GDT: Devils vs Bruins

[HenriquesJawLine]

Kalinin is a quote machine

@AGrossRecord: Sergey Kalinin called Miles Wood "American Muscle."

 

[VoidCreature]

Next 7 games are huge if we want any chance at making the playoffs

@Carolina
vs Toronto
vs Edmonton
vs Florida
@ Edmonton
@ Calgary
@ Vancouver

I'm hoping for at least 10/14 points. Really hope we don't **** the bed on the Alberta trip.

We don't need to make the playoffs, just play better.

It's no fun getting blown out every game.

 

[Zippy316]

I had this frustration with him in juniors, too. He's an outstanding passer, though. I think it's his greatest asset.

He can make some great plays with the puck, but he needs to hold onto it a bit longer. He's supposed to be a skilled player, when he gets the puck, I want to see him try to make a move or make a play to open up the ice. It seems like he's too hesitant to do it at times which is puzzling when he clearly has the skill to do it.

I'd rather see him try to make a move and turn the puck over than look to pass it right away.

Dano agrees with you and said similar stuff tonight.

That's funny. I was at the game tonight and kept noticing it.

At one point, Parenteau gained the zone and dished it to Zacha who had some room to skate into the middle of the offensive zone with the puck. Instead, he passed it back to Parenteau on the wall and the defender pressured him and turned the puck over.

 

[MadDevil]

Quincey - Severson seems like it could work well together.

Santini was phenomenal tonight though. He does a lot of the little things that are hard to teach. His instincts are top notch. He boxes out players well, steps up when there's open space.

On DSP's one chance, he drove back the defender and prevented him from getting his stick on the puck. I turned to my brother at the game and told him that I can't remember any of our forwards doing that all year. Pretty bad that it took a rookie defenseman to be the first one to do that all year.

It actually took me by surprise. I was like, "Who is that jumping up and driving the defender back?" before I saw #34. The kid just looks wise beyond his years.

 

[guitarguyvic]

Breakout was horrendous tonight.

There seems to be a serious disconnect between the forwards and the defensemen on the breakout. There's no fluid breakouts.

We played much better in all other areas, but the breakout was still miserable. I know it is Boston and they are a well coached team, but we can't seem to string together consecutive passes into the zone.

There's been "disconnect" on the breakout all season. It's not the players it's the scheme...which is on the coaching. It was like that last year too. It's crap and that's why the coaching staff is just as responsible for the poor results as the lack of talent on D.

They have tightened team D in the last few games and what do you know, we've been more competitive lately and even won a couple of games. Go fig.

 

[NjDevsRR]

Kalinin is a quote machine

@AGrossRecord: Sergey Kalinin called Miles Wood "American Muscle."

Lmao, the Russians always provide fantastic quotes.

 

[njdevils1982]

Kalinin is a quote machine

@AGrossRecord: Sergey Kalinin called Miles Wood "American Muscle."

the american muscle of wood

born in buffalo …skates fast cause he learned the best way out of there was to go fast

 

[Zippy316]

Not sure if it was said, but Merrill was also terrific tonight.

When he's on, he makes a lot of little plays with the puck that singlehandedly shuts down the opponents forecheck at times. The unfortunate part is we don't seem to have a defender capable of taking advantage of his nifty moves by providing a good outlet pass and/or skating the puck up the ice.

Seems like Merrill will avoid a forechecker just to give it to his partner who turns the puck over going up the ice.

 

[Bleedred]

Just one game but we looked better without Moore.

I can't exactly say we looked better without him last year, like Jim said, only because I think he was injured during the stretch where we played this horrendous pee wee league pairing of Warsofsky and Helgeson. I think it was Schlemko and Moore who were injured at that time.

 

[MadDevil]

I thought all three pairings were pretty solid tonight. Santini seemed to stabilize Merrill and Quincey back on his natural side seemed to work well with Severson.

 

[Emperoreddy]

Honestly thought this was an improved game by Zacha

 

[Zippy316]

Honestly thought this was an improved game by Zacha

Improved, but I want to see him make plays with the puck.

He's too skilled to be playing hot potato with the puck like he did for most of the night. I'd much rather see him try to make a move and make a play, even if he does get burned, then him just get rid of the puck as soon as he gets it.

He did look much more involved tonight, but he still seems too hesitant at times. Seems like he's thinking rather than just playing.

 

[AfroThunder396]

I like Zacha in front of the net on the PP, big body and soft hands.

Remember his game last year with Elias? He was skating, he was driving play, he was shooting, he was making defenders miss. That hasn't gone away, he just needs to be more assertive. He's not playing the way that made him successful in juniors.

 

[Triumph]

There's been "disconnect" on the breakout all season. It's not the players it's the scheme...which is on the coaching. It was like that last year too. It's crap and that's why the coaching staff is just as responsible for the poor results as the lack of talent on D.

They have tightened team D in the last few games and what do you know, we've been more competitive lately and even won a couple of games. Go fig.

And yet when the D was loose and the Devils were playing aggressive they were also winning games. Almost like shooting luck and goaltending has a lot to do with winning also.

 

[MichaelJ]

Honestly thought this was an improved game by Zacha

Needs to stay with Hall

 

[Jets012]

This is what I wanted to see from some of the defenseman to start the year.

