Prospect Info: 2020 HFDevils Prospect Rankings #12

Who is the Devils' #12 Prospect?


  • Total voters
    80
  • Poll closed .

thethinglonger

Castron & Crew
Dec 1, 2014
3,771
2,750
New Jersey
while i can see the argument you make, clarke is a long shot to have a role on the devils mid term.

not only does he come back from a serious injury, he got also passed on the depth chart by other prospects, which could play his role of a shooting rw. i expect both holtz and thompson to get the first looks on the scoring lines by the coaching staff. for a more defensive assignments there are also other (better, more polished) options in mercer, merkley, bastian and potentially moynihan. after the draft rw probably is the deepest position of the devils prospect pipeline with a very nice mix of player types. i could see a few of them in play for trades to fill other roster needs or in case of mercer, that he is developed to play center.

Clarke definitely had a rough 2020...missing significant time due to injury and then the Devils picking RW's with two of their first round picks? Yikes.

And you're 100% right, he still has a lot to work on in his game and is quite far down on the depth chart. Even still, after Holtz I think he's our best goal-scoring prospect. To be honest, I'm not so much concerned with his defensive game (which does need a lot of work) as I am with his skating - and now injury history, since we've got a decent number of forwards that are good in their own end. His skating will be the difference between an AHL top-6 role and an NHL depth scoring role.

It's interesting to see how folks make their selections with these later round rankings too. I've seen some make their pick based on NHL readiness or safeness, others, like myself, picked on perceived upside. I looked and saw that you picked Talvitie here, which is almost a combination of those two. He's going to have a great season.
 

TBF1972

Registered User
May 19, 2018
7,730
6,189
It's interesting to see how folks make their selections with these later round rankings too. I've seen some make their pick based on NHL readiness or safeness, others, like myself, picked on perceived upside. I looked and saw that you picked Talvitie here, which is almost a combination of those two. He's going to have a great season.
talavite brings something, which the devils are missing since the coleman trade. same for moynihan. talavite - mercer - moynihan could be a terrific line in the future, which gets opposing teams all kind of troubles.
 

My3Sons

Nobody told me there'd be days like these...
Sponsor
Clarke definitely had a rough 2020...missing significant time due to injury and then the Devils picking RW's with two of their first round picks? Yikes.

And you're 100% right, he still has a lot to work on in his game and is quite far down on the depth chart. Even still, after Holtz I think he's our best goal-scoring prospect. To be honest, I'm not so much concerned with his defensive game (which does need a lot of work) as I am with his skating - and now injury history, since we've got a decent number of forwards that are good in their own end. His skating will be the difference between an AHL top-6 role and an NHL depth scoring role.

It's interesting to see how folks make their selections with these later round rankings too. I've seen some make their pick based on NHL readiness or safeness, others, like myself, picked on perceived upside. I looked and saw that you picked Talvitie here, which is almost a combination of those two. He's going to have a great season.

I think Talvite’s season will turn on how well he recovered from his knee injury. The skill heart and determination are all there. He’s not as demonstrative or as fast as Coleman but he brings his own blend of positive attributes and has an inner confidence that seems to manifest as the ability to see the game slow enough to where he can maximize his abilities. That is actually a fairly rare gift for a young player based on what I’ve read.
 

Oneiro

Registered User
Mar 28, 2013
9,438
11,002
Fans always favor the call up who scores a few goals in a brief stint. Merkley is better than him, but Blandisi got the benefit of the doubt for way too long based on this dynamic.
 
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Ripshot 43

Registered User
Jul 21, 2010
13,725
10,405
are the merkley votes only bc he's been meteoric as of late overseas? wondering if theres bias

I haven’t voted for him yet but I don’t blame people. He’s one of the most nhl ready and shows some overall skill to potentially be able to play up and down the lineup. I feel like his injuries really derailed his growth and if he gets over that he would probably justify a top 10 spot on our list.
 

Cheddabombs

Status Quo
Mar 13, 2012
24,653
31,227
are the merkley votes only bc he's been meteoric as of late overseas? wondering if theres bias

Probably a bit of bias, and maybe a bit of uncertainty around others. Guys like Clarke and Talvitie that have been thrown around could've definitely gone here or earlier, but being injured for the season makes it difficult to get a good read on them relative to the others. Okhotyuk could also develop into a solid defensive defenseman in the NHL one day, but I find it harder to project those guys at a junior level. And there are questions around others too that might make it a bit easier to vote for the guy we've already seen for a brief stint in the NHL, and has started off well this season overseas.
 

