NFT: NHL Thread: training camp less than a week away

I will refuse to sign up for ESPN+

In comment 15860717 pjcas18 said:

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In comment 15860699 Stu11 said: Quote: I've had a real rough go if it lately, I won't get into it. Just got home. It's bad enough the Yanks are rained out, but the Devils opener is on fucking ESPN +????? How the hell can you put a season opener on there? Brutal - there is a NHL Center Ice free preview if your provider carries it - though the Devils game may be blacked out for you (Bruins usually are here, but I don't care - I'm not a fan and we have NESN anyway).

No it's ESPN+ exclusive

A real softie. Then Mac return with a softie of his own. At least I think so as usual my ESPN+ stream was buffering as usual

In comment 15860699 Stu11 said:

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I've had a real rough go if it lately, I won't get into it. Just got home. It's bad enough the Yanks are rained out, but the Devils opener is on fucking ESPN +????? How the hell can you put a season opener on there?

I'm sorry to hear buddy, I hope everything gets better for you soon.

In comment 15860742 Stu11 said:

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A real softie. Then Mac return with a softie of his own. At least I think so as usual my ESPN+ stream was buffering as usual

Things just never change do they? The Devils take a lead and 23 second later give up the tying goal on yet another soft goal given up. All that is left is for the Devils to lose on a shorthanded goal in the final minute.

Who would want Bruce Cassidy anyway?

Philly is a top contender for the #1 overall pick, and they smoke us. typical Devils effort. Awful goaltending, can't finish. Basically game 83 of last season. Thanks Jay. I appreciate the kind sentiments.

In comment 15860868 Stu11 said:

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Philly is a top contender for the #1 overall pick, and they smoke us. typical Devils effort. Awful goaltending, can't finish. Basically game 83 of last season. Thanks Jay. I appreciate the kind sentiments.

As we discussed months ago the Devils will hang onto Ruff too long wasting another year of Hughes, Hischier, Hamilton, etc careers. Then they will improve noticeably once Andrew Brunette takes over but they will be too far behind to catch up.

In comment 15860871 Jay on the Island said:

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In comment 15860868 Stu11 said: Quote: Philly is a top contender for the #1 overall pick, and they smoke us. typical Devils effort. Awful goaltending, can't finish. Basically game 83 of last season. Thanks Jay. I appreciate the kind sentiments. As we discussed months ago the Devils will hang onto Ruff too long wasting another year of Hughes, Hischier, Hamilton, etc careers. Then they will improve noticeably once Andrew Brunette takes over but they will be too far behind to catch up.

Exactly. We called it in June.

and forget hockey it's one game.

on the bright side if the Devils struggle it's a great draft to reward you for the struggle and it would mean Ruff is gone.

Is lottery luck lol. Thanks for the kind words PJ.

Ruff sucks, inexcusable to keep him.

Hiring him was stupid back in 2020. A boring retread who hasn't had success in forever.

Devils are/were in a perfect spot to take some risk and hire a younger guy instead of him.

I thought the St. Louis hire for MTL was weird but at least it's creative for a team that will probably suck for a couple years.

a weird hire?

Because he had no real coaching experience other than youth hockey? lol

I liked it because a: he played the game recently b: he was un-drafted and turned that into a wildly successful NHL career culminating with a HOF induction c: he won a cup and d: he's undersized and had to earn everything

I also think Gorton had been "grooming" him (offered him the Wolfpack HC job) and Hughes and he go back to the UVM days so it makes sense, but also agree it was a surprise when he was named interim HC.

they gave Hynes his 1st job and then promoted Naserdine as an interim. It was just a lousy hire period like you said. Ruff is an old retread who had his last success as an NHL HC a decade ago. Like Jay said we didn't need to go outside the box, there were 3 or 4 superb candidates Including Brunette who we hired as an asst. out there and they bring this schlub back. The Devils have this new beat writer Ryan Novozinsky for the Star Ledger. He is excellent. He really is holding the organization's feet to the fire. He hit Ruff hard last night in the postgame about Bratt only getting less than 13 minutes ES ice time when his CF was 30 and his CA was 4. I mean thats off the charts its like 88%. I'm sorry the talent is there. This is not a team that should finish 20+ points out of a playoff spot. He had Eric fucking Haula playing on the PP unit for christ sakes.

out 8 weeks for MTL.

Tough break, but it gets the kids some minutes.

Guhle (20), Harris (22), Xhekaj (21) all logged significant minutes on the blue line in game 1.

