GDT: Hockey's Back! Devils @ Rangers, 7 PM, MSG & NHL Network

[NJDevs26]

Not enough talk about the pluses here.

Gely was impressive tonight. Really did a lot to help forget all that pregame agent ********. Good god his goal was a rocket.

Was impressed by Havlat tonight too.

It's always that way...the negatives get more overanalyzed, especially now when you're looking for who's going to make the team and start and who isn't.

Plus I'm still cranky over the Jet game, I really should turn it off again they were doing better when I wasn't watching

 

[liquid1988]

Boucher also seems like he is ready for a spot on the team. Picked up some nice passes and gave some nice passes, had some speed to him and good forechecking. I hope they give him a chance this year

 

[CKPLAYA]

That's part of the problem with Josefson, he WAS rushed. Playing in the NHL at 18, between that and his injuries he never really developed his game.

That said, when Ryder and Clowe were younger there was no cap and you could stick guys in the minors longer. Josefson can't go to the minors unless he's so bad nobody claims him (and someone would) and the Devils aren't in position to let him play through his issues too much longer.

Not so sure he would get claimed. But I think if they went that route even if went unclaimed he would be done here. There comes a time where both sides just need to say goodbye and I think we are getting close to that. The penalty at the end kind of sums him up.

 

[tycobb]

And Larsson gets beat more than most, or at least he did the last couple seasons.

Larsson was 5th on the team in SA20. If he gets beat more than most he would be giving up a lot more shots compare to his teammates.

The only reason Larsson stay in the Ahl last year was because the team's shooting % was a ridiculous 4.74% while he was on the ice.

His GF20 was his issue. He was last on D (.441) and that is with leading the D in OZFO%. That is very bad and Larsson was a very solid offensive player before he was drafted. Lou wanted him to find that part of his game.

Even if Larsson doesn't improve he has a long career as a 2nd or 3rd pairing defenseman (10+ years).

 

[Emperoreddy]

thought Larsen's mistake on that bizarre play was not taking the man. That's the only thing you can do in that situation. Get up under the guy and just take him out when he tries to play the bouncing puck.

Larsen looks like more of a grown up body. Like he's beefed up, been in the weight room, not so lanky. That's good.

In general, I loved the Devil's bounce tonight. They looked very different from their opening exhibition last year. This was clearly a weird lineup, but I also just loved the mix of youth and experience. Yeah the kids will make mistakes, but there's nothing like the young legs and the energy to leaven the loaf. Didn't Boucher look good on the move too.

Too early to tell but also they looked like they were playing a new system - pushing the puck more to the net - liked that too.

Encouraging game. Good to see hockey back on TV.

This is one of my biggest take aways and isn't being talked about much. It really seems like there have been adjustments made to how the team breaks out and plays offense and it seemed to be very effective.

 

[Devils Army]

Not so sure he would get claimed. But I think if they went that route even if went unclaimed he would be done here. There comes a time where both sides just need to say goodbye and I think we are getting close to that. The penalty at the end kind of sums him up.

Why is everyone so down on that penalty, that was a good play, 10 seconds left and a man driving to the net with a full head of steam. That's a tactical penalty. If anything thats a good play

 

[The 29th Pick]

yeah I think JJ would pass through waivers

 

[NJDevs26]

Why is everyone so down on that penalty, that was a good play, 10 seconds left and a man driving to the net with a full head of steam. That's a tactical penalty. If anything thats a good play

I mean a 6-on-4 isn't exactly ideal if they win the faceoff but if we win the faceoff (which we did) the game's pretty much over. Even so I'd rather take my chances with that then letting a guy get open in front of the net. Most players don't even bother making the 'correct' play in the final ten seconds of a game, it killed us in 2006 when Staal got open in front. If Lukowich tackles him and takes a penalty Game 2's over.

 

[BJD]

Why is everyone so down on that penalty, that was a good play, 10 seconds left and a man driving to the net with a full head of steam. That's a tactical penalty. If anything thats a good play

This. Not saying he had a good game or not but he nullified that play completely with 6 seconds remaining, it was a good penalty to take as it basically stopped any chance of them tieing it up

 

[tycobb]

That's part of the problem with Josefson, he WAS rushed. Playing in the NHL at 18, between that and his injuries he never really developed his game.

