GDT: We're Here: Your New Jersey Devils @ Philadelphia Flyers, 7 PM, ESPN+/Hulu

[Whaddagoal]

Hockey is a game that is part skill and part luck, too.

The thing is though that whenever he was on the ice, the ice tilted in the Devils favor more often than not.

People like to call Jack Hughes a "game-changer" but I think Bratt may be the low-key "game-changer" here.

He was fine, i'm just saying he was still in preseason form but the stats looked a bit better than I thought his true play was, anyway only 1 game. we all know bratt.

 

[Captain3rdLine]

nobody is gonna convince me that they

…?

 

[captainscott12]

what? WHAT?

Like, literally WHAT?!

How do I even respond to someone who says something like that after that game?

yeah Bratt was

…?

I'm glitching over here

 

[Triumph]

Door's open for Vanecek after that performance. If Nico isn't in, I'd like to see Bratt start with Hughes, it unbalances the lines but that's fine - Bratt and Hughes did good work in this game but it was mostly with the team down by several goals.

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

team had 30 shot attempts when Bratt was on the ice for ~13 minutes at ES.

"Bratt was invisible"

LOL someone actually said that!!

 

[billingtons ghost]

what? WHAT?

Like, literally WHAT?!

How do I even respond to someone who says something like that after that game?

Did you see him at all in the first two periods? He truly looked like he was still holding out. I'm a huge Jesper Bratt fan, but even Ferraro said that he was doing nothing.

Like the rest of the team, he had shots from 60 feet out. These guys simply do not go to the middle of the ice. You are counting numbers of shots but there wasn't anything truly dangerous all night long from our forwards, and they were almost all single shot attempts.

I can see if you just look at numbers and don't watch the game, then you probably get an idea that we played well tonight. The whole team was pretty abysmal against a Flyers team that is beginning to do its Tortorella thing.

Despite them being absolute dogshit talentwise, they might even get ahead of us in the standings if we don't fire Lindy.

 

[JimEIV]

that's actually creepy.....like cult creepy

It really is.

 

[TrufleShufle]

…?

"didn't have fun, and at the end of the day, that's all that matters" Not sure why that part got deleted.

 

[Captain3rdLine]

yeah Bratt was

I'm glitching over here

Were you gonna say something?

 

[Cheddabombs]

I only blame Blackwood for the first two goals to be honest. You just can't give up that bad of a rebound from a shot basically at the point or let in a shot from the top of the circle on a 1 on 1 rush.

But more than the goals itself the timing kills us. Get our first goal of the year early on, the team looking okay, then bam a shitty goal against. For much of the team I'm sure in the back of their heads they thought it's this same old song and dance again.

And then even though I don't blame Blackwood for the 3rd goal, it's tough timing to let in 2 in under 30 seconds. Especially after the stinker he just let in. That has to be so deflating. Not to absolve the rest of the team for looking like shit, which they did for most of the game.

 

[captainscott12]

Smith is a bum. Isn’t even a better skater than Geersten. The only summer addition I have a problem with. Like what the others bring but he is a waste of a roster spot and shouldn’t be in the NHL anymore IMO from what I’ve seen so far tonight and in preseason.

i was ok bringing him in because you get injuries..and he can play in the league... but we have better options

 

[guitarguyvic]

and what position affects these advanced stats the most?

you are SO close!! almost there!

Close to what?
I hate Blackwood. I think he's a crap player at this point, and to boot, his character is questionable too. I have no f***ing idea why he's even on this team.

But the obsession with ignoring how awful the skaters are with the puck in front of the goalie is just getting downright absurd. There can be no other explanation other than that it's copium for people who want to believe that we are simply one goalie fix away from being a respectable team.

 

[Eggtimer]

Keep in mind this Flyers team is absolutely horrible, what the hell is going to happen when we play a team who’s best forward isn’t Travis Konecny

This is what scares me too.
Im watching Flames vs Avs. It’s like watching a game with two teams from a different league…
We need to pick it up or we are going to be buried in the basemeJT of the standings before we know it.

 

[JimEIV]

I only blame Blackwood for the first two goals to be honest..

Nah....the second goal was horrific defense.

 

[DerekDevils30]

Door's open for Vanecek after that performance. If Nico isn't in, I'd like to see Bratt start with Hughes, it unbalances the lines but that's fine - Bratt and Hughes did good work in this game but it was mostly with the team down by several goals.

Even if Hischier is back, I might go with Hughes and Bratt together. I think a Hischier-Mercer combo could do well together along the boards and in tight.

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

Close to what?
I hate Blackwood. I think he's a crap player at this point, and to boot, his character is questionable too. I have no f***ing idea why he's even on this team.

