Post-Game Talk: Devils lose 5-1 in an uninspired effort ("Goat" Poll)

[Camille the Eel]

Fix the goaltending. Find someone who can finish. Rise and repeat.

They were actually fine tonight. Not a bad performance at all.

I agree and particularly with the take that @StevenToddIves had last night that we got torched by a few moments when their dominance inside close to the net led to their scores.

 

[Camille the Eel]

The guy I feel for is McLeod - hope he’s okay. The only real KO in boxing terms I’ve seen in a hockey fight in several years. One of the worst I’ve ever seen. Repeat hope he’s okay long term. He leaned into a short right hook, took it on the chin. Hope the jaw wasn’t broken. McLeod is a spirited team player who shows up every night. Good Nova Scotia kid maybe?

 

[Bleedred]

Wrong thread.

 

[NjDevsRR]

Thanks - not trying to rag on Nico, but seeing his stat line confused me a bit. FWIW he was not credited with a blocked shot or hit last night either. An empty stat line outside the ugly -3.

Thats why I said taking hits. He was getting roughed up out there and wasn’t shying away from it.

 

[Buck Dancer]

The defensive system is definitely not helping but this team has way too many passengers and mediocre players on it. I mean, how many times can we write the same thing game after game.

I’d like to have a complete revamp of our bottom #6. They can’t generate any offense whatsoever and they’re not intimidating… so what do they actually bring is my question? Tatar is joke and I’d flip him at the deadline for just about anything. Zacha has 41 games to prove that he’s worth keeping around, Sharangovich isn’t anything special and should be a depth winger, at best. Kuokkanen is a dime a dozen player and Vesey is good on the PK but shouldn’t see a second of ice time if it isn’t on the 4th line.

Those guys I mentioned add up to half of our forwards and that’s straight up embarrassing. As for McLeod and Bastian, they’re perfect in their role as 4th liners but since we don’t have anyone else for certain roles our coaching staff likes to implement, they get overused, unfortunately.

 

[Camille the Eel]

Thats why I said taking hits. He was getting roughed up out there and wasn’t shying away from it.

Nico doesn’t shy from mixing it up, have to love that about him but I think he will need to learn to dish it out a little too in the long run, sort of like Patrice Bergeron did eventually. Only Bergeron is bigger than Nico.

 

[glenwo2]

If you fire Lindy you're not getting a permanent replacement mid-season, you're getting Recchi/Nas as interim for +40 games. Is that really what you want?

The season is lost, firing the coach doesn't change anything. They need to go eventually but there's no benefit to doing it now.

When we say that Ruff needs to be fired, we mean AFTER THE SEASON; not now.

I thought that was implied.

 

[Maine Fan]

Ruff needs to go for the following reasons:

• Team doesn't seem ready to start games
• Defensive scheme that doesn't work
• Baffling line up decisions and line combinations

I understand your point. Who replaced him? Nas, he is there now to help Ruff and he doesn't correct your points. They need an entire new coaching group IMO. Tough to find.

 

[MartyOwns]

I understand your point. Who replaced him? Nas, he is there now to help Ruff and he doesn't correct your points. They need an entire new coaching group IMO. Tough to find.

torts is built to coach a young team lacking structure. he would be my #1 priority this summer. nas and wrecki can f*** off too

 

[Buck Dancer]

torts is built to coach a young team lacking structure. he would be my #1 priority this summer. nas and wrecki can f*** off too

I would love a hard ass coach like Torts. He would whoop some asses into check, that’s for damn sure and we need that type of energy on the bench instead of a guy who looks half asleep.

Nico Hischier would elevate his game under someone like Torts, I’m 100% certain of that because that’s exactly the type of player Torts wants as a leader.

 

[guitarguyvic]

I would love a hard ass coach like Torts. He would whoop some asses into check, that’s for damn sure and we need that type of energy on the bench instead of a guy who looks half asleep.

Nico Hischier would elevate his game under someone like Torts, I’m 100% certain of that because that’s exactly the type of player Torts wants as a leader.

Yeah but he’ll be run out of town and hated by players and fans alike within a couple of years. Not even close to a long term solution.

 

[JimEIV]

torts is built to coach a young team lacking structure. he would be my #1 priority this summer. nas and wrecki can f*** off too

How long do you give Tortorella before he wears out his welcome?

I don't think he's a particularly good X and O's kind of coach and generally expects his players to run through walls... similar to the wrong Sutter we had in the past. I think Tortorella is a lot like Hynes in many ways.

 

[britdevil]

I understand your point. Who replaced him? Nas, he is there now to help Ruff and he doesn't correct your points. They need an entire new coaching group IMO. Tough to find.

Fitz in shambles, desperately contacting his old Pittsburgh buddies asking if they need a job.

 

[MartyOwns]

Yeah but he’ll be run out of town and hated by players and fans alike within a couple of years. Not even close to a long term solution.

there’s no such thing as a long term coaching solution…guys like sullivan are the exceptions that prove the rule. if you guys want grit, shot blocking, effort, accountability, making your goalie look better than he is, etc etc, torts is the answer. i can’t stand the guy but his record speaks for itself.

