Prospect Info: Pavel Zacha

[Billdo]

Obviously hindsight is a bit silly at this point but if you knew after two years what each would be at this point, does anyone take Zacha over Werenski or Provorov? Interesting though, or I'm just sleep deprived.

 

[Emperoreddy]

Obviously hindsight is a bit silly at this point but if you knew after two years what each would be at this point, does anyone take Zacha over Werenski or Provorov? Interesting though, or I'm just sleep deprived.

This is a dead end debate this soon out of that draft.

Also any Rags and Flyers fans calling him a bust are clueless.

 

[Baemon Severson*]

Zacha will without a doubt be a top 6 player, maybe as soon as next year. He had a good rookie season considering this team was a damn mess

 

[kiwidevil]

There's no doubt in hindsight you wouldn't take Werenski every time in our position, but at the same time, these kids are young and they may flip those choices in the future.

Though, it is convenient that flyers fans keep bringing up Zacha vs Provorov without mentioning Werenski.

 

[ForeverJerseyGirl]

The Provorov question is, in my opinion, fair, because he was projected to go around the same spot as Zacha in the draft, and it was conceivable that the Devils would pick him. The Werenski question is, in my view, less fair and really purely driven by hindsight, because Werenski was not projected to go in the range where Zacha was picked and nobody (whether on here or in the scouting world) was saying the Devils should pick Werenski, and I'm sure that if the Devils had picked Werenski sixth overall the meltdown would've been nuclear, here and elsewhere.

Of course, given where the Devils are--with defense more than offense more of the question mark in terms of the organization's present and future--I'd obviously prefer Provorov or Werenski (although Werenski, to be brutally honest, was never really an option, so it is unfair to bring him up as a consideration). That being said, I'm still happy with Zacha and think we will continue to see him improve for us. Bottom line is I believe Zacha will be a valuable player for the Devils going forward, and Ray will clearly have to address the defense.

 

[Comparison Ford]

Hall-Zajac
Mojo-Hischier
Henrique-Zacha

Those LW/C combos would be great for our top 9. Really hoping Zacha can bring his consistency along with playing center. If he can solidify that center spot, that puts us in a great spot moving forward.

 

[JimEIV]

Hall-Zajac
Mojo-Hischier
Henrique-Zacha

Those LW/C combos would be great for our top 9. Really hoping Zacha can bring his consistency along with playing center. If he can solidify that center spot, that puts us in a great spot moving forward.

Add
Wood-Boyle

And I think you have the lineup set.

 

[Devils Dominion]

The Provorov question is, in my opinion, fair, because he was projected to go around the same spot as Zacha in the draft, and it was conceivable that the Devils would pick him. The Werenski question is, in my view, less fair and really purely driven by hindsight, because Werenski was not projected to go in the range where Zacha was picked and nobody (whether on here or in the scouting world) was saying the Devils should pick Werenski, and I'm sure that if the Devils had picked Werenski sixth overall the meltdown would've been nuclear, here and elsewhere.

Of course, given where the Devils are--with defense more than offense more of the question mark in terms of the organization's present and future--I'd obviously prefer Provorov or Werenski (although Werenski, to be brutally honest, was never really an option, so it is unfair to bring him up as a consideration). That being said, I'm still happy with Zacha and think we will continue to see him improve for us. Bottom line is I believe Zacha will be a valuable player for the Devils going forward, and Ray will clearly have to address the defense.

Good summary.

I was not high on Werenski, few NJD fans were.
*Castron was

It was either PZ, Ivan or Barzal for the most part.

Ivan has had a better start out of the gate but the other two have a ton of potential too.

PZ actually outplayed Ivan during the head to head games last season.

PZ was thinking to much last season.
The staff has to encourage him to just go out and play on instincts so talent and aggression will surface

I want to see him more involved around the puck next week as a start.

I'll bet he is physically stronger and faster already.

 

[SansaStark]

the idea that rags fans or any fans for that matter are calling him a bust is flat out deplorable.

speaking as objectively as possible, early in the year there almost literally wasn't a single devils game where he didn't stand out as one of the better players on the ice. Then later with the Josefson/Noesen line he was beasting and again was very noticeable.

so fine lets play that dirty game then

Guess what....I didn't really notice Prov when we played the flyers, nor did Konecny impress me that much. BOTH BUSTS

Buchnevich ...the dude was scratched a bunch, including playoff games. Looked alright but didn't impress particularly either. BUST

Who else? Skjei? Meh Severson put up similar points on a ridiculously worse D-core and team... Skjei only had 30ish points with that offense? BUST

Rags fans pumping up DeAngelo....guy is a flat out BUST

Vesey - BUST

Nolan Patrick - Surgery again? BUST

Linblom - not tearing up the NHL at 18? Had to play in Europe? Meh BUST!

 

[ForeverJerseyGirl]

Good summary.

I was not high on Werenski, few NJD fans were.
*Castron was

It was either PZ, Ivan or Barzal for the most part.

Ivan has had a better start out of the gate but the other two have a ton of potential too.

PZ actually outplayed Ivan during the head to head games last season.

PZ was thinking to much last season.
The staff has to encourage him to just go out and play on instincts so talent and aggression will surface

I want to see him more involved around the puck next week as a start.

I'll bet he is physically stronger and faster already.

