GDT: The Blue Note @ Your NJ Devils, 1/5/2023

[NJDevs26]

The goaltending might be the death knell this year.

If Lindy is really feeling the heat he's gonna lean on Vitek.

I really don't wanna find out if he'll hesitate to throw Blackwood into a random game like he did on Sunday, because it probably means that we're on a long losing streak if he does. He pulled that shit the very next game after a win. Not sure he does that if it's a loss, unless Vitek gets blown up in the loss.

I was kind of paranoid that if he did play Vitek tonight, that he'd then throw Blackwood in on Saturday assuming this isn't an actual long-term injury so I was glad to see Schmid but yeah looks like playing for a bad Utica team screwed him up. At least now there's less of a chance he'll screw around on Saturday with pressure to end the home losing streak but I wouldn't put it at 0% he actually jumps the shark and plays Blackwood.

 

[DerekDevils30]

Sounds like Haula is staying with Hughes

 

[britdevil]

What good is possession Lindy, if the man can't do anything with it?

I'll let you in on a secret man, Jack is a superstar. He doesn't need Haula to produce or gain possession.

How about, oh I don't know, trying to capitalise on that superstar ability and INCREASE his and others production?

 

[Devs3cups]

As we've seen a ton of times, we can play 59:00 of perfect defensive hockey and then pack four or five good breakdowns into a change that sink us.

Yup and if that scenario happens I wager we had more good chances than the other team.

If we end up losing that game after 59:00 of perfect defensive hockey, it’s most likely because the opposing goalie was better than ours and it’s certainly not evidence that we played a bad game.

 

[SteveCangialosi123]

That’s a bullshit quote by Lindy about Mercer. It hurt not getting a shot off in that situation, but the idea that that was a turning point is ridiculous. Just as big of a missed opportunity was the 3 on 1 where Nico elected to pass and missed what would’ve been a tap in to go up 2.

Hamilton and Siegenthaler sucking ass is why the game was lost, not one missed breakaway. That, and not finishing a multitude of chances.

 

[Eggtimer]

They were the better team in the third also. They didn’t get enough from Schmid and Binnington got every bounce. NJ wins that game most nights even with Schmid’s performance.

This is true. We have up 4 high quality chances but those chances were glorious ones where I don’t think any goalie in the league stops all 4 . Maybe 1 , slight chance an elite guy stops 2 . It’s what makes it so frustrating . We outplay the other team but their guys finish their chances and we flubbed ours. Their goalie made the saves and ours didn’t.
It sucks . I put more blame on our inability to finish than I do the goaltending tonight.
Our overall rate am defence was good as we didn’t give up much volume of shots or chances but the chances we did give up, 99% of the time end up as goals.

 

[billingtons ghost]

We never should've sent Akira back down.

It messed up his flow and the struggles he had down there returned with him.

Only saving grace is that the Canes all lost in Regulation.

Hopefully the scores stand up with Vegas and Nashville so the Isles and Pens lose.


God, I hate having to depend on other teams.....smh.

Dude we were just a buzz saw in front of him and he knew it and had confidence. When our paint started chipping a bit, he started struggling before we sent him down. Even Vitek has looked shaky recently when it's not a really shitty team like Detroit shooting the puck.

 

[Bleedred]

I was kind of paranoid that if he did play Vitek tonight, that he'd then throw Blackwood in on Saturday assuming this isn't an actual long-term injury.

I'm giving up on trying to predict what goalie he throws in there. I thought we were DONE with Blackwood getting random starts after the Boston massacre and that we wouldn't see him any earlier than this back to back set. We were not, he played literally 3 games later and 1 game before the back to back.

If he starts leaning on Vitek heavily, I'm gonna start thinking he's doing it out of desperation for his job.

Or Blackwood has yet another clunker and this time he's not gonna be as quick to throw him back in there.

 

[Killing Joke]

Winning the game is a low bar

Being happy about a single win against a bad team is low bar. Especially when it’s saying eh who cares about tonight’s loss because they won last night, like they aren’t about to be leap frogged and be sent to 5th in the metro if they don’t get their shit together.

Some of you have your heads in the clouds like our head coach and gm.

Get haula off jacks wing. Haula in the bottom 6 would make us deeper and better.

 

[billingtons ghost]

Yup and if that scenario happens I wager we had more good chances than the other team.

If we end up losing that game after 59:00 of perfect defensive hockey, it’s most likely because the opposing goalie was better than ours and it’s certainly not evidence that we played a bad game.

No it's just evidence that all goals are outliers and not predictable and if you give almost any team not named Detroit a shooters chance, they CAN and sometimes do score goals...

And right now unless you're one of the two guys who are manufacturing all of their luck, or unless you show up in the exact right spot and Jack finds you and your name is Bratt or Hamilton or maybe Tatar...we just aren't going to score.

 

[britdevil]

Sounds like Haula is staying with Hughes

Sounds like our offensive game plan is get the puck to Jack Hughes.

Which isn't terrible thinking, Jack is that kind of player. But it's an active detriment if the others guys on his line can't do shit to help.

 

[Jersey Fan 12]

Sounds like Haula is staying with Hughes

Haula is the de facto center when he is playing with Hughes, leaving Jack to roam and stick handle and do all the creative plays while he does the heavy lifting and adult jobs like defending, protecting the slot or working in heavy areas.

 

[Bleedred]

After that explanation from Ruff, Haula at this point is the ultimate ammo for ''Possession means nothing! Scoring is what matters! Who cares about winning the possession?''.

His hands are done. This is like the end of Cammalleri and Ryder's goal scoring days, where they had similar numbers over a 40 game stretch

I wouldn't be surprised if he gets a bunch of fluky market correction goals off his foot or body between now and the end of the season. Goals that he didn't actually have to shoot on.

