GDT: Devils vs. Stars - 5:00 PM MSG+

[Bleedred]

Our transition game has been horrendous this season, and Hynes has done nothing to fix it. They are essentially running the same bad plays today as they have all year with the same bad results.

Agreed.

He really deserves a D grade on the season, nothing better than that. Maybe a D+ at best.

Cory not being Cory this year is keeping him at D grade and not an F for me. If we had been nearly this poor and Cory was a .920-.925 on the season, I'd be giving a very low F.

Like I've been saying all season. You can argue he's not making this team worse, but you can't make one legit argument that he's making this team better than they otherwise would be. What's he doing that any schmo head coach can't do?

 

[Blender]

Agreed.

He really deserves a D grade on the season, nothing better than that. Maybe a D+ at best.

Cory not being Cory this year is keeping him at D grade and not an F for me. If we had been nearly this poor and Cory was a .920-.925 on the season, I'd be giving a very low F.

Like I've been saying all season. You can argue he's not making this team worse, but you can't make one legit argument that he's making this team better than they otherwise would be. What's he doing that any schmo head coach can't do?

I'd agree. This roster isn't good, we all know that, but I don't think Hynes is really contributing to making it better either. The most positive thing I can say really is that he doesn't play ping pong with the young players like DeBoer did and mess with their heads.

 

[Emperoreddy]

I'd agree. This roster isn't good, we all know that, but I don't think Hynes is really contributing to making it better either. The most positive thing I can say really is that he doesn't play ping pong with the young players like DeBoer did and mess with their heads.

Injuries are also forcing him to play the young guys.

They would be sitting if DSP and Camm were healthy.

 

[njdevil26]

Injuries are also forcing him to play the young guys.

They would be sitting if DSP and Camm were healthy.

Josefson too. He was playing some of the best hockey in his career before getting hurt.

 

[Devils Dominion]

In an absolutely pathetic excuse of a hockey performance by NJD today with dozens of botched plays and poor decisions.

The one that stood out to me was on the pk when Greene & LJ had the puck behind the net with no Star in sight and neither could clear the zone.
Of course Dallas scored seconds later.
It was simply pathetic & weak by both defensemen.

A decent team, not even a good one, would have run Dallas out of the rink tonight. They were very weak too.

 

[Blender]

Josefson too. He was playing some of the best hockey in his career before getting hurt.

I never have a problem with Josefson playing the 4th line and PK though. He's very responsible defensively, works his ass off, sets a good example, and helps shelter younger guys. It's the scrubs or the guys that look lazy that I have issues with.

 

[Devils Dominion]

Lovejoy doesn't need to be exposed. He needs to be bought out. People don't even fully understand how much of a negative impact he's had on our defense.

Well 3 of us do.
Me, you and Bleed.

LJ cannot be a Devil by next training camp.

 

[TheUnseenHand]

Well 3 of us do.
Me, you and Bleed.

LJ cannot be a Devil by next training camp.

The last GDT I believe I called him one of the 3 or 4 worst players that have ever played for this team. Maybe that's a small stretch, but yeah, I don't care much for him either.

 

[tr83]

Fun fact: Henrique played less than 13 minutes. Less than Wood, Pietila, Coleman, Lovejoy, Prout...

It was the lowest TOI on the team.

 

[Blender]

Fun fact: Henrique played less than 13 minutes. Less than Wood, Pietila, Coleman, Lovejoy, Prout...

It was the lowest TOI on the team.

Deserved with his effort level this season. Should happen more often until we wakes up.

 

[TheUnseenHand]

The season is over. Henrique is a vet and they know what they have in him. It's time to see what the kid can do with increased minutes. I doubt this is about sending a message to Henrique. It's likely about seeing what the kids have.

 

[Bleedred]

I'd agree. This roster isn't good, we all know that, but I don't think Hynes is really contributing to making it better either. The most positive thing I can say really is that he doesn't play ping pong with the young players like DeBoer did and mess with their heads.