Guhle put up 22 min to lead the team, lol - it was his NHL debut - that is not going to hold up

In comment 15861123 pjcas18 said:

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out 8 weeks for MTL. Tough break, but it gets the kids some minutes. Guhle (20), Harris (22), Xhekaj (21) all logged significant minutes on the blue line in game 1. Guhle put up 22 min to lead the team, lol - it was his NHL debut - that is not going to hold up

PJ I didn't catch that game at all how did Slaf look?

In comment 15861126 Stu11 said:

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In comment 15861123 pjcas18 said: Quote: out 8 weeks for MTL. Tough break, but it gets the kids some minutes. Guhle (20), Harris (22), Xhekaj (21) all logged significant minutes on the blue line in game 1. Guhle put up 22 min to lead the team, lol - it was his NHL debut - that is not going to hold up PJ I didn't catch that game at all how did Slaf look?

Flashed a little, didn't stand out either way good or bad (which I view as a good thing).

In comment 15861107 pjcas18 said:

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a weird hire? Because he had no real coaching experience other than youth hockey? lol I liked it because a: he played the game recently b: he was un-drafted and turned that into a wildly successful NHL career culminating with a HOF induction c: he won a cup and d: he's undersized and had to earn everything I also think Gorton had been "grooming" him (offered him the Wolfpack HC job) and Hughes and he go back to the UVM days so it makes sense, but also agree it was a surprise when he was named interim HC.

Yeah, that's why. Out of the box.

I liked it too. If he totally sucks, who cares? It's not like you cost the team a Cup. And I suspect he is more willing to give young guys longer leashes than others.

In comment 15861121 Stu11 said:

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they gave Hynes his 1st job and then promoted Naserdine as an interim. It was just a lousy hire period like you said. Ruff is an old retread who had his last success as an NHL HC a decade ago. Like Jay said we didn't need to go outside the box, there were 3 or 4 superb candidates Including Brunette who we hired as an asst. out there and they bring this schlub back. The Devils have this new beat writer Ryan Novozinsky for the Star Ledger. He is excellent. He really is holding the organization's feet to the fire. He hit Ruff hard last night in the postgame about Bratt only getting less than 13 minutes ES ice time when his CF was 30 and his CA was 4. I mean thats off the charts its like 88%. I'm sorry the talent is there. This is not a team that should finish 20+ points out of a playoff spot. He had Eric fucking Haula playing on the PP unit for christ sakes.

Yeah, you could have gone a number of different directions than Ruff. I would like to see a little more creativity in NHL hiring, but there were a number of retreads that were far superior to Ruff.

Ruff was scapegoated by a lot of fans because of the D, I mean it's not like a D position coach defines a system - not even for zone exits/breakout or anything. At best I think maybe they control D pairs or ice time. - IOW the D was Quinn and Gorton's fault more than Ruff.

But I never thought he was a good coach and NFW I'd hire him for my team.

I felt like he was in NY to basically function as associate head coach for Quinn who had never been an NHL head coach before (and only briefly even an assistant coach) and could use the mentorship.

I agree, the blame falls on the HC.

I actually felt the same way when people would give Judge a ton of praise and then blame Garrett for sucking. The HC isn't ignoring half the game, lol.

Ruff wasn't to blame for the defense. But I don't know what he did well here.

In comment 15861211 BrettNYG10 said:

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I agree, the blame falls on the HC. I actually felt the same way when people would give Judge a ton of praise and then blame Garrett for sucking. The HC isn't ignoring half the game, lol. Ruff wasn't to blame for the defense. But I don't know what he did well here.

I 100% admit I don't know the role of the defense coach in the NHL. I believe the head coach defines the system (everything from breakout to neutral zone to forecheck schemes).

I think the PP coach comes up with the attack on the PP (though so many teams do the exact same thing lately it's hard to differentiate or identify what the PP coach even brings) but I could buy that.

Only thing I could come up with for the D coach is D pairings and TOI/line changes. but I'd love for someone to some day ask this question of someone who knows.

I remember watching something on MSG when Peter Laviolette was the Islanders Head Coach and they asked what he does during the game other than chew gum and look mad.

The show never gave a great answer, lol.

In comment 15861209 pjcas18 said:

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Ruff was scapegoated by a lot of fans because of the D, I mean it's not like a D position coach defines a system - not even for zone exits/breakout or anything. At best I think maybe they control D pairs or ice time. - IOW the D was Quinn and Gorton's fault more than Ruff. But I never thought he was a good coach and NFW I'd hire him for my team. I felt like he was in NY to basically function as associate head coach for Quinn who had never been an NHL head coach before (and only briefly even an assistant coach) and could use the mentorship.

