GDT: Islanders (31-27-9) @ Devils (24-38-6) - 4:00PM - TNT/SN360

[Devs3cups]

The more I'm looking at the Jack hit, thee more it looks like a thigh/Charley horse type deal, rather than the knee.

 

[Hisch13r]

The goaltending is really glaring in these close games, like the last two days, both one goal losses. More so in the Florida game where we scored 6 goals.

It was meaningless in the 7 goal loss against Boston.

I wouldn't say it was completely meaningless in the Boston game because it killed their will in that game. I still don't think they would've won that game but it mentally drained them super early on.

 

[glenwo2]

Bratt looks completely disinterested.

Considering where the team is right now, and how crappy our goaltending situation is.....

...wouldn't YOU be?

Yes, we can all speculate that contract talks are on his mind but that's not a valid excuse.

It's just, as NJDevs26 pointed out, him going cold for a bit.

It happens.

He still remains a threat on the ice even when cold and teams have to account for him or he'd get hot in a hurry again.

i have no specifics its a broad question... i think bratt is dynamic and highly skilled. my point is if this team opted for a blockbuster trade my guess is bratt would be part of it....

emphasis on the word "guess" 'cause that's all it is and we really don't know nor will ever know what Fitz's plans would be.

Ya not Bratt . We have enough good assets to acquire good interior players without trading away a dynamic young elite winger . No chance on trading Bratt unless he refuses to sign .

If Bratt refuses to sign, then I'm off the Unicorn train.

And getting on the Hughes one.

(but he will sign because it would make no sense for him not to)

For the moment

It's actually three (remember HersheyBob and that Amerisuomi Kiekko guy?).

BTW, do you recall someone who used to have a name Spoiled_Bratt or something around here? lol.

 

[NjdevilfanJim]

I’m sure Subban is so thankful that he got tossed out of game and didn’t have to answer to Ross Johnston, who is a terribly scary guy.

Johnston wouldn’t have done shit to Subban. He would have just taken out Jesper or Nico or someone else good.

Then why didn't he do anything that isn't true....Johnston would have definitely looked to fight Subban not go out of his way to hit Nico which he could have done but didn't do it ....If we had Johnston on our team that hit probably doesn't happen.. That said Hughes has to absorb the hit there not turn away from it.....I've seen Wallstrom do dirty shit before and he was definitely lining up Hughes but that too is hockey maybe Hughes turning away helped make it a knee to knee or thigh not sure....

 

[NjdevilfanJim]

As far as an extra defenseman for next year what do you guys think of Brendan Smith he has been played at both spots on D though he's a LHD and played on wing....He also brings physical play with him and will drop gloves if necessary....

 

[TheUnseenHand]

Then why didn't he do anything that isn't true....Johnston would have definitely looked to fight Subban not go out of his way to hit Nico which he could have done but didn't do it ....If we had Johnston on our team that hit probably doesn't happen.. That said Hughes has to absorb the hit there not turn away from it.....I've seen Wallstrom do dirty shit before and he was definitely lining up Hughes but that too is hockey maybe Hughes turning away helped make it a knee to knee or thigh not sure....

That's a ridiculous statement. We could have anyone in the league and that hit would still happen. It wasn't even a big hit. It was a normal course of play thing. You could have a full team of goons and that hit would still happen multiple times a game.

 

[HersheyBob27]

Considering where the team is right now, and how crappy our goaltending situation is.....

...wouldn't YOU be?

Yes, we can all speculate that contract talks are on his mind but that's not a valid excuse.

It's just, as NJDevs26 pointed out, him going cold for a bit.

It happens.

He still remains a threat on the ice even when cold and teams have to account for him or he'd get hot in a hurry again.


emphasis on the word "guess" 'cause that's all it is and we really don't know nor will ever know what Fitz's plans would be.



If Bratt refuses to sign, then I'm off the Unicorn train.

And getting on the Hughes one.

(but he will sign because it would make no sense for him not to)


It's actually three (remember HersheyBob and that Amerisuomi Kiekko guy?).

BTW, do you recall someone who used to have a name Spoiled_Bratt or something around here? lol.

What did I do Mr Wu

 

[Buck Dancer]

Considering where the team is right now, and how crappy our goaltending situation is.....