I think these are especially important points with regard to Zacha's development. Zacha's hesitancy at times last season was definitely noticeable even as a fan, and I hope that he can gain more confidence heading into next year, because then he could trust more in his talents and be a bit more aggressive player. The coaching staff ideally could help instill this confidence in Zacha, getting him to stop doubting himself and trust more in his instincts.

With a year on the Devils under his belt, I would also expect that Zacha feels more comfortable with how the organization operates and more familiar with what is expected of him, so he should hopefully be prepared to take on more of a leadership role at development camp. With off-season training, we should also see a stronger Zacha.

 

[MartyOwns]

does anyone take Zacha over Werenski or Provorov?

no chance in hell

 

[Comparison Ford]

Add
Wood-Boyle

And I think you have the lineup set.

Totally. Not to get too off topic, but that's one of the best reasons we got Boyle. He is going to teach Wood an example of how to properly use a big body with poise.

The real problem now with our forwards is we essentially have one top 6 RW and everyone else is either bottom 6 at best or a rookie whose out of position.

 

[Brooklyndevil]

Zacha just needs to be more forceful this season in going to the net, fore-checking, finishing checks in general and shoot a lot more than he has. He does have a good shot. At times last season he looked a little soft and uncomfortable. I'm aware he was also told to work on his defensive game. Let's hope he feels more comfortable this season, because we're going to need some offense from him.

 

[Nubmer6]

I'm wondering if his suspension back in minors made him less aggressive. He had to hold back a bit physically playing against smaller competition or risk getting a call. May have made him hold back a bit more than he needed to in the majors.

 

[Devils Dominion]

no chance in hell

No chance Shero was going to disrespect Lou & Conte either.

He let them choose PZ, who still has plenty of time to be an excellent pick/player.

 

[Blender]

no chance in hell

At the time or in hindsight? What really matters is whether it was the best pick at the time.

 

[JimEIV]

No way, no how were we picking a Dman in 2015 at #6. It wasn't​happening. It would've made much, much more sense to pick a Dman in 2016 at #11 and that probably was never happening either.

Hell Chychrun was projected to be top 2 at one point in 2016 and he was sitting there along with McAvoy and we passed on both.
If there was a mistake not taking a Dman it was 2016.

 

[oxman44]

I think the kid had tons of talent. Imo, he played very well last year despite being on a horrendous offensive team, with questionable coaching. He could easily be a 40-60 point guy next year. Heck he couldv'e had 10-15 more points last year had he been playing with guys that had even a shred of actual finishing ability for more than a game here or there. He made some real beauty feeds that went for naught.

I think he had some conditioning problems last year, partly due to adjustment and partly injuries/concussion issues.

He also needs to shoot way more. I remember Steve Kournianos saying he had a top 3 shot in his draft class (2015) and maybe the best one-timer. That is something he REALLY needs to use more, Im sure he knows that, and I'd expect to see more of it this season.

 

[Devils Dominion]

I think the kid had tons of talent. Imo, he played very well last year despite being on a horrendous offensive team, with questionable coaching. He could easily be a 40-60 point guy next year. Heck he couldv'e had 10-15 more points last year had he been playing with guys that had even a shred of actual finishing ability for more than a game here or there. He made some real beauty feeds that went for naught.

I think he had some conditioning problems last year, partly due to adjustment and partly injuries/concussion issues.

He also needs to shoot way more. I remember Steve Kournianos saying he had a top 3 shot in his draft class (2015) and maybe the best one-timer. That is something he REALLY needs to use more, Im sure he knows that, and I'd expect to see more of it this season.

He could unleash the one timer on the PP if the staff actually tried him on the right side.

 

[MartyOwns]

At the time or in hindsight? What really matters is whether it was the best pick at the time.

well no, the question was in hindsight, who do you pick. and i like zacha, a lot...but provorov or werenski are much better players and fill a need. so, with the gift of hindsight, i pick one of those 2 and never look back

 

[Blender]

well no, the question was in hindsight, who do you pick. and i like zacha, a lot...but provorov or werenski are much better players and fill a need. so, with the gift of hindsight, i pick one of those 2 and never look back

Sure, but that is a bit of a pointless discussion since we weren't picking Provorov or Werenski at the time.

 

[AfroThunder396]

Hindsight questions are awful. At the time, it was the correct choice and that's how you need to judge the pick.

There's not a single person on the planet who could have accurately predicted in 2015 we'd win the draft lottery, or that Larsson would have been traded for Hall, or that expansion would happen the way it did, or any of the other things that have happened to change the calculus of this team over the past 2 years.

Now, if I had a sports almanac and a DeLorean, obviously I would go back and change a lot of things about this team. But I'd like to not dwell on the past. Zacha is here and he's a very talented young player we should all be excited about.

 

[MartyOwns]

Sure, but that is a bit of a pointless discussion since we weren't picking Provorov or Werenski at the time.

i'm not the one who asked it.

 

[SteveCangialosi123]

I have absolutely no issue with the pick. Didn't when it happened, don't now. He very well could be better than the defensemen that are better than him now.

 

[Edmonton East]

Zacha will without a doubt be a top 6 player, maybe as soon as next year. He had a good rookie season considering this team was a damn mess

Outside of the powerplay: 70GP, 3 goals, 8 assists.

Just like it's ridiculous to label him a bust, it's also ridiculous to say there is no doubt he will be a top 6 player.