Jack Hughes, Taylor Hall, PK Subban: Devils a contender?

[Devil made me do it]

Crazy talk. The Devils dont have a center anywhere on the level of ROR, Pietrangelo and Parayko are both better than Subban, Dunn is better than any defender the Devils have outside PK, and you have wildly unrealistic expectations if you think Blackwood will have anywhere near the season Binnington just did.

I would take Hughes+Hischier+Zajac over ROR any day of the week.
Pietrangelo, Parayko vs. Subban, Vatanen = Even
Dunn vs. Severson = Even
Hall vs. Tarasenko = Hall

Binnington was decent and had some clutch performances. Blackwood has an even bigger upside and is a more complete goalie. Started his NHL career with 2 straight shutouts.

 

[NJ DevLolz]

PK Subban is not very good.

Jesus christ.

Yeah, it's not like he was a Norris finalist 12 months ago or anything

 

[JT Kreider]

I would take Hughes+Hischier+Zajac over ROR any day of the week.
Pietrangelo, Parayko vs. Subban, Vatanen = Even
Dunn vs. Severson = Even

And if you're comparing center depth you also need to add Schenn, Bozak, Thomas, Barbashev and Sundqvist which is a clear favorite to STL.

Like seriously, imagine thinking Vatanen is anywhere on the level of Parayko. Yikes.

Its fine to admit that you're wrong with this one and the Blues are miles ahead of the Devils. They just won the freaking Cup, the Devils just drafted 1st overall for the 2nd time in the last 3 seasons.

 

[AfroThunder396]

If the Devils can add a legit top-6 winger in free agency/trade this summer, they'll be a team to look out for.

 

[Devil made me do it]

And if you're comparing center depth you also need to add Schenn, Bozak, Barbashev and Sundqvist which is a clear favorite to STL.

Clear favorite in the mind of a Rangers fan. But ask any other fan of other teams which trio of centers they would rather have and the response may not be to your liking.

Like seriously, imagine thinking Vatanen is anywhere on the level of Parayko. Yikes.

Both are top 4 pairing defensemen. Even if Parayko may be "considered" slightly above it is very close to call. Vatanen is a stud and true competitor.

Its fine to admit that you're wrong with this one and the Blues are miles ahead of the Devils. They just won the freaking Cup, the Devils just drafted 1st overall for the 2nd time in the last 3 seasons.

Colombus also swept Tampa Bay. They must be the better team according to your logic.

 

[JT Kreider]

Clear favorite in the mind of a Rangers fan. But ask any other fan of other teams which trio of centers they would rather have and the response may not be to your liking.



Both are top 4 pairing defensemen. Even if Parayko may be "considered" slightly above it is very close to call. Vatanen is a stud and true competitor.



Colombus also swept Tampa Bay. They must be the better team according to your logic.

Parayko isn't a "top 4 defensemen". Hes an elite top pairing, borderline franchise level defensemen.

 

[Cheddabombs]

can't single out a locker room cancer if the whole team is filled with them

 

[NJ DevLolz]

I would take Hughes+Hischier+Zajac over ROR any day of the week.
Pietrangelo, Parayko vs. Subban, Vatanen = Even
Dunn vs. Severson = Even
Hall vs. Tarasenko = Hall

Binnington was decent and had some clutch performances. Blackwood has an even bigger upside and is a more complete goalie. Started his NHL career with 2 straight shutouts.

Please stop

 

[The Devil In I]

I wish I had the level of optimism it takes to favorably compare Subban and Vatanen to the combo of Pietrangelo and Parayko...

 

[ItWasJustified]

Weren't the Blues not supposed to make the playoffs at the beginning of the year?

No? Most people thought the Blues was a playoff team before the season started.

 

[nashpreds]

Subban is really not very good.

We need dmen who can defend, Subban really doesn't help us with that. We're nowhere close to a contender.

You’ll be pleasantly surprised with how good Subban is defensively. It’s his foot speed that’s the only real concern on the ice

 

[BmxHockey]

Who is behind the bench?

 

[Neonmile]

I'm not exactly sure what this Devils team upside is. But they suddenly they now have a pretty nice collection of elite/high-end talent in Hall, Subban, Hishier and Hughes. In a strong-link sport like hockey, that's a pretty good start. Caveat is the large age gap between the two pair.

 

[TomasHertlsRooster]

The 1985 Oilers also had some holes:

? - ? - ?
Semenko - Anderson - ?
? - Gretzky - ?
? - Messier - Kurri

You really made this post. Like you really thought all of this, typed it out, and then decided it was a good idea to post it. Yikes.

 

[TeddyBare]

I would take Hughes+Hischier+Zajac over ROR any day of the week.
Pietrangelo, Parayko vs. Subban, Vatanen = Even

NO
Nope
Not even close
hell no

 

[Juicy Pop]

Weren't the Blues not supposed to make the playoffs at the beginning of the year? We saw how that turned out.

Devils have the same core as the team that made the Playoffs a couple of years ago but they have also added:

Jack Hughes
PK Subban
Ty Smith

The hell? The Blues were seen as a legitimate Cup threat after they nabbed ROR and filled out the bottom-6 with the likes of Bozak, Maroon, etc.

 

[Jersey Fresh]

This board picked NJ to be last in the league two years ago when they made the playoffs, so...

And this is a much better team on paper than that squad was (mind it's not even July yet, too).

 

[Stopsight]

They need more depth to be a contender but they can probably nab a divisional seed if things go well. There is still free agency to fill in, too.

 

[TheGoldenGod]

Today's Devils have more talent than the Blues team that just won the cup.

Lol

 

[Bramskii]

Well it's not a crazy statement. He didn't say the Devils were a better team but as far a just raw talent goes, you can make a good argument that the Devils might have more talented players

 

[Bleeker]

Not even close

 

[Mr Positive]

Parity is huge. There might not be such thing as a true contender anymore. I think the Devils will be a top team in the metro, so I say that qualifies

 

[TheUnseenHand]

My answer is no, but I feel a bit better going into this season than last season. This team could very well contend for a playoff spot. They have some depth issues, and goaltending is something we just don't know about yet, but there is also some high end skill there. I'm very interested to see how Boqvist looks in camp.

 

[Joey Moss]

Not even a playoff team.

 

[BlueBaron]

Contender is optimistic. Rare for a rookie C to lead a team to a cup. Looking like a playoff team though.