3 and 1 shot in Utica's playoff win in Game 1 against Laval.

As I said in the other thread, not a great game from Nemec. Areas where he has been strong, he was good. Breaking the puck out into tight windows and making plays at he blueline. He coughed the puck up twice in the neutral zone and own end that led to great scoring chances, he got walked or very close to walked a couple times as well. I got the Adam Larsson vibe from him in his skating/urgency/pace last night.

 

[My3Sons]

As I said in the other thread, not a great game from Nemec. Areas where he has been strong, he was good. Breaking the puck out into tight windows and making plays at he blueline. He coughed the puck up twice in the neutral zone and own end that led to great scoring chances, he got walked or very close to walked a couple times as well. I got the Adam Larsson vibe from him in his skating/urgency/pace last night.

It’s a step up for him to play playoff hockey and he’s still a teenager. I’m sure the coaches noticed it if you did. I expect they will work with him on it and he will improve.

 

[Devs3cups]

As I said in the other thread, not a great game from Nemec. Areas where he has been strong, he was good. Breaking the puck out into tight windows and making plays at he blueline. He coughed the puck up twice in the neutral zone and own end that led to great scoring chances, he got walked or very close to walked a couple times as well. I got the Adam Larsson vibe from him in his skating/urgency/pace last night.

Thanks for the input! It’s to be expected from a young player at times, but I’m sure we all see Nemec’s first year as a very good step! From all accounts he’s improved a lot as the year has progressed! That’s all we need at his age.

 

[Unknown Caller]

As I said in the other thread, not a great game from Nemec. Areas where he has been strong, he was good. Breaking the puck out into tight windows and making plays at he blueline. He coughed the puck up twice in the neutral zone and own end that led to great scoring chances, he got walked or very close to walked a couple times as well. I got the Adam Larsson vibe from him in his skating/urgency/pace last night.

Larsson and Nemec aren't remotely similar in their production profiles or offensive capabilities, so the comparisons should start and end with the fact that they try to slow the game down and they aren't burners as skaters.

If you followed Nemec leading up to the draft, this is the way he plays. Even Fitz said "he plays the game like he's in a rocking chair" when they drafted him. He's just a very calm and calculated player. He'll learn the defensive side of things and he'll limit the turnovers over time with experience. He is 100 times more dynamic than Adam Larsson ever was and it's remotely close.

 

[Devs3cups]

Larsson and Nemec aren't remotely similar in their production profiles or offensive capabilities, so the comparisons should start and end with the fact that they try to slow the game down and they aren't burners as skaters.

If you followed Nemec leading up to the draft, this is the way he plays. Even Fitz said "he plays the game like he's in a rocking chair" when they drafted him. He's just a very calm and calculated player. He'll learn the defensive side of things and he'll limit the turnovers over time with experience. He is 100 times more dynamic than Adam Larsson ever was and it's remotely close.

Also, while Nemec isn’t the same type of skater as Luke, I still think he’s a very good skater from what I’ve seen in my viewings. Super poised and calculated with quite a good amount of speed, especially when he transitions or joins the rush.

 

[HughesCorporation]

Nemec seems strong on his skates. to me, the kid plays bigger than his size. i wanted cooley.. center or not, but im not disappointed in any way to get nemec. he will be solid

 

[Devs3cups]

Nemec seems strong on his skates. to me, the kid plays bigger than his size. i wanted cooley.. center or not, but im not disappointed in any way to get nemec. he will be solid

The fact the we ALSO have Luke is very good. These 2 will complement each other nicely and be fixtures on our blue line for years.

 

[Unknown Caller]

Nemec seems strong on his skates. to me, the kid plays bigger than his size. i wanted cooley.. center or not, but im not disappointed in any way to get nemec. he will be solid

I know it's a miniscule sample size, but just watching our team in one playoff game, it makes me more confident that we made the right pick with Nemec. Cooley looks great, but he was just incredibly redundant with what we already have.