Prospect Info: MacKenzie Blackwood -G- (42nd Overall 2015)

[Lou is God]

Goaltenders are generic.

Tell the Flyers that.

 

[JimEIV]

This guy is the Devils 2nd best prospect behind McLeod. (Zacha doesn't count as prospect anymore)

Before his NHL appearance no one in the world would have called Blackwood the "2nd best prospect"

 

[Devils Dominion]

LOL bumping an old thread.

Just start a new one

 

[Tao Jersey Jones]

Blackwood's main issues in the AHL were overplaying the puck putting himself out of position (and the crease), going down too low on his knees and belly and giving up the top of the net...and consistency. He seems to have cleaned up the technical aspects and I think the consistency may have to do with the maturity/mentality issues Killer alluded to in Chris Ryan's article from yesterday morning.

 

[MadDevil]

LOL bumping an old thread.

Just start a new one

Says the guy who gave the Blackwood pick an F when it happened.

 

[Devils731]

Again with the "deep draft" talk. Is there any proof that the 2015 draft was deep and that moving back 6 spots was a mistake?

No. It’s just continuing to state a narrative over and over.

The 2015 and 2016 draft each have 1-2 impact 2nd rounders and a bunch of unproven stuff after.

 

[Devils731]

This will probably be a bad pick like Santini was a bad pick. Frustrating until we actually watch him play.

Fingers crossed still.

 

[Devils Dominion]

Says the guy who gave the Blackwood pick an F when it happened.

If I had the time and desire, I could dig up posts that didnt age well for everyone.

 

[JimEIV]

Again with the "deep draft" talk. Is there any proof that the 2015 draft was deep and that moving back 6 spots was a mistake?

We won't know for another 3 or 4 years at least. Most of the 2nd rounders are just making their debut.

But nearly the entire first round has played only 3 seasons past the draft...it's a very good draft already. Last year this draft was still CHL eligible...so not nearly enough time has passed to make any definitive judgement on the overall quality of this draft.

 

[devilsblood]

Before his NHL appearance no one in the world would have called Blackwood the "2nd best prospect"

Except he did. Check the date.

 

[Devils Dominion]

We are all ecstatic with Big Mac so far, fingers crossed that he's really something special.

 

[JimEIV]

Except he did. Check the date.

Lol.

 

[MadDevil]

If I had the time and desire, I could dig up posts that didnt age well for everyone.

Of course. It's just funny you complain about bumping this thread when there are posts of yours that didn't age well in it. Yet when likes were added as an option you went back and liked posts that agreed with yours from years ago. It's almost like you avoid admitting when you're wrong or something.

 

[Lou is God]

Blackwood's main issues in the AHL were overplaying the puck putting himself out of position (and the crease), going down too low on his knees and belly and giving up the top of the net...and consistency. He seems to have cleaned up the technical aspects and I think the consistency may have to do with the maturity/mentality issues Killer alluded to in Chris Ryan's article from yesterday morning.

He's learned how to use that big frame to his advantage, I think learning to do something like that requires a lot of discipline and self-awareness, qualities that we're starting to see in him.

 

[My3Sons]

Still a bad pick no matter how it turns out.... using a #36 in a deep draft on a goalie, the most unpredictable position in sports, is moronic...if it turns out well it's just Forrest Gump stupidity.

What if your scouting staff has a consensus that the second round skaters are worthy of being picked anywhere from 20-45 but they have the goalie at 15? I just think it’s a BPA issue although I understand your rationale.

 

[Devils Dominion]

GAA: 1.25
Sv%: .963

 

[Wingman77]

Understood, however look at how barren at forward we are right now - who do we have to lean on to provide us with what we need, Matteau, Boucher, Coleman, Quennenville, Zacha?

If we literally were not so poorly stocked and had a couple of more forwards with stronger upside to lean on for hope, sure I can somewhat understand and make an argument for taking a goalie this early, however we aren't in that position and that is why it makes it even more inexcusable.

Reflecting on my thoughts from earlier in the thread in 2015 - when he was drafted after Zacha, the below lineup was what our forward situation was shaping up to be going into camp. The likes of Matteau, Boucher and Coleman were the guys we would have to fall back on with little else in the pipeline outside of Quenneville and Zacha who were long shots to even be ready for NHL time. Kalinin was a long shot too at that point.

