GDT: Devils vs. Flyers 80's RETRO NIGHT 7PM MSG+

[Unknown Caller]

Meant to reply to this last night, got sidetracked though.

But what exactly did Conte do to get Blandisi? We didn't draft him. Maybe I missed something, but did he recommend Lou sign him or something? And Wood hasn't played a pro game yet, and I remember a few people worried that we may not even sign him. He's not on an ELC yet, is he?

If anything, credit him for Severson and maybe Boucher if he keeps contributing.

Boucher is producing 0.5 PPG since being recalled, if I'm right.

Yes, Lou isn't the one out in Barrie, Ontario finding under the radar players to sign. It's Conte and the scouting staff. It's actually even more impressive that they found Blandisi as a free agent.

 

[Colin226]

I think I recall Blandisi saying he got interest from a few teams (he had attended other NHL camps before his last junior season), so it's not like we found a guy no one had heard of. It's likely that he compared the options, saw we had the worst forward depth/prospects, and decided it would be his best chance to play in the NHL as soon as possible. Good decision on his part!

 

[Unknown Caller]

I think I recall Blandisi saying he got interest from a few teams (he had attended other NHL camps before his last junior season), so it's not like we found a guy no one had heard of. It's likely that he compared the options, saw we had the worst forward depth/prospects, and decided it would be his best chance to play in the NHL as soon as possible. Good decision on his part!

It's the National Hockey League, no player is truly "unheard of." I'm sure there were multiple teams interested in Gaudreau when he was taken or Tyler Johnson when he was taken. The point is that the scouts and ultimately Conte made the determination that Blandisi was a good player and a good fit. They went out and made it happen and added a great player to the system for a low price. Don't forget that Colorado passed on Blandisi just a few months earlier, so it's not like 30 teams were lined up.

Anything to take credit away from the old scouting staff, I guess.

 

[Colin226]

It's the National Hockey League, no player is truly "unheard of." I'm sure there were multiple teams interested in Gaudreau when he was taken or Tyler Johnson when he was taken. The point is that the scouts and ultimately Conte made the determination that Blandisi was a good player and a good fit. They went out and made it happen and added a great player to the system for a low price. Don't forget that Colorado passed on Blandisi just a few months earlier, so it's not like 30 teams were lined up.

Anything to take credit away from the old scouting staff, I guess.

You had me until this last line. You made valid points, but I also think I made valid points. You said they "found" Blandisi in your first post, then essentially agreed with my point that he wasn't truly "found" by the Devils. I'd even argue that other organizations did a better job at it since they invited him to their camps, but ultimately didn't want to extend contracts before seeing him play. Obviously once he tore it up in junior, many folks including the Devils came knocking, which gave him options.

And that brings me to my next point: that a big part of him coming here was the opportunity he could get to play in the NHL relative to other teams, which is 100% true. It's not a knock on the prior scouting staff, it's a fact. I give full credit to them for seeing his potential after his serious health issues, but I think it's also realistic to say that if we had great forward depth and told him "you'd be behind several other big prospects before getting a shot in a couple years" that maybe he signs elsewhere. And then we likely never know that we were in on him to begin with.

 

[Devils Dominion]

I see Conte's body of work as a bell curve.

He started out slow, did some great work for a while but then sloped downwards til he was let go.

Jury is still out with some of his picks in amateur hockey but there was a lengthy drought for quite a few years including some damaging gaffes that set the franchise back.

And to set the record straight, I personally like Conte.

I've had two lengthy chats with him in person over the years.
One in West Orange and the other in Newark.
I even gave him some advice.

He is a good guy and appreciates us fans.

I just think that he kept too many of his chums on staff too long which turned into a good ole boy country club without challenging debate or fresh ideas.

His son's find of Wood could be his parting gift.

I'm psyched to see Castron's work this summer.

 

[Smitty426]

Here is Todd Cordell story back in Apr '15
http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog.php?post_id=68169

and here's a portion of Chere's text from nj.com:
Except Blandisi suggests the Avs probably had good reason to give up on him two years after they drafted him 162nd overall in the 2012 NHL entry draft. His hockey career hung in the balance as he battled Coxsackie Disease.