Like I said earlier, the game Santini played tonight was better than any game I've ever seen from John Moore. I thought he was excellent. I thought Merrill was very solid as well. He continues to be one of our better defenseman this year IMO. He's been better than Lovejoy, Moore, Quincey.

Only other changes I want to see are Gazdic/DSP coming out of the lineup and Auvitu coming back in. I know our defenseman have been a disaster this year, but I really do think there's a chance we can field a real formidable group if we were playing the right guys. Severson/Greene/Merill/Auvitu/Santini/Lovejoy or Quincey would be the best group of 6 we can go with.

 

[Devil X]

I feel like Zacha is still holding back with the puck. I felt like that all season, he does some stuff that makes you think he is about to be more aggressive and then he passes it. Like he is scared to try and make a play. He will get it at some point im sure.

 

[kiwidevil]

Well he had 2 games with Hall and had 2 assists. Since, he has been relegated. It's very understandable for him to be nervous back with him. Hynes probably already has his name inked onto a press box seat as soon as he missed a dump in opportunity, or spent a shift out longer than 30 sec.

I hope Hyny boy bites the bullet and let's Zacha develop with Hall. We are already out of the playoffs, may as well develop the only real potential high ceiling talent we have. Hall seems to like him.

 

[BurntToast]

Nope he needs to develop with Elias.

 

[John Pedro]

Didn't miss Zajac any bit. Should return to the lineup as a 3C or 2C. Please keep Zacha-Hall together.

PP still looks awful... Zacha shouldn't be doing the screener, his best traits are his shot and his passing... although he did have a great redirection that Rask saved/hit the post after a Severson shot on 5v5. Plus why even have a screener when all you do is playing catch on the PP? not a single shot that he could redirect.

Too much Greene, shouldn't be leading the D in minutes, especially when 5min where on the PP.

Palmieri is so frustrating to watch. Dude can't do anything else but shot the puck (and isn't even good at it).

Santini and Merril worked very well.

 

[Bleedred]

As much as I don't like Kalinin, I will give him credit for the way he got the puck from his skate and onto his stick so crisply. I feel like he easily would have missed that if you told me beforehand that he'd have an opportunity like that. I've seen a few guys miss that already. Josefson and Bennett, to no surprise at all. You wouldn't think Kalinin was so bad at offense if you only saw that or his breakaway goal against Lundqvist last year. Sometimes he does some really nice things, then other times you can't believe how he ever managed to do things like that.

Well he had 2 games with Hall and had 2 assists. Since, he has been relegated. It's very understandable for him to be nervous back with him. Hynes probably already has his name inked onto a press box seat as soon as he missed a dump in opportunity, or spent a shift out longer than 30 sec.

I hope Hyny boy bites the bullet and let's Zacha develop with Hall. We are already out of the playoffs, may as well develop the only real potential high ceiling talent we have. Hall seems to like him.

I agree. Time to take the wheels off Zacha just a little bit, or at least loosen them a bit.

Nope he needs to develop with Elias.

Please sign him ASAP then.

A little trivia: It was on this day back in 2006 that Patrik Elias made his season debut after sitting out from hepatitis for the entire season up that point. Marty got his first shutout of the season and played astronomically better from that point of the season onward. It was Marty's first shutout since March 30th of 2004, almost 2 full years. Of course, it wasn't 2 actual seasons of hockey without shutout, as the entire season before that was wiped out. And from that point onward, Marty began to play astronomically better and we marched ourselves into a playoff spot and won the division. We were 16-18-5 on the season before that game. I could see Cory playing lights out for most of the season from here on out, though I'm not expecting playoffs.

Didn't miss Zajac any bit. Should return to the lineup as a 3C or 2C. Please keep Zacha-Hall together.

It's a one game sample size. It's not going to be every game that Zajac is out where Sergey Kalinin has a 2 point night....

 

[Monsieur Verdoux]

Hall-Zacha-PAP
Cammalleri-Zajac-Palmieri
Wood-Henrique-Lappin


From now on please

I would also consider to put Zajac to third line:
Hall-Zacha-PAP
Cammalleri-Henrique-Palmieri
Wood-Zajac-Lappin

Zajac has been our best center this season. At the same time he is only center who can make our third line better, and those other two lines are good enough without him. With Henrique or Zacha third line doesn't do usually anything, but this way we get at least three "second" lines.

 

[HITMAN88]

Kalinin is a quote machine

@AGrossRecord: Sergey Kalinin called Miles Wood "American Muscle."

I called hip ''Captain America'' long ago.. and one day he can be Captain America to this team!

And when Chris Evans retires, Miles can easily replace him in the Captain America series

 

[RememberTheName]

Needs to stay with Hall

Please, been saying this since the day they got broken up, which I think was after game #4

 

[MadDevil]

It's not as simple as "Zacha should have played with Hall the whole time" though given how much Hall plays and the situations he plays in. I don't think it would have been a good idea to give Zacha that much responsibility that soon. Now that we've got nothing to lose and Zacha has some more games under his belt, I think they can stay together longer. Although Zajac has looked good with Hall too, so I could understand going back to that when he's back in.

It would be nice if Cammalleri got going again too. It seems to be feast or famine with him this season.