Guys like Stempniak, Tlusty, Kennedy, and Farnham were all brought in to round that lineup out eventually. Palmieri was even a question mark in a sense because, was what we saw in Anaheim the regular Palmieri or was some of the potential he showed just waiting to ooze out with a bigger opportunity available here in NJ? We didn't know either way. Josefson, Tootoo, Ruutu, and Gionta weren't long term guys, rather fillers because of how shallow the forward depth was. So in essence at the time, Cammalleri, Zajac, Henrique, and to a lesser extent Palmieri were the only guys that we really had going for us towards the future.

Mike Cammalleri-Travis Zajac-Kyle Palmieri
Adam Henrique-Jacob Josefson-Jordin Tootoo
Tuomo Ruutu-Stephen Gionta-?
?-?-?

Given the above at the time, I still look at the decision to draft him as early as we did as risky and questionable. Objectively I understand that more goalies than not tend to develop slower and Cory would be a few years older and likely near the end of his deal by that time so that possibility for this to work was there in that regard with hopefully more forward depth to be built upon in that time.

Now in hindsight, while it is just 4 games, the more and more we have seen from Blackwood so far, the more promise we see. Hopefully there really is something there with him, but it doesn't change that it was an interesting pick at the time. The amount of valid points on both sides of the argument from Devils fans says as much.

Yeah but you don't know what their take was, if he was drafted because Shero or someone saw something in the kid and they've been proven right, you can't possibly call it a bad pick, you're making it sound like all goalies are gambles and stumbling on one has all to do more with pure luck and not possibly exceptional scouting.

Technically that 2015 draft was Lou and Conte, and their last in NJ at that. Depending on how that draft impacts the team in the future, it would be a neat little piece of trivia knowing who had what sort of hand in that pick and others in that draft. While common sense would say much of it largely came from Lou/Conte/crew scouting those 2015 guys for a season or two in advance, did Shero or somebody close with him happen to have intel on Blackwood and it was a mutual decision between Lou/Conte/Shero?

 

[Devil X]

Reflecting on my thoughts from earlier in the thread in 2015 - when he was drafted after Zacha, the below lineup was what our forward situation was shaping up to be going into camp. The likes of Matteau, Boucher and Coleman were the guys we would have to fall back on with little else in the pipeline outside of Quenneville and Zacha who were long shots to even be ready for NHL time. Kalinin was a long shot too at that point.

Guys like Stempniak, Tlusty, Kennedy, and Farnham were all brought in to round that lineup out eventually. Palmieri was even a question mark in a sense because, was what we saw in Anaheim the regular Palmieri or was some of the potential he showed just waiting to ooze out with a bigger opportunity available here in NJ? We didn't know either way. Josefson, Tootoo, Ruutu, and Gionta weren't long term guys, rather fillers because of how shallow the forward depth was. So in essence at the time, Cammalleri, Zajac, Henrique, and to a lesser extent Palmieri were the only guys that we really had going for us towards the future.

Mike Cammalleri-Travis Zajac-Kyle Palmieri
Adam Henrique-Jacob Josefson-Jordin Tootoo
Tuomo Ruutu-Stephen Gionta-?
?-?-?

Given the above at the time, I still look at the decision to draft him as early as we did as risky and questionable. Objectively I understand that more goalies than not tend to develop slower and Cory would be a few years older and likely near the end of his deal by that time so that possibility for this to work was there in that regard with hopefully more forward depth to be built upon in that time.

Now in hindsight, while it is just 4 games, the more and more we have seen from Blackwood so far, the more promise we see. Hopefully there really is something there with him, but it doesn't change that it was an interesting pick at the time. The amount of valid points on both sides of the argument from Devils fans says as much.



Technically that 2015 draft was Lou and Conte, and their last in NJ at that. Depending on how that draft impacts the team in the future, it would be a neat little piece of trivia knowing who had what sort of hand in that pick and others in that draft. While common sense would say much of it largely came from Lou/Conte/crew scouting those 2015 guys for a season or two in advance, did Shero or somebody close with him happen to have intel on Blackwood and it was a mutual decision between Lou/Conte/Shero?