HBK27

HFBoards Sponsor
Sponsor
Aug 5, 2005
13,516
13,741
Northern NJ
Clarke definitely had a rough 2020...missing significant time due to injury and then the Devils picking RW's with two of their first round picks? Yikes.

And you're 100% right, he still has a lot to work on in his game and is quite far down on the depth chart. Even still, after Holtz I think he's our best goal-scoring prospect. To be honest, I'm not so much concerned with his defensive game (which does need a lot of work) as I am with his skating - and now injury history, since we've got a decent number of forwards that are good in their own end. His skating will be the difference between an AHL top-6 role and an NHL depth scoring role.

It's interesting to see how folks make their selections with these later round rankings too. I've seen some make their pick based on NHL readiness or safeness, others, like myself, picked on perceived upside. I looked and saw that you picked Talvitie here, which is almost a combination of those two. He's going to have a great season.

Clarke still has a few seasons to go before he's possibly competing for a roster spot on the big club and who knows how our RW depth will look at that point? Palmieri and/or Gusev leaving certainly opens up spots. Does Holtz also only play RW? I thought I saw that he likes to play his off wing?

Sucks that Clarke lost a good chunk of development time this past season, especially since he came back shortly before the pandemic shut things down. His injury history doesn't concern me too much just yet because it was the same injury - he just opted against surgery to properly treat it before being drafted. Hopefully there shouldn't be any concern for reinjury on his shoulder.
 

Guttersniped

I like goalies who stop the puck
Sponsor
Dec 20, 2018
21,457
46,151
I voted for Merkley yet again and I’m looking forward for a chance to vote for someone else.

Add Maltsev.
 

Guttersniped

I like goalies who stop the puck
Sponsor
Dec 20, 2018
21,457
46,151
are the merkley votes only bc he's been meteoric as of late overseas? wondering if theres bias
Merkley looked quite good in the four games (1G 1A) in NJ before his face got smashed in and he was very productive in Bing. His pro career has been derailed a bit by injuries since juniors, Merkley seemed like the closest to a lock among the forwards to make the team out of camp after after Anderson (*sob*).

He plays a very physical game for someone 5’11” and slighter than Coleman and that probably has contributed to his injury history in the past. To me the biggest issue is his inability to stay healthy, if he can’t string together a few healthy seasons his chances of being useful or even sticking around will start to dwindle.
 

Jersey Fan 12

Positive Vibes
Nov 20, 2006
5,854
2,486
Bastian, Clarke and Merkley all seem far lower than they should be on this list. And unless he's not eligible would include Mike McLeod in this discussion as well. All seem far closer to being NHL players than some on this list.
 
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Hischier and Hughes

“I love to hockey”
Jan 28, 2018
9,408
4,357
Clarke definitely had a rough 2020...missing significant time due to injury and then the Devils picking RW's with two of their first round picks? Yikes.

And you're 100% right, he still has a lot to work on in his game and is quite far down on the depth chart. Even still, after Holtz I think he's our best goal-scoring prospect. To be honest, I'm not so much concerned with his defensive game (which does need a lot of work) as I am with his skating - and now injury history, since we've got a decent number of forwards that are good in their own end. His skating will be the difference between an AHL top-6 role and an NHL depth scoring role.

It's interesting to see how folks make their selections with these later round rankings too. I've seen some make their pick based on NHL readiness or safeness, others, like myself, picked on perceived upside. I looked and saw that you picked Talvitie here, which is almost a combination of those two. He's going to have a great season.
Ive seen your picture on youtube before, in a Devils draft video

Is it a popular picture?
 

MartyOwns

thank you shero
Apr 1, 2007
24,127
17,827
Bastian, Clarke and Merkley all seem far lower than they should be on this list. And unless he's not eligible would include Mike McLeod in this discussion as well. All seem far closer to being NHL players than some on this list.

96-BFDA97-CF37-496-C-977-D-A25651-A13-A28.jpg
 
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