He also exacerbates the warts on this team by using Lovejoy the way he does. If we're in evaluation time, it's time to pump up Santini and Merrill. I supported not overloading them with minutes up to this point, but we're in garbage time. Well past garbage time. Officially eliminated and there's like 8 games and 2 weeks left.

Josefson too. He was playing some of the best hockey in his career before getting hurt.

Not really. His best stretch production wise, ended over a half a dozen games before he was injured.

I never have a problem with Josefson playing the 4th line and PK though. He's very responsible defensively, works his ass off, sets a good example, and helps shelter younger guys. It's the scrubs or the guys that look lazy that I have issues with.

He's a good 4th liner and PK guy, Hynes just seems hellbent on using him as either a 3rd line or healthy scratch guy. It's like he can't play 4th line in the world of Hynes. 3rd line or the scratchbox he goes! I do prefer him to Coleman, Pietila, current Fiddler, Sislo, Kalinin, etc.

Well 3 of us do.
Me, you and Bleed.

LJ cannot be a Devil by next training camp.

I think the majority of this forum and fanbase in general has had it with him and at least a month or two ago. We were some of the earliest non-supporters of his. I bought early on that maybe he'd be less of a liability if he were playing fewer minutes and now I'm not feeling that at all. I can't remember the last time we had a liability of a defenseman like this, playing the minutes he has and in a full time role. It was in the pre-Stevens era. Bryce Salvador from December 2013-November 2014 was probably as bad. That's about all I can remember. We've had bad defensemen as call ups and in lesser roles (bottom pairing) since then, but he's a complete liability. I think he might be completely done as an NHL player at all. 2003 Ken Daneyko and 2006 Tommy Albelin (all 42 years of him) weren't liabilities the way he is. Not nearly. The last calendar year of Salvador was pretty bad, and I don't even think he got in as many games as Lovejoy in that period, due to injury and the eventual demise and end of his career.

Fun fact: Henrique played less than 13 minutes. Less than Wood, Pietila, Coleman, Lovejoy, Prout...

It was the lowest TOI on the team.

Deserved with his effort level this season. Should happen more often until we wakes up.

The saddest part about that is for all the benching Henrique got, Hynes throws him out there for that PK in OT. I swear to god, it's a calculated plan to LOSE the game. ''Henrique has stunk tonight, I've recognized this! Let's just throw him out there for this PK and we're finished! Time to go home!''

 

[Billdo]

LJ is Salvador bad, that's saying something. Sal was completely shot near the end. At this point LJ even scares me if he got only third pairing and PK mins.

 

[billingtons ghost]

LJ is worse than Salvador at the end. I am amazed at how detrimental he's been to this team and he's seemingly gotten significantly worse as the season has progressed.

I think we started training camp thinking he'd be a decent #4 guy, and a few weeks into the season it was apparent that he and Quincy weren't going to be a steadying influence at all.

I really don't need to see anymore of Prout, really - either.

At this point, it is Severson, Santini, Merrill, Greene and the rest is a tossup.

Moore and Auvitu at least have offensive upside and could potentially play in this league.

 

[Blender]

The season is over. Henrique is a vet and they know what they have in him. It's time to see what the kid can do with increased minutes. I doubt this is about sending a message to Henrique. It's likely about seeing what the kids have.

If it's not about both, that's a problem. His laziness has cost us points this season and that's unacceptable no matter how bad the team is. Continuously rolling out players no matter how lazy or poor they are playing is insulting to everything this franchise was built on.

 

[Bleedred]

LJ is Salvador bad, that's saying something. Sal was completely shot near the end. At this point LJ even scares me if he got only third pairing and PK mins.

Aside from the last 46 games of Salvador's career, I'd say Lovejoy has been worse. Salvador was injured 9 games into the 13-14 season, then came back right before New Years and was a complete and total liability by that point, which carried over into the 15 games he played in 14-15, before a season ending injury, which wound up being the end of his career after that. Salvador was bad in 12-13 for sure, but I don't think he was as bad as Lovejoy.