 

[ZachaFlockaFlame]

I dont think its the isolated one loss that people are freaking about today.

How many of these losses where they played incredible are we allowed before pants shitting is OK?

To tell you the truth, playing incredible and losing is the actual cause for my pants shitting.

I half mock the xGF and Deserve to Win because it's almost impossible to do what this team does.

I would love to see what their "Deserved to Win" record should be for the season.

First post: It being in the GDT probably has it more heated than usual so that's a fair point.

Second post: I think it's allowed, I'm just saying understand the game situation/pacing. The Devils clearly need a finisher, did this game tell you that specifically? We've known they needed a finisher all the way back in the summer is my overall point.

 

[Eggtimer]

I'm glad I'm not the only one that thought the Barbashev goal was shit.

It was a good shot, the guy is a good shooter, but these are shots that are hitting goalies more than they aren't. It wasn't a terrible goal, but it was a stoppable goal.

And the third goal was just nasty. Deflated the team for probably 5-8 minutes or however long it was between then and when we got the power play with the 5 on 3. It deflated the building too.

The goals against killed our momentum and it was clearly visible. You could see it where it took us a few shifts to,collect ourselves and get back to our game.
The biggest turning point was Mercer missing his breakaway and them scorig shortly after.
That missed chance essentially lost us the game. We score there and we gaina ton of momentum and change how the Blues have to play .
That was a major blow to try to overcome.

 

[glenwo2]

Dude we were just a buzz saw in front of him and he knew it and had confidence. When our paint started chipping a bit, he started struggling before we sent him down. Even Vitek has looked shaky recently when it's not a really shitty team like Detroit shooting the puck.

Started struggling?

Somehow, I don't recall that happening.

I do recall him being sent down so that the "lord and savior"(pffft!) takes his place.

(and he got "hurt" again...*wink* *wink*)

 

[ZachaFlockaFlame]

That’s a bullshit quote by Lindy about Mercer. It hurt not getting a shot off in that situation, but the idea that that was a turning point is ridiculous. Just as big of a missed opportunity was the 3 on 1 where Nico elected to pass and missed what would’ve been a tap in to go up 2.

Hamilton and Siegenthaler sucking ass is why the game was lost, not one missed breakaway. That, and not finishing a multitude of chances.

Yeah I said it in the GDT but that's complete horseshit from Lindy to do that to Mercer in the press. The kid's having a tough year and saying that just probably crashed his confidence. Maybe if Schmid could've made a singular tough save tonight, Bahl not spinning like a top on the Saad goal or that top pairing being complete ass water would be the actual causes for tonight.

 

[billingtons ghost]

I'm giving up on trying to predict what goalie he throws in there. I thought we were DONE with Blackwood getting random starts after the Boston massacre and that we wouldn't see him any earlier than this back to back set. We were not, he played literally 3 games later and 1 game before the back to back.

If he starts leaning on Vitek heavily, I'm gonna start thinking he's doing it out of desperation for his job.

Or Blackwood has yet another clunker and this time he's not gonna be as quick to throw him back in there.

I can't imagine him playing VV in back to backs, and I don't know how bad Blackwood has to be to get waived, but he might be capable.

Our only hope is trading for a contract dump reclamation project at this point.

And to be clear, we haven't been outgoalied allot during this stretch. We've seen Raanta and others be just plain gross.

 

[ZachaFlockaFlame]

Haula is the de facto center when he is playing with Hughes, leaving Jack to roam and stick handle and do all the creative plays while he does the heavy lifting and adult jobs like defending, protecting the slot or working in heavy areas.

Cool, it still doesn't give him an excuse in the offensive zone to look like a blind moron.

 

[SteveCangialosi123]

This is pretty rich with Miles Wood bringing absolutely nothing most nights as well as Boqvist and McLoad just taking up space. Also Haula with 0 goals playing with a near top 10 forward in the league. Selective accountability.

 

[Bleedred]

I can't imagine him playing VV in back to backs, and I don't know how bad Blackwood has to be to get waived, but he might be capable.

Our only hope is trading for a contract dump reclamation project at this point.

And to be clear, we haven't been outgoalied allot during this stretch. We've seen Raanta and others be just plain gross.

I agree that this is probably the first game in a couple weeks where we've been ''Goalied'', outside of the second Bruins game. And we still scored 3 goals on fewer than 40 shots. I mean, I guess we were goalied about as much in the first Bruins game as we were this game, but we still scored 3 goals.

We won the game against Pittsburgh and we were absolutely not at all goalied against Carolina. They got screwed by Raanta in that game, only it didn't hurt them because they won anyway.

 

[NJDevs26]

Haula is the de facto center when he is playing with Hughes, leaving Jack to roam and stick handle and do all the creative plays while he does the heavy lifting and adult jobs like defending, protecting the slot or working in heavy areas.

How about the actual defensemen on the team doing the 'adult jobs'? McDavid and Crosby don't get third-line pluggers stapled onto their line because of backchecking.

 

[glenwo2]

This is pretty rich with Miles Wood bringing absolutely nothing most nights as well as Boqvist and McLoad just taking up space. Also Haula with 0 goals playing with a near top 10 forward in the league. Selective accountability.

Lindy is really starting to get on my nerves here with these Hot Takes of his.

It's like we have an HFBoards member as Head Coach or something.

 

[Jersey Fan 12]

How about the actual defensemen on the team doing the 'adult jobs'? McDavid and Crosby don't get third-line pluggers stapled onto their line just to let them roam free.

Eric Haula is a "third line plugger"? Wow.

 

[NJDevs26]

Yeah if you're gonna hold Zetterlund accountable, fine...when is it Boqvist's 'I've been invisible and haven't scored a point since November' turn? Or does he have the immunity idol just because he plays center?