"My last year (of being eligible) to sign I got sick in February and I didn't finish the year," Blandisi recalled. "Colorado actually helped me get a trade from Ottawa to Barrie (in the OHL) so I could play in a playoff run and show what I could do on a bigger stage, I guess, but I wasn't able to participate. I think that hurt my chances to sign.

"At that point I didn't know if I was ever going to be able to play again, so I guess they didn't want to take a chance. I couldn't really walk in a line. I couldn't balance. It took me seven months to get over that and another three months to almost re-teach myself coordination again. Those seven months were a tough time for me and my family."

The Devils signed him as a free agent on Jan. 14, 2015, while he was on his way to a 52-goal season with Barrie. Blandisi, who is in his second recall this season from Albany (AHL), holds nothing against the Avs.

 

[JimEIV]

I see Conte's body of work as a bell curve.

He started out slow, did some great work for a while but then sloped downwards til he was let go.

Jury is still out with some of his picks in amateur hockey but there was a lengthy drought for quite a few years including some damaging gaffes that set the franchise back.

And to set the record straight, I personally like Conte.

I've had two lengthy chats with him in person over the years.
One in West Orange and the other in Newark.
I even gave him some advice.

He is a good guy and appreciates us fans.

I just think that he kept too many of his chums on staff too long which turned into a good ole boy country club without challenging debate or fresh ideas.

His son's find of Wood could be his parting gift.

I'm psyched to see Castron's work this summer.

How can you say sloped downward until he left.

The last 8 years have been very good to excellent.

Henrique and Severson were selections that were literally the best remaining players in the entire draft at the point the were taken.

You can't discount the finding Blandisi, Greene, Clarkson and Oduya

Fayne was another gem.

Boucher and Wood from 4th round are amazing picks.

The 2011 draft in general was phenomenal... almost every single pick is still very much a viable NHL candidate

Adam Larsson
Blake Coleman
Reid Boucher
Blake Pietila
Reece Scarlett
Patrick Daly

There is a likelihood that next season 4 of those players from the 2011 draft will be in a NJ Devils uniform... 3 is a certainty.

Any head scout in league that produced 4 NHL players from a 7 round draft would be considered great.. here not so much.

 

[TheUnseenHand]

I'm not quite sure I understand the love for Boucher. Is he a bad player? No. A phenomenal 4th round pick? I don't think so.

I fail to understand how a guy like Zharkov was so disliked for not finishing the plethora of chances he created for himself (while playing fantastic defense), yet guy like JJ and Boucher get 8686979 mile long leashes while producing virtually nothing. Again, I don't dislike either of those players, I just don't understand sometimes how we pick who is good and who isn't.

 

[Bleedred]

I'm not quite sure I understand the love for Boucher. Is he a bad player? No. A phenomenal 4th round pick? I don't think so.

I fail to understand how a guy like Zharkov was so disliked for not finishing the plethora of chances he created for himself (while playing fantastic defense), yet guy like JJ and Boucher get 8686979 mile long leashes while producing virtually nothing. Again, I don't dislike either of those players, I just don't understand sometimes how we pick who is good and who isn't.

I don't think Boucher has gotten all those chances and hasn't finished.

At least it hasn't lasted as long or as many years as Josefson, or god forbid Tedenby from any time after the 10-11 season.

 

[TheUnseenHand]

I don't think Boucher has gotten all those chances and hasn't finished.

At least it hasn't lasted as long or as many years as Josefson, or god forbid Tedenby from any time after the 10-11 season.

That's because he's not as good as Zharkov was. Zharkov created all those chances for himself mostly with his blazing speed. He was just, quite literally, the most snakebit player I've ever seen. I think it would be neat to give him another chance. But this isn't really about that and it's not meant to bash JJ or Boosh. It's just to point out inconsistencies in how we tend to view certain players.

 

[JimEIV]

Is this real life? Zharkov?

 

[TheUnseenHand]

Is this real life? Zharkov?

Oh come on Jim. You knew at some point I'd bring him back up

Oh and also, Kovy was the most offensively dominant player this team has, and likely ever will see.