I still can't believe that the Devils passed on Gallant for Ruff. Then after the Devils added more talent last season the team actually got worse somehow and they decided to keep Ruff despite Cassidy and Trotz being available. I was a big fan of Tom Fitzgerald as the GM but after that decision I believe that he belongs on the hot seat.

gave up 25 shots to DET.

In the FIRST PERIOD. lol.

with his first as a Blue jacket

Zac Jones has a rough game in Minnesota and immediately gets yanked from the lineup for the supremely useless Libor Hajek

In comment 15862005 Greg from LI said:

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Zac Jones has a rough game in Minnesota and immediately gets yanked from the lineup for the supremely useless Libor Hajek

Well you have to give Gallant credit for his patience - he gave Jones two whole games!

Palat Hischier Bratt
Tatar Hughes Mercer
Wood Haula Zetterlund
Sharangovich McLeod Holtz

Brendan Smith dressing once again over Bahl despite Smith having an absolutely awful first game. Holtz demoted to the 4th line after scoring in the previous game but Wood is moved up a line after throwing the entire team under the bus.

the siren.

Thank. God

James Nichols
@JamesNicholsNYI
·
1m
"Fire Lindy" chants in New Jersey. #NJDevils

In comment 15862822 pjcas18 said:

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James Nichols @JamesNicholsNYI · 1m "Fire Lindy" chants in New Jersey. #NJDevils

And they're only gonna get louder and louder

In comment 15862599 Jay on the Island said:

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Palat Hischier Bratt Tatar Hughes Mercer Wood Haula Zetterlund Sharangovich McLeod Holtz Brendan Smith dressing once again over Bahl despite Smith having an absolutely awful first game. Holtz demoted to the 4th line after scoring in the previous game but Wood is moved up a line after throwing the entire team under the bus.

Didn't see much of the game tonight, was mostly watching the end of Alabama then the Yanks. Holy shit balls did a blindfolded 4 year old could come up with those lines? Holtz and Sharengovich 4th liners? Jack a 2nd line C? Face palm.

What are your feelings on Tom Fitzgerald? I believe that it’s time for him to go as well. He hitched his future to Ruff and tried to blame injuries for their terrible record last season. Once again the goaltending appears to be an absolute mess for the 3rd year in a row. I hope that ownership quickly cleans house before the season is lost.

Devils in between Canadiens breaks.

Jack Hughes was the best player on the ice. he was absolutely robbed by Nedeljkovic at least twice.

I think they should fire Ruff and maybe Fitz and take a step back and re-tool before they waste more of Hughes. A lot of good pieces in place.

In comment 15863236 pjcas18 said:

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Devils in between Canadiens breaks. Jack Hughes was the best player on the ice. he was absolutely robbed by Nedeljkovic at least twice. I think they should fire Ruff and maybe Fitz and take a step back and re-tool before they waste more of Hughes. A lot of good pieces in place.

I agree, plus they have two great pieces in Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec coming up at some point this season. I like how Montreal is just playing so many young players at once instead of using veterans that won't be on the team in a year. Why Ruff plays Brendan Smith over Kevin Bahl and Michael McLeod and Nathan Bastian over Jesper Boqvist and Fabian Zetterlund is beyond me.

spot for a franchise to be in IMO.

A coach and GM trying to hold on to their jobs, prioritizing short-term wins over long-term benefits of the franchise.

I get it, they have no choice for the most part, coaches especially, pro sports is such a "win now" business, it's rare for a coach to have the autonomy and confidence to always "do the right thing" and GM's start out with longer rope, but it doesn't last and unless they've won a cup they feel the pressure pretty quickly too.

In comment 15866004 pjcas18 said:

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spot for a franchise to be in IMO. A coach and GM trying to hold on to their jobs, prioritizing short-term wins over long-term benefits of the franchise. I get it, they have no choice for the most part, coaches especially, pro sports is such a "win now" business, it's rare for a coach to have the autonomy and confidence to always "do the right thing" and GM's start out with longer rope, but it doesn't last and unless they've won a cup they feel the pressure pretty quickly too.

You're absolutely right, The Giants made the mistake of keeping Gettleman for another year and look at the mess he caused. Then at the deadline instead of trading away pieces like Engram, Bradberry etc. for more picks he was allowed to keep them in a sad, desperate attempt to win enough to keep his job.