Keeping Lovejoy as the #2 defenseman is total incompetence here. It's not even like we have to play him as much as we do. I say, give Severson AND Merrill AND Santini more minutes for the final 8 games and let Lovejoy take a seat. And by take a seat, I mean on the bottom pairing with 15 or 16 minutes a night. Not as a healthy scratch, since we know that would NEVER happen.

LJ is worse than Salvador at the end. I am amazed at how detrimental he's been to this team and he's seemingly gotten significantly worse as the season has progressed.

I think we started training camp thinking he'd be a decent #4 guy, and a few weeks into the season it was apparent that he and Quincy weren't going to be a steadying influence at all.

I really don't need to see anymore of Prout, really - either.

At this point, it is Severson, Santini, Merrill, Greene and the rest is a tossup.

Moore and Auvitu at least have offensive upside and could potentially play in this league.

I didn't think Quincey was nearly as bad as Lovejoy, perhaps I'm in the minority, as I rarely complained about Quincey around here. At the same time, Quincey was rarely played beyond his capabilities here. He was a #6 defenseman that was used as a #5 on this team. Lovejoy is barely a #6, that is used as a #2. I'm just hoping it's a bad season and he bounces back next year and is at least competent in a middle pairing role. I still maintain he was a necessary evil to sign, or else we'd be using Helgeson every night or would have had to rush Santini, when we weren't really sure if he was ready or not.

I don't think anyone expected him to be this much of a disaster though, nor do I think Shero expected it. Hynes either still has yet to realize it, or this is part of tank commander Hynes master plan.

 

[Edmonton East]

Well 3 of us do.
Me, you and Bleed.

LJ cannot be a Devil by next training camp.

Didn't like the signing from day 1. I want him off the team or playing on the bottom pairing and seeing 15 or so a night.

Basically, if the team can get any top 4 dman in the offseason, kick Lovejoy to the curb.

 

[MadDevil]

I prefer to look at the positive side of things. Lovejoy is helping the tank.

 

[Blender]

If Lovejoy is left exposed, I doubt Las Vegas will even take him.

 

[MadDevil]

If Lovejoy is left exposed, I doubt Las Vegas will even take him.

I still think Moore makes the most sense for them to take. He's a good skater who occasionally does something good offensively, can be a threat in 3-on-3, and is only signed through next year. Compare that to an older, more expensive Lovejoy who is signed through 2018-19. Unless they're planning on using him just to soak up cap space.

 

[Bleedred]

Yeah

I think they won't even bother taking Lovejoy, but we should still expose him, just in case.

I think Moore is the lesser of two evils. He's faster, can make plays with the puck, Moore has 6 or 7 years of youth on Lovejoy. Not that I think Moore hasn't hit his ceiling yet, I think what you see is the best you'll get with him. Just something to take into consideration between the two.

The biggest factor is that Moore is used less per game and usually isn't given heavy PK minutes/end of game with the other teams goalie pulled/top paring/etc. Even if we lose Lovejoy, I don't think Hynes will put Moore in that role. That's the biggest thing for me and the biggest reason to hope for Lovejoy to be gone.

If Vegas takes Lovejoy and Boedker, I'll be a pig in ****.

 

[Bleedred]

I'm at the point where I'm annoyed this game went to overtime. I would have been happy with a win, but an OT loss where we never even had a chance in OT to score a goal, due to a penalty (soft call) because we were trapped in our end for the final handful of minutes of regulation?

Kinkaid stole the team a point. We gave up too many dangerous chances today. This game could have been 4-1. Felt like we gave up closer to 40 shots than just 32 shots.

 

[Blender]

Moore is bad defensively, but he is at least used closer to how he should be. Lovejoy is tossed out there to defend every lead, kill every penalty, etc. and he is just as much of a train wreck.

 

[Jets012]

Like I said, Moore could work on some teams. He's horrific in his own zone and a major liability possession wise, but with his skating ability he does chip in with some offense on the 5 on 5 and the 3 on 3.

However since we have such a poor possession team as it is, it doesn't make sense to keep him around. That's just based on the current make-up of the team. If we had better defenseman/forwards at limiting chances and creating chances, sure than Moore could work as a sheltered player on the bottom pair. But we do not, so Moore should go.