 

[JimEIV]

Oh come on Jim. You knew at some point I'd bring him back up

Oh and also, Kovy was the most offensively dominant player this team has, and likely ever will see.

Only if you make believe 2 out of the 3 years in New Jersey didn't happen.

 

[Sascha Goc]

Boucher has played 50 games over 3 seasons, and is 22 not sure how that is considered a long leash.

 

[Bleedred]

That's because he's not as good as Zharkov was. Zharkov created all those chances for himself mostly with his blazing speed. He was just, quite literally, the most snakebit player I've ever seen. I think it would be neat to give him another chance. But this isn't really about that and it's not meant to bash JJ or Boosh. It's just to point out inconsistencies in how we tend to view certain players.

Eh. I might tend to agree if he had been doing better offensively in the KHL.

10 points in 40 games as a rookie wasn't horrible. It's better than Kalinin this year. It's also the same pace Josefson and everyone on our third line is on pace for this season.

But his KHL career has been very underwhelming.

 

[Better Call Sal]

I always thought Zharkov got shafted with DeBoer. I liked his game.

 

[Bleedred]

I always thought Zharkov got shafted with DeBoer. I liked his game.

Once we signed Boulton and Janssen, I think that might have sealed his fate that year.

All the other guys he could have played over, didn't even last on the roster long term.

Brad Mills is the one name that sticks out to me.

He wasn't a bad player, he just wasn't very good at offense. He would have been better than Gionta and possibly Josefson. Probably Kalinin too, depending on if he improves and has a higher ceiling than what he's shown. That's if he was where he was in the 09-10 season.

 

[Devilsfan992]

delete

 

[MadDevil]

Once we signed Boulton and Janssen, I think that might have sealed his fate that year.

All the other guys he could have played over, didn't even last on the roster long term.

Brad Mills is the one name that sticks out to me.

He wasn't a bad player, he just wasn't very good at offense. He would have been better than Gionta and possibly Josefson. Probably Kalinin too, depending on if he improves and has a higher ceiling than what he's shown. That's if he was where he was in the 09-10 season.

I think he would have probably ended up being somewhere between Josefson and Gionta. I don't think Zharkov was as skilled as Josefson, but would have probably been better than Gionta. I remember that offseason where he worked out with Kovy and everybody was like "Hey, maybe he still has a chance", and then nothing.

 

[JK3]

Ahh the insidious Zharkovitis. It still lingers within Josefson, maybe some Valtrex will keep it at bay.

 

[Bleedred]

I think he would have probably ended up being somewhere between Josefson and Gionta. I don't think Zharkov was as skilled as Josefson, but would have probably been better than Gionta. I remember that offseason where he worked out with Kovy and everybody was like "Hey, maybe he still has a chance", and then nothing.

Yeah his KHL numbers don't look like anything special. 6 points in 29 games this year, 7 in 49 in 13-14, 11 in 47 in 12-13.

Last year he had 14 points in 51 games, that was the best he did. Not sure he'd even be as good as Kalinin at offense here. His numbers in the KHL are pretty close to Kalinin's. Just 21 goals in 176 games there.

 

[NJDevs26]

I don't think anyone would have really helped Zharkov develop an NHL offensive game. Like Josefson he's too finesse for a grinder type role and not skilled enough for a skilled role. Unlike Josefson, Zharkov didn't have other talents to compensate (shootout, PP halfwall)

 

[TheUnseenHand]

I don't think anyone would have really helped Zharkov develop an NHL offensive game. Like Josefson he's too finesse for a grinder type role and not skilled enough for a skilled role. Unlike Josefson, Zharkov didn't have other talents to compensate (shootout, PP halfwall)

Not for this team. He was, however, a fantastic passer hitting tape to tape almost every time. I thought he was second on the team to Kovy. No one on this team would finish those great passes though. He was also a very good PK specialist, but we have got those guys too.

I don't think he would have ever developed into anything much either. I just liked the way he played the game. I do think he got a completely unfair amount of vitriol, especially when you look at how guys like Boucher and JJ are still getting praise for not doing much more than him over a much larger sample size.