Devils team discussion (news, notes and speculation) - offseason part I

[mdj12784]

I respect any player that guts it out, that said… when a player becomes a liability you owe it to everyone to shut him down and hopefully the injury(ies) heal. Whether the medical staff or management, a lot of things have to change…

 

[Bad Goalie]

Didn't see if this got posted yet. As a BC/Devils fan, gotta be a big fan of this signing. Jack Malone is a high energy middle 6 forward and the kind of guy that steps up when it matters most. Scored the OT goal to send BC to the Frozen Four. He doesn't always show up on the scoresheet but the kind of player that constantly contributes to winning. He should be a solid add for Utica even if he's not a huge point producer.

Only time will teLl. Hoping you have made a solid assessment.

 

[ZachaFlockaFlame]

Timo having that MCL injury was so evident, he looked like Cam Janssen skating the first half of the year.

 

[britdevil]

Devils medical staff having a roundtable discussion about the injury crisis early in the year

 

[Peter Sidorkiewicz]

Glad to see smart man. 10th pick is a fair asset in swayman, wallstedt, askarov, may be I forgot about someone - they are young, very talented, in controlling situation. Not in one years away from UFA in their 30s.

Wild just re-signed Fleury. Could our old friend Billy Guerin be interested in 10th overall for Wallstedt

 

[Guadana]

Wild just re-signed Fleury. Could our old friend Billy Guerin be interested in 10th overall for Wallstedt

If they would have two young goalies of Wallstedt level.
If this trade would happen Guerin would have immediate promotion in Devils organisation. And security to protect him from Wild fans.

 

[Better Call Sal]

Alright guys, a final recap of the season is here. Did my best to grab whatever enjoyable moments we may have had over the course of this whole season. Though it didn't go as we hoped, I always enjoy the banter here and hockey season just makes things better, so I'm always sorry to see it end.

Personally, I've got lots to look forward to for the fall of 2024 as our little one turns 3 in just about a week and we are expecting a second in early November to join the fun! So though it won't seem that way now, trust me this summer will go fast and we'll be right back to this crazy discourse with meaningful games in no time.

All that to say, even if it's just a handful of you, I appreciate those who watch these because I enjoy putting them together. Thanks all!

 

[BurntToast]

One can assume a medical staff has the players best interest in mind, but their real mission is to keep players on the ice. We have heard stories throughout all sports of guys getting injections/pills to get them trough the game. Hockey has historically created a bravado to playing through injuries. Its at a point were there is all most a stigma if you don’t. Just look at how many guys get surgeries in the offseason. Here are some examples:

Lenher is crazy but:

Accusations of medical malpractice, mistreatment among NHL teams not surprising to former player

A former Vancouver Canucks coach vehemently denies a player's accusations that he mistreated players.

bc.ctvnews.ca

Fighting Back: Former NHL Player's Medical Records 'Intentionally Concealed'

A former NHL player who grew up on Minnesota’s Iron Range says two of his former teams “intentionally concealed” key medical records that warned further head injuries could put him at risk of suffering recurrent seizures...

kstp.com

Canucks begin internal investigation around handling of Pearson’s hand injury – Sportsnet.ca

Jack Eichel, Sabres saga explained: How a medical disagreement led to the star's trade to Vegas

 

[HBK27]

Didn't see if this got posted yet. As a BC/Devils fan, gotta be a big fan of this signing. Jack Malone is a high energy middle 6 forward and the kind of guy that steps up when it matters most. Scored the OT goal to send BC to the Frozen Four. He doesn't always show up on the scoresheet but the kind of player that constantly contributes to winning. He should be a solid add for Utica even if he's not a huge point producer.

He's also from Madison, NJ.

 

[tailfins]

Wild just re-signed Fleury. Could our old friend Billy Guerin be interested in 10th overall for Wallstedt

I think Fleury is likely the back-up for Gustavsson and placeholder / mentor for Wallstedt.

Possible that Gustavsson is moderately available. But, I'm not clear that Gustavsson is an upgrade on Kakhonen.

Given that Gustavsson would cost assets and Kakhonen is UFA (and already played with the Devils), I'd prefer Kakhonen.

 

[ndkjr70]

anyone take a look at the possible UFAs and start making a wishlist yet?

 

[New Jersey Devils]

I’ve sprained/partially torn both of my MCLs, and it is absolutely insane he played with both hurt. I couldn’t generate any sort of power with my legs skating without it hurting like a bitch.

 

[New Jersey Devils]

Didn't see if this got posted yet. As a BC/Devils fan, gotta be a big fan of this signing. Jack Malone is a high energy middle 6 forward and the kind of guy that steps up when it matters most. Scored the OT goal to send BC to the Frozen Four. He doesn't always show up on the scoresheet but the kind of player that constantly contributes to winning. He should be a solid add for Utica even if he's not a huge point producer.