In comment 15863206 Jay on the Island said:

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What are your feelings on Tom Fitzgerald? I believe that it’s time for him to go as well. He hitched his future to Ruff and tried to blame injuries for their terrible record last season. Once again the goaltending appears to be an absolute mess for the 3rd year in a row. I hope that ownership quickly cleans house before the season is lost.

Jay I'm very much in line with your thinking on Fitz. From a player acquisition standpoint till this off season I like what he did. This off season I don't think it was horrible but kind of meh. Don't love the Palat contract nor what he did with the goaltending. However you are 100% correct that he not only screwed the pooch not hiring Gallant and hiring Ruff then doubled down on keeping him this off season. If this thing continues to go south by December he needs to be shown the door with Ruff. I wonder if Marty gets a shot if Fitz is canned.

In comment 15866480 Stu11 said:

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Jay I'm very much in line with your thinking on Fitz. From a player acquisition standpoint till this off season I like what he did. This off season I don't think it was horrible but kind of meh. Don't love the Palat contract nor what he did with the goaltending. However you are 100% correct that he not only screwed the pooch not hiring Gallant and hiring Ruff then doubled down on keeping him this off season. If this thing continues to go south by December he needs to be shown the door with Ruff. I wonder if Marty gets a shot if Fitz is canned.

Marty is one of my favorite athletes of all time. I even began playing goalie in 5th grade because of him. With that said I do not think that would be an inspiring hire for the GM role. I would rather bring in a well respected up and coming type of exec for the GM job.

down 2-0 to the Pens on two Malkin goals, looked like a blowout coming.

Suzuki cuts the lead in half, then a TO and pulled goalie with 3 min left and Caufield ties it. Dach with the OT PP GW on a sweet pass from Monahan.

Habs 1st PP goal of the season.

I think the Habs will get blown out some this year. They have 3 D under 21, but they're going to be a fun team to watch

In comment 15868164 Jay on the Island said:

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In comment 15866480 Stu11 said: Quote: Jay I'm very much in line with your thinking on Fitz. From a player acquisition standpoint till this off season I like what he did. This off season I don't think it was horrible but kind of meh. Don't love the Palat contract nor what he did with the goaltending. However you are 100% correct that he not only screwed the pooch not hiring Gallant and hiring Ruff then doubled down on keeping him this off season. If this thing continues to go south by December he needs to be shown the door with Ruff. I wonder if Marty gets a shot if Fitz is canned. Marty is one of my favorite athletes of all time. I even began playing goalie in 5th grade because of him. With that said I do not think that would be an inspiring hire for the GM role. I would rather bring in a well respected up and coming type of exec for the GM job.

I agree. However there is a near mutiny among Devils fans at this point and I fear they'll look at it as a solid PR move to summon the glory days again. PJ knows this stunt all too well up in Montreal.

Brodeur be a bad hire?

I loved the way they built the Blues, just not sure how much was him.

In comment 15868531 pjcas18 said:

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Brodeur be a bad hire? I loved the way they built the Blues, just not sure how much was him.

IIRC he didn't do much there but who really knows how much of an impact an assistant GM has. The Blues have clearly done a great job without him so I wouldn't feel comfortable naming him the GM.

Since re-joining the Devils Brodeur has worked as an executive vice president for business development.

Stutzle #1, Raymond #2, Laf #3, Schneider #21, Guhle #15.

Way too early for this obviously, lol.


The Athletic - ( New Window )

In comment 15869374 BrettNYG10 said:

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Stutzle #1, Raymond #2, Laf #3, Schneider #21, Guhle #15. Way too early for this obviously, lol. The Athletic - ( New Window )

I cannot put into words how impressed i am with Guhle.

I knew he was good, I did not know how good - and well rounded.

*very early* but I don't remember a player improving so much from year 1 to year 2 as Caufield.

Speaking of Cole - his shot is obviously what gets the most attention, so watch this one second clip on twitter, I am so jealous in how he generates so much power from a simple wrist shot, the puck seems like its propelled out of a cannon.
link - ( New Window )

would be huge for the Rangers

In comment 15872665 Snablats said:

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would be huge for the Rangers

great news, the language I read said "at least" $4M - good for everyone and it's honestly not enough.

escrow (which is stupid, but agreed to) by the end of this season, then it will just be a $1M increase for next year.

but 2024-2025 would see a big bump in that case (probably $10M is my guess).

The NHL revenues were half a billion more than projected this past season. The players are getting hosed, but when they decided to keep getting paid during COVID this is the deal with the devil they made.