...wouldn't YOU be?

Yes, we can all speculate that contract talks are on his mind but that's not a valid excuse.

It's just, as NJDevs26 pointed out, him going cold for a bit.

It happens.

He still remains a threat on the ice even when cold and teams have to account for him or he'd get hot in a hurry again.

Going cold is one thing but looking disinterested in a contract year is a bad look, if that’s the case.

Those are little things that Fitz will be able to take to the bank when talking with Bratt’s agent and one of the reasons I don’t see him getting Nico money. I think the offer is in the 6M$ to 6.5M$ range, which is perfectly okay for a player that’s put up one solid season stats wise.

 

[NjdevilfanJim]

That's a ridiculous statement. We could have anyone in the league and that hit would still happen. It wasn't even a big hit. It was a normal course of play thing. You could have a full team of goons and that hit would still happen multiple times a game.

Ridiculous bit of overreaction I think...One thing I know for sure is Players like Johnston serve a purpose and are needed....Barzal won't get hit like that....I did not say it was dirty or totally clean maybe by Hughes trying to turn away from it made him more vulnerable to injury but no doubt Wallstrom was lining him up ....like I said that is hockey....Subban did right thing....

 

[HersheyBob27]

Hey I wonder why we are losing.

Our 4th line sucks. McLeod is bad, Bastian is meh, Vesey is okay on the pk. They’re replaceable and plugs.


Matching up your worst line against the other teams best is genuinely stupid

Lmao
Ya we all saw on saturday how our top six guys defend when the other team loads up. Nico is the only one that can play even a little D. Vesey and bastian seemed to hardly play in the third and they are two of our better defending forwards

 

[Better Call Sal]

To attempt to look at some positives (I know, I know):

I can't wait to see Nico playing meaningful games when the time comes. He does every single thing you want out of one of your top 2 centers, one of your leaders and hasn't shown an ounce of quit all season long.

I liked how Mercer played overall last night and, if god forbid Jack is out for a prolonged period of time, wouldn't mind seeing him back at center to see what he can do. His line had the most jump in the 3rd with Johnsson and Tatar.

Speaking of Tatar, I still feel if you're looking at wingers that are expendable (Zacha, Johnsson, Kuokkanen etc.) that Tatar is last on that list. You can slot him up and down the lineup and not really lose anything. He is still noticeable out there even when he's not producing. If I had to choose two wingers that are on the chopping block first, it'd be Zacha and Johnsson.

Lastly, I think Kuokkanen deserves another shot next year. He is cheap, cost controlled for another year, can play both wings and be a bottom 6/spare option when needed. I like what he's shown the last two games.

 

[Buck Dancer]

To attempt to look at some positives (I know, I know):

I can't wait to see Nico playing meaningful games when the time comes. He does every single thing you want out of one of your top 2 centers, one of your leaders and hasn't shown an ounce of quit all season long.

I liked how Mercer played overall last night and, if god forbid Jack is out for a prolonged period of time, wouldn't mind seeing him back at center to see what he can do. His line had the most jump in the 3rd with Johnsson and Tatar.

Speaking of Tatar, I still feel if you're looking at wingers that are expendable (Zacha, Johnsson, Kuokkanen etc.) that Tatar is last on that list. You can slot him up and down the lineup and not really lose anything. He is still noticeable out there even when he's not producing. If I had to choose two wingers that are on the chopping block first, it'd be Zacha and Johnsson.

Lastly, I think Kuokkanen deserves another shot next year. He is cheap, cost controlled for another year, can play both wings and be a bottom 6/spare option when needed. I like what he's shown the last two games.

I agree with your first couple of points and not so much with the others.

Zacha would be the last player I'd look to move in the group you pulled up but the fact that we'll have to give him a new deal makes it more complicated than we would like. With that said, I think we'll see moves implecating Johnsson (rumoured to go to Arizona for contract puroposes) and Zacha because I don't think we want to give him a LTC. As for Tatar, I'm sure we'd be happy if someone, anyone, would take him off our hands but his whopping 4.5M$ contract and his very average play makes it borderline impossible to move.