But the obsession with ignoring how awful the skaters are with the puck in front of the goalie is just getting downright absurd. There can be no other explanation other than that it's copium for people who want to believe that we are simply one goalie fix away from being a respectable team.

if the Devils had a ~.910 goalie, they would 100% absolutely be a "respectable" team. I can say that unequivocally.

 

[Devils090]

This is what scares me too.
Im watching Flames vs Avs. It’s like watching a game with two teams from a different league…
We need to pick it up or we are going to be buried in the basemeJT of the standings before we know it.

Yup, watching elite teams like them is truly disheartening after watching our dogshit brand of hockey

 

[Whaddagoal]

piss off.. lol I'm staying toxic

dude way too generous.... the whole 4th line stunk.. graves was a goddam train wreck... smith is not a good NHL regular.. he is 7th guy... serviceable at the best.. no point in bringing in mango... just another undersized dude we got that guy. and plenty of them.... agree like to see zetterlund grind it out there..
its one game... but i think we are all freaking out because we saw this movie last year... played mildly better than our opponent and basically got blown out..special teams and goaltending were sub par again

Yeah, i'm just trying to be optimistic on the grading.

The tape is definitely replaying, and we have a bunch of roster changes and we churn out the same specialty. Either outplay but can't score on, or our goalie gives up key goals at key moments, and we play catchup until the buzzer. Look mildly better than the opposition but lose still. Its our NJD specialty, I wonder what Palat will say after this game, lol.

 

[Captain3rdLine]

Nah....the second goal was horrific defense.

As someone who is usually a big defender of the goalies and what they realistically should save that was one that Blackwood should’ve saved.

 

[Bleedred]

I still can't for the life of me understand why if Vanecek is playing our home opener, he can't also play our season two nights earlier.

That's just weird.

It's not 1993 and we don't need to split the goalies and rotate them every game like Terreri and Brodeur. Terreri was still good enough in 1993-1994 that it didn't hurt us to swap him and Brodeur every other game.

If Vanecek sucks well..... If Vanecek sucks then you give him rope. We've given the shit head enough rope already by not exiling him to begin with, AND by actually letting him start the season opener after he wasn't the better goalie in preseason, nor the last two regular seasons.

I'm telling you and this time I'm for real, they won't f*** around with Ruff. His replacement is already on the bench. It's just a question of how long they'll let him go. The last GM tried to Frankenstein his head coach and keep him alive with machines for about 6 weeks before finally saying enough is enough. And after another 6 weeks he was out the door.

 

[TrufleShufle]

Nah....the second goal was horrific defense.

Second goal was a perfect microcosm of this whole debate. "Yea, I screwed up but if you just..." Both Blackwood and the D could say that and it would hold water.

 

[guitarguyvic]

if the Devils had a ~.910 goalie, they would 100% absolutely be a "respectable". I can say that unequivocally.

The problem here is that you're assuming a goalie can come in here and get .910 save percentage despite having a tire fire of zone blowers and opposing shooters with all the time in the world in front of him.

 

[Bleedred]

Second goal was a perfect microcosm of this whole debate. "Yea, I screwed up but if you just..." Both Blackwood and the D could say that and it would hold water.

That's fair, It wasn't a terrible goal, but it was one you could have used a save on, especially after a pretty unforgivable first goal allowed.

 

[Guadana]

Hockey is a game that is part skill and part luck, too.

The thing is though that whenever he was on the ice, the ice tilted in the Devils favor more often than not.

People like to call Jack Hughes a "game-changer" but I think Bratt may be the low-key "game-changer" here.

If they want to be game changers, they should be better in first two periods. Bratt was very invinsible. He made assists on Holtz, but that goal was on Holtz and on Hart. Bratt starteed to play in third period and it benefits. But for "game-changing" it was too late.
Hughes trying a lot, didn`t find his luck, did made some mistakes, sometimes trying to make best movement and everybody understand what he was actually was trying to do.
I would say we should pull away game changing duties from Bratt, and if he can just create goal chances for himself and for his partners once or twice, it`s enough. He is what he is - very good driver. Other players should doing their job too. Sharangovich was invisible in the first half. Started to play but lost two of his opportunities. He helped with second goal pretty much. But it was done.
Defects here and there, missing opportunities, goalkeeper didn`t keep us, game was lost. Hart kept flyers, they used their opportunities. May be they were not better possession team, but everybody should understand clearly why they won.

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

The problem here is that you're assuming a goalie can come in here and get .910 save percentage despite having a tire fire of zone blowers and opposing shooters with all the time in the world in front of him.

Again, this is not something that is exclusive to the Devils. You guys act like it is. Every team has multiple breakdowns throughout the game.