Looking forward to seeing this kid play and hoping he gets a shot with the big club. Followed Cornell closely when he was on the team and am rooting for him big time. Jersey kid too that played for the North Jersey Avalanche in his AAA days.

 

[minibrodeur]

anyone take a look at the possible UFAs and start making a wishlist yet?

I like Dillon, I think he's a great fit and should be affordable in terms of cap hit and contract length.

 

[theoptimist]

I like Dillon, I think he's a great fit and should be affordable in terms of cap hit and contract length.

What do you do with Siegenthaler?

 

[Louskoolaid89]

Filip Gustavsson? Minnesota is rumored to looking to move him. 25 years old. Posted a .931 in 2022-23!

 

[Devils731]

I’ve sprained/partially torn both of my MCLs, and it is absolutely insane he played with both hurt. I couldn’t generate any sort of power with my legs skating without it hurting like a bitch.

It was crazy watching Timo almost be unable to stand on his skates and Jack not be able to stickhandle, knowing they had some injuries, and have fans acting like that was their new true talent level.

I think there is a good argument the team should have stopped those guys from playing though. The team should have stopped us from seeing those guys struggle through their injuries.

 

[minibrodeur]

What do you do with Siegenthaler?

I'd leave him be, he lost his d partner and battled injuries this year. I'm hoping he can return to last year's form with Dougie back. We had some issues with defensive depth this year due to injuries. This gives us some insurance and creates competition for ice time.

 

[Poppy Whoa Sonnet]

anyone take a look at the possible UFAs and start making a wishlist yet?

A few names that leapt out at me

• Skjei (prob too pricey)
• Zadorov (scary bidding war potential)
• Kulikov (The Return of the King)
• Henrique (The Return of the King Part 2)
• Trenin (he will be coveted and get a contract that likely looks dumb but NJ needs his skillset badly)
• Stenlund and/or Lorentz (bottom 6 jam that can play C)
• Stolarz (the only UFA goalie that is even mildly interesting)

 

[devilsblood]

I respect any player that guts it out, that said… when a player becomes a liability you owe it to everyone to shut him down and hopefully the injury(ies) heal. Whether the medical staff or management, a lot of things have to change…

But what were the options if we shut Meier down?

More games for Bowers? More Laberge? Willmon? More minutes for Tierney? Meier battling through was not a liability vs's the alternatives.

I can see the "medical staff sucks" is the narrative du jour, and will probably run all summer and into next year, but it already looks over inflated.

 

[Devils731]

But what were the options if we shut Meier down?

More games for Bowers? More Laberge? Willmon? More minutes for Tierney? Meier battling through was not a liability vs's the alternatives.

I can see the "medical staff sucks" is the narrative du jour, and will probably run all summer and into next year, but it already looks over inflated.

Meier was arguably worse than guys like Willman and Bowers when he originally came back hurt. Meier was 100% a liability when he was playing through his injury at the start. I think the team would have been better with one of those plugs than the very hurt Meier.

Not only that, but playing probably delayed the team getting the healthy Meier who is actually helpful.

So I do think playing Meier through his injury was a double negative, put a bad player in the lineup and delayed the team getting the good version in the lineup.

 

[devilsblood]

Meier was arguably worse than guys like Willman and Bowers when he originally came back hurt. Meier was 100% a liability when he was playing through his injury at the start. I think the team would have been better with one of those plugs than the very hurt Meier.

Not only that, but playing probably delayed the team getting the healthy Meier who is actually helpful.

So I do think playing Meier through his injury was a double negative, put a bad player in the lineup and delayed the team getting the good version in the lineup.

We don't know if it delayed him getting healthy, and imagine it was his call to battle through. Just like Jack.

I'll take the banged up stars battling through over the AHL guys any day.

 

[Devils731]

We don't know if it delayed him getting healthy, and imagine it was his call to battle through. Just like Jack.

I'll take the banged up stars battling through over the AHL guys any day.

Meier played 9 games after coming back in December and recorded 0 points, was slow, was falling down constantly, and turned the puck over a lot. There is no way that an AHL plug wasn’t giving better value than Timo during that stretch.

There were fans saying Timo was the worst contract in the NHL because he was such a liability. He did not look like he belonged in the NHL in this stretch.

We don’t know that Timo resting wouldn’t have helped his injuries in a similar way we don’t know the sun will rise tomorrow. It can’t be proven but history suggests resting sprains helps them getter better more quickly than stressing them.

 

[Monsieur Verdoux]

Excuses.

 

[AfroThunder396]

Are people seriously questioning if rest helps recover from injuries?

You can't force a player to get surgery but you can force them to sit their ass in the press box. Players don't decide who dresses, the coaches do. Either the staff were unwilling/unable to bench Timo until he got healthy, or they were specifically told to ply him through it by Fitzgerald and management. The more I hear about it, the more I think it's the later.