As for Kuokkanen, I wouldn't mind keeping him as a 13th forward but I think it's time to move on from these players that don't bring anything of substance to our team. I'd bring back Vesey over Kuokkanen for the simple fact that one is very effective on the PK but I think our 4th line is already set with Wood-McLeod-Bastian. If that's the case, there's really no place for guys like Vesey or Kuokkanen other than being the 13th forward. We need guys that will be able to play defense, play a physical game or help on the PK if they're not going to contribute offensively.

 

[njdevils1982]

watched the recording late last night and holy shit hamilton......what the hell? how many times did a forward have to cover for him due to idiotic pinches low and then trying to get back trailing the play.

get your head in the game or sit in stands at eat pizza


....also, boq was flying out there, skated well

 

[Better Call Sal]

I agree with your first couple of points and not so much with the others.

Zacha would be the last player I'd look to move in the group you pulled up but the fact that we'll have to give him a new deal makes it more complicated than we would like. With that said, I think we'll see moves implecating Johnsson (rumoured to go to Arizona for contract puroposes) and Zacha because I don't think we want to give him a LTC. As for Tatar, I'm sure we'd be happy if someone, anyone, would take him off our hands but his whopping 4.5M$ contract and his very average play makes it borderline impossible to move.

As for Kuokkanen, I wouldn't mind keeping him as a 13th forward but I think it's time to move on from these players that don't bring anything of substance to our team. I'd bring back Vesey over Kuokkanen for the simple fact that one is very effective on the PK but I think our 4th line is already set with Wood-McLeod-Bastian. If that's the case, there's really no place for guys like Vesey or Kuokkanen other than being the 13th forward. We need guys that will be able to play defense, play a physical game or help on the PK if they're not going to contribute offensively.

I think with Zacha, it's simply time for a fresh start. We have a lot of control with things on his side since he's still an RFA. If you offer him a new contract, what does it look like? I really think only a one year deal makes any sense for the organization.

I also think you're overblowing the stuff with Tatar. He's not as productive as he once was but I find him to be far more noticeable on a game by game basis than either Zacha or Johnsson. And that's useful for the middle six where you can put him on PP2 (hopefully a new staff will find a way to get the PP humming next year) and move him around the lineup and not miss a beat. He's signed for one more year. $4.5 mil is hardly a whopper of a cap hit. If you really insisted on moving him, you could eat half of that for one season and it not affect a thing.

Lastly, with Kuokkanen, it's more the fact that it doesn't harm us to keep him around. He doesn't need to be in the lineup every night if he isn't performing, but he's hardly someone that has to be moved out for the sake of change. If he is, so be it, but I don't feel it's a necessity.

 

[Buck Dancer]

I think with Zacha, it's simply time for a fresh start. We have a lot of control with things on his side since he's still an RFA. If you offer him a new contract, what does it look like? I really think only a one year deal makes any sense for the organization.

I also think you're overblowing the stuff with Tatar. He's not as productive as he once was but I find him to be far more noticeable on a game by game basis than either Zacha or Johnsson. And that's useful for the middle six where you can put him on PP2 (hopefully a new staff will find a way to get the PP humming next year) and move him around the lineup and not miss a beat. He's signed for one more year. $4.5 mil is hardly a whopper of a cap hit. If you really insisted on moving him, you could eat half of that for one season and it not affect a thing.

Lastly, with Kuokkanen, it's more the fact that it doesn't harm us to keep him around. He doesn't need to be in the lineup every night if he isn't performing, but he's hardly someone that has to be moved out for the sake of change. If he is, so be it, but I don't feel it's a necessity.

Zacha is getting moved, there was just too much smoke around the deadline to have him resign with us, even if it's for one year which would see him hit the market at the end of the year. Regarding Johnsson, for whatever reason, the second he's paired with Mercer, both guys seem to be humming out there. They played great with Bratt for a long stretch and they were our main offensive line when Jack was injured. As for Tatar, he just doesn't do much when he's not scoring and is a liability defensively. I guess it's not as important when he's playing 3rd line minutes but the second he get's moved up the lineup, that's where his defensive liability will bite us in the ass when playing against better competition.