 

[Buck Dancer]

there’s no such thing as a long term coaching solution…guys like sullivan are the exceptions that prove the rule. if you guys want grit, shot blocking, effort, accountability, making your goalie look better than he is, etc etc, torts is the answer. i can’t stand the guy but his record speaks for itself.

Again, you are right. The lifespan of a coach is what in general, 3 years? We need to mold these kids the right way and what Torts would bring is accountability and a never die mentality.

I’ll definitely take what he brings to the table over what Ruff has to offer and let’s be real here, can the X’s and O’s be more messed up with Torts, when Ruff and his crew are out to lunch with their defensive system? That would be hard to imagine because I can guarantee you that you would never see 2 dmen behind our net, leaving the slot wide open all the time and our damn wingers would be covering their respective points.

 

[captainscott]

This team needs to be more fierce, proud and relentless on the ice. But it's tough with this defenseless little babies.

geersten should be in the lineup

 

[NjDevsRR]

The notion that Torts quickly outstays his welcome is laughable and a false narrative. He has coached three different teams at least 5 years which is a long lifecycle for a coach. Vancouver was the only outlier.

Tampa: 6 seasons
Rangers: 5 seasons
Vancouver: 1 season
Columbus: 6 seasons

 

[captainscott]

weeee! half way point of the season

ridiculous and we are so far done.. this is bullshit as a fansbase they should be calling for heads to roll.... problem is nobody cares about the devils so they can just fly under the radar. had a great off season and season is derailed. sorry but doing nothing shows the fans they are content with being bad... interim coach Nass. and see what happens .... the team will still lose because they are poorly constructed which is on Fitz.. i expect some guys to be traded.. bratt, hughes, nico, bastian.... hamilton, siegenthaler, graves... are the building blocks to this team... including any prospects in the minors not named luke hughes. all cards should be on the table to get a number 1 goalie ... im ok with dealing about any player or prospect for a goalie.

 

[captainscott]

The notion that Torts quickly outstays his welcome is laughable and a false narrative. He has coached three different teams at least 5 years which is a long lifecycle for a coach. Vancouver was the only outlier.

Tampa: 6 seasons
Rangers: 5 seasons
Vancouver: 1 season
Columbus: 6 seasons

thanks for clarifying.. i think torts is the perfect guy for this team.. he is a proven winner and brings an attitude this team so desperately needs... but first things first we need at least one goalie maybe 2

 

[SJinNewJersey]

I understand your point. Who replaced him? Nas, he is there now to help Ruff and he doesn't correct your points. They need an entire new coaching group IMO. Tough to find.

See if Dineen wants as interim until end of season.

 

[My3Sons]

ridiculous and we are so far done.. this is bullshit as a fansbase they should be calling for heads to roll.... problem is nobody cares about the devils so they can just fly under the radar. had a great off season and season is derailed. sorry but doing nothing shows the fans they are content with being bad... interim coach Nass. and see what happens .... the team will still lose because they are poorly constructed which is on Fitz.. i expect some guys to be traded.. bratt, hughes, nico, bastian.... hamilton, siegenthaler, graves... are the building blocks to this team... including any prospects in the minors not named luke hughes. all cards should be on the table to get a number 1 goalie ... im ok with dealing about any player or prospect for a goalie.

I think you are overstating what Fitz did to construct the team. He reshaped the defense to a solid degree but I don't think that's done yet. I don't see Smith as a Fitz type of defender but he's still there. Up front, he didn't draft anyone except Mercer. He's dabbled at the edges and that's been somewhat meh, but he got Jack to sign a long team friendly deal and we can see how he handles Bratt this offseason. Fitz hasn't been GM that long. I cannot imagine he doesn't see what we see. We will have some idea as the last RFA deals come up for a number of players.

 

[guitarguyvic]

The notion that Torts quickly outstays his welcome is laughable and a false narrative. He has coached three different teams at least 5 years which is a long lifecycle for a coach. Vancouver was the only outlier.

Tampa: 6 seasons
Rangers: 5 seasons
Vancouver: 1 season
Columbus: 6 seasons

True but Vancouver is the closest of all those teams to what we are and the kind of players we have. So…

 

[OmNomNom]

See if Dineen wants as interim until end of season.

if we interim him and we choose not to make him full time, won't it be awkward?

assuming we snubbed him of the job, i assume he'd leave the org. part of me wants to keep him in utica to kick ass down there

 

[SJinNewJersey]

if we interim him and we choose not to make him full time, won't it be awkward?

assuming we snubbed him of the job, i assume he'd leave the org. part of me wants to keep him in utica to kick ass down there

That's why you ask him if he wants it. Going in he knows it's only until the end of the season, then he goes back down.

 

[NjDevsRR]

True but Vancouver is the closest of all those teams to what we are and the kind of players we have. So…

That was a veteran heavy team. So…