Im not sure if it was an article or a story somewhere maybe even a Devils pre-game broadcast. But someone said that Shero let Lou and Conte take pick 1 in 2015 but when the second round pick came along he made the call over the rest for Blackwood. No Im not sure how true that can be given that at the time Lou was in charge and i dont believe for the life of me Lou would get forced into anything. But thats sure the way they made it sound.

 

[PKs Broken Stick]

Im not sure if it was an article or a story somewhere maybe even a Devils pre-game broadcast. But someone said that Shero let Lou and Conte take pick 1 in 2015 but when the second round pick came along he made the call over the rest for Blackwood. No Im not sure how true that can be given that at the time Lou was in charge and i dont believe for the life of me Lou would get forced into anything. But thats sure the way they made it sound.

For some reason I feel like I heard that shero wanted to take blackwood with the 1st pick. Obviously they probably were going to trade down if that happened.

 

[Richer's Ghost]

This pick will be judged on who passed on from #36 on in the 2nd round.


2 36 Ottawa Gabriel Gagne R Victoriaville Tigres [QMJHL]
2 37 Boston Brandon Carlo D Tri-City Americans [WHL]
2 38 Columbus Paul Bittner L Portland Winterhawks [WHL]
2 39 Colorado A.J. Greer L Boston University [H-East]
2 40 Colorado Nicolas Meloche D Baie-Comeau Drakkar [QMJHL]
2 41 NY Rangers Ryan Gropp L Seattle Thunderbirds [WHL]
2 42 New Jersey Mackenzie Blackwood G Barrie Colts [OHL]
2 43 Los Angeles Erik Cernak D Kosice HC [Slovak]
2 44 Tampa Bay Matthew Spencer D Peterborough Petes [OHL]
2 45 Boston Jakob Forsbacka-Karlsson C Omaha Lancers [USHL]
2 46 Pittsburgh Daniel Sprong R Charlottetown Islanders [QMJHL]
2 47 Winnipeg Jansen Harkins C Prince George Cougars [WHL]
2 48 Ottawa Filip Chlapik C Charlottetown Islanders [QMJHL]
2 49 Dallas Roope Hintz L Ilves Tampere [SM-liiga]
2 50 Minnesota Jordan Greenway L U.S. National Development Team [USHL]
2 51 Buffalo Brendan Guhle D Prince Albert Raiders [WHL]
2 52 Boston Jeremy Lauzon D Rouyn-Noranda Huskies [QMJHL]
2 53 Calgary Rasmus Andersson D Barrie Colts [OHL]
2 54 Chicago Graham Knott L Niagara IceDogs [OHL]
2 55 Nashville Yakov Trenin C Gatineau Olympiques [QMJHL]
2 56 St. Louis Vince Dunn D Niagara IceDogs [OHL]
2 57 Washington Jonas Siegenthaler D Zurich [Swiss-A]
2 58 Columbus Kevin Stenlund C HV71 Jrs (Sweden)
2 59 Anaheim Julius Nattinen C Jyp Jrs (Finland)
2 60 Calgary Oliver Kylington D Farjestads BK Karlstad [SweHL]
2 61 Toronto Jeremy Bracco R U.S. National Development Team [USHL]

Because this will be relevant in the very near future if not now. Sprong and Dunn are the 2 names that stick out to me as at least recognizable on the NHL rosters from a fantasy perspective. Given that goalies are supposed to be slower to make it to NHL level development I'd say the outlook is favorable at this point if Mac sticks for the season.

 

[Nightsquad]

Lol all the talking heads here make me laugh. Over analyzing as if we were among great hockey builders. MBW was a strong prospect. Played well at all levels of minor league hockey and juniors. Overzealous and anxious "fans" had written him off. The Devils under Lou always valued development and maturation all the way down to the ECHL levels. MBW needed time, needed to be tested, needed hard adversity which he got. People, just enjoy it, be fans, let the coaching and managing up to the professionals lol, just sayin!

 

[Cheddabombs]

also, low key, Blackwood looks like Mac Miller (RIP)

hope Mac can bless Blackwood with a great career

 

[Emperoreddy]

Remember when we didn’t need a goalie?

 

[Richer's Ghost]

Remember when we didn’t need a goalie?

And we won 3 (almost 4) cups?

I 'member...

 

[Emperoreddy]

And we won 3 (almost 4) cups?

I 'member...

It was amazing. Then he got old and his heir broke.

 

[JimEIV]