To me, players that don't bring much of anything outside of a point here and there isn't what I want on my roster. I'll take a defensive specialist who won't generate much over and offensive player that doesn't produce all that often and bring absolutely nothing else. He's somewhat useful on our 2nd PP unit because we don't have anyone better, which might be the reason why our PP is so awful. I would take Zacha on our PP way before Tatar. I would take Holtz next year on our PP way before Tatar. I would take Mercer on our PP way before Tatar. I would take Sharangovich on our PP way before Tatar. That's 4 forwards right there I would roll with Hamilton, on our 2nd wave. Unfortunatly for us, it looks like Zacha will be replaced with Tatar but whatever, it's just for a year so it's no big deal... unless Fitz can sign or trade for a top #6 forward this summer like Niederreiter, Nuke, etc.

 

[Triumph]

Zacha is getting moved, there was just too much smoke around the deadline to have him resign with us, even if it's for one year which would see him hit the market at the end of the year. Regarding Johnsson, for whatever reason, the second he's paired with Mercer, both guys seem to be humming out there. They played great with Bratt for a long stretch and they were our main offensive line when Jack was injured. As for Tatar, he just doesn't do much when he's not scoring and is a liability defensively. I guess it's not as important when he's playing 3rd line minutes but the second he get's moved up the lineup, that's where his defensive liability will bite us in the ass when playing against better competition.

To me, players that don't bring much of anything outside of a point here and there isn't what I want on my roster. I'll take a defensive specialist who won't generate much over and offensive player that doesn't produce all that often and bring absolutely nothing else. He's somewhat useful on our 2nd PP unit because we don't have anyone better, which might be the reason why our PP is so awful. I would take Zacha on our PP way before Tatar. I would take Holtz next year on our PP way before Tatar. I would take Mercer on our PP way before Tatar. I would take Sharangovich on our PP way before Tatar. That's 4 forwards right there I would roll with Hamilton, on our 2nd wave. Unfortunatly for us, it looks like Zacha will be replaced with Tatar but whatever, it's just for a year so it's no big deal... unless Fitz can sign or trade for a top #6 forward this summer like Niederreiter, Nuke, etc.

Again, this is stuff you can very easily look up. It took me 2 minutes to find this.

Mercer, Johnsson, Bratt: 56% Corsi, 62% shot share, 62% goal share,
Mercer with Johnsson, no Bratt: 47% Corsi, 47% shot share, 50% goal share

Mercer/Johnsson were together for a long time and they were not very good together.

Tatar is not a liability defensively.

 

[Buck Dancer]

Again, this is stuff you can very easily look up. It took me 2 minutes to find this.

Mercer, Johnsson, Bratt: 56% Corsi, 62% shot share, 62% goal share,
Mercer with Johnsson, no Bratt: 47% Corsi, 47% shot share, 50% goal share

Mercer/Johnsson were together for a long time and they were not very good together.

Tatar is not a liability defensively.

Yeah, having a rookie carry Johnsson and Tatar/Zacha was probably too big of an assignment for Mercer, which is perfectly normal.

If you're about to say that Tatar is the one that got that line humming yesterday, I'll just drop it, laugh a little and move on.

 

[Hisch13r]

I think with Zacha, it's simply time for a fresh start. We have a lot of control with things on his side since he's still an RFA. If you offer him a new contract, what does it look like? I really think only a one year deal makes any sense for the organization.

I also think you're overblowing the stuff with Tatar. He's not as productive as he once was but I find him to be far more noticeable on a game by game basis than either Zacha or Johnsson. And that's useful for the middle six where you can put him on PP2 (hopefully a new staff will find a way to get the PP humming next year) and move him around the lineup and not miss a beat. He's signed for one more year. $4.5 mil is hardly a whopper of a cap hit. If you really insisted on moving him, you could eat half of that for one season and it not affect a thing.

Lastly, with Kuokkanen, it's more the fact that it doesn't harm us to keep him around. He doesn't need to be in the lineup every night if he isn't performing, but he's hardly someone that has to be moved out for the sake of change. If he is, so be it, but I don't feel it's a necessity.

Kuokkanen's had great PK numbers this year too

 

[TBF1972]

I honestly don't know. I just know Ruff isn't on the list of 11 expiring and interim coaches they had on SN yesterday.

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