That said, when Ryder and Clowe were younger there was no cap and you could stick guys in the minors longer. Josefson can't go to the minors unless he's so bad nobody claims him (and someone would) and the Devils aren't in position to let him play through his issues too much longer.

I won't be surprised if Josefson clears waivers if Lou tries to send him down before rosters need to be set. Not sure if Lou does it since he doesn't really like 1 way contracts in the AHL.

 

[The 29th Pick]

Why is everyone so down on that penalty, that was a good play, 10 seconds left and a man driving to the net with a full head of steam. That's a tactical penalty. If anything thats a good play

I agree, Brad Lukowich doesnt !

 

[TheUnseenHand]

yeah I think JJ would pass through waivers

I doubt it. Not because of his play, but his draft position. Someone would take a chance based on that alone. Guys generally don't get drafted in the first round for nothing, and resurrecting a first round draft pick that fell out of favor with his team isn't unheard of. Definitely someone would take a shot.

 

[BenedictGomez]

well, it sounds like everyone is starting to come to the realization that Larsson belongs in figure skating, not hockey.

I've come to the realization you know little about ice hockey if you think you can make that determination regarding a 21 year old Defenseman playing in the NHL.

 

[schoenfeld]

larsson is a grown ass man and needs to start playing like one, he clearly sulked after the goal and that's unacceptable for a professional.

we get it, he misses larry, but after a while you need to get off the goddamned teet.

 

[CKPLAYA]

Why is everyone so down on that penalty, that was a good play, 10 seconds left and a man driving to the net with a full head of steam. That's a tactical penalty. If anything thats a good play

He was flatfooted. That was not a good penalty.

 

[Emperoreddy]

Henrique looks like he is ready to elevate his game to the next level. Looked really inspired tonight.

 

[TheUnseenHand]

larsson is a grown ass man and needs to start playing like one, he clearly sulked after the goal and that's unacceptable for a professional.

we get it, he misses larry, but after a while you need to get off the goddamned teet.

You would probably be the first one to call him out if he showed no emotion and just manned up for the next face off.

 

[tycobb]

I doubt it. Not because of his play, but his draft position. Someone would take a chance based on that alone. Guys generally don't get drafted in the first round for nothing, and resurrecting a first round draft pick that fell out of favor with his team isn't unheard of. Definitely someone would take a shot.

People said the same thing about Teddy. 1st round picks who don't produce in the first 100 games can get past waivers. Especially in the beginning of the season when they are hoping their own 1st round draft picks improve.

Yayo has the production numbers of an NHL enforcer. Late in the year when people have injuries he may get picked up, but I won't be so sure he gets picked up at the end of camp.

 

[Missionhockey]

I doubt it. Not because of his play, but his draft position. Someone would take a chance based on that alone. Guys generally don't get drafted in the first round for nothing, and resurrecting a first round draft pick that fell out of favor with his team isn't unheard of. Definitely someone would take a shot.

I seriously doubt that. There are a lot of former first round picks that don't make it and there are lots of Josefson's spread through out all the teams' systems.

 

[TheUnseenHand]

Henrique looks like he is ready to elevate his game to the next level. Looked really inspired tonight.

He just looked like Henrique to me. Henrique is what he is and always will be. I don't see him ever being a superstar. He's just a really solid player with a knack for scoring clutch goals. He's a core player with tons of leadership and the type of guy every team needs to become a champion. But he's not "the" guy offensively. I don't think he will ever be that kind of player. But that's fine. He brings an element to the table that is not easily replaced. I just don't see him breaking out for a huge offensive season. It will just be solid.

 

[manilaNJ]

That was really fun, sloppy as hell, but fun.
I think I laughed my way through 2/3 of that game. I lost it on Henrique's final goal.

Just some gut reactions I had after 1 pre season game :

Boucher and Severson look hungry. I like it. Maybe a bit overeager.
Boucher is further along than Severson, obviously. I'd still like to see him in Albany a little longer. I want him as confident as ever when he's taking shots on goalies like Lundqvist.
He looks good, though. He just seemed to pull back or over think it on his opportunities. But, on the plus side, he created opportunities for himself.

I'd honestly throw away any special teams play from this evening (and there was a lot of it) -- it was noted that they wouldn't have a lot of time to work on it prior to this game. The power play was a total jumble, no surprise there.
It was a nice surprise to see how aggressive the PK still looks, though.

I'm not swayed by any of the tryouts so far.

Elias with Havlat and Zubrus looked more disconnected than I thought it would. It looked a lot cleaner towards the end, but it seemed like there was come confusion as to where to put pucks. Especially if they got a cycle going.
For Havlat's sake, it might help his adjustment to the system with Clowe up there instead of Zubrus. At least a player he knows how to read a little bit.

I'm going to go in a different direction than what I've seen over the past page or so regarding Larsson. Him and Gelinas played 22+ minutes tonight, with a hefty share of special teams. It could have been a lot to ask to have them play 1st pairing right away.. but I think they settled in well enough. That's well over the heads of where they'll likely be playing come NHL season (even if this was a preseason lineup)

Henrique

The Rangers were a dumpster fire in the neutral zone, but even so, I liked how the Devils were attacking. Coming up ice quickly, having at least one player head directly to the net, opening up shooting lanes. The deflections galore. That's what has been said they were working on and I liked how it translated after 3 days of practice.

I'm going to wait a bit further into preseason to form an sort of opinion, gut reaction or not, on either Josefson or Zubrus.

All of this with a grain of salt, but yeah, that was a fun first day of Devils hockey.

 

[NJDevs26]

I seriously doubt that. There are a lot of former first round picks that don't make it and there are lots of Josefson's spread through out all the teams' systems.

Guys who've done 'less' in the NHL than Josefson/Larsson have been scooped up on waivers because other teams think they can salvage someone else's high pick. Remember that guy Carolina cut a couple years ago? Mid first-rounder and everyone was going ga-ga over us claiming him. A couple other teams did but he was so bad he eventually wound up back in Carolina. His name escapes me, that's how insignificant he was

Looked it up, it was Zach Boychuk lol...and he was a #14 overall pick a few years prior.

 

[TheUnseenHand]

I seriously doubt that. There are a lot of former first round picks that don't make it and there are lots of Josefson's spread through out all the teams' systems.

I don't disagree. But it's not like Josefson is a total bust. He's just not a top 6er, and that's what we all expect of him. Those Josefsons spread through other teams probably wouldn't make it through waivers either. Some might if they were total busts, but I don't think JJ is.

People said the same thing about Teddy. 1st round picks who don't produce in the first 100 games can get past waivers. Especially in the beginning of the season when they are hoping their own 1st round draft picks improve.

Yayo has the production numbers of an NHL enforcer. Late in the year when people have injuries he may get picked up, but I won't be so sure he gets picked up at the end of camp.

Tedenby is different. He is useless outside the top 6. He HAS to be there and HAS to score goals to be of any use. He can't play in the bottom 6 because he has no grit, no size, and needs talented linemates to be effective. And he could not play D at all. I mean, he was like High School level bad in the D zone. His offensive production just wasn't where it had to be to offset that. We did all overvalue him and I'm sure I was one of those who thought he wouldn't clear, but really he was pretty useless. Talented, but just never learned D. Josefson has qualities that could at least make him an effective bottom 6er.

 

[Bleedred]

Guys who've done 'less' in the NHL than Josefson/Larsson have been scooped up on waivers because other teams think they can salvage someone else's high pick. Remember that guy Carolina cut a couple years ago? Mid first-rounder and everyone was going ga-ga over us claiming him. A couple other teams did but he was so bad he eventually wound up back in Carolina. His name escapes me, that's how insignificant he was

Looked it up, it was Zach Boychuk lol...and he was a #14 overall pick a few years prior.

Zach Boychuk I believe.

Nevermind, you got him. laugh:

 

[devilsrock]

Henrique looks like he is ready to elevate his game to the next level. Looked really inspired tonight.

That whole line looked great. I hope Boucher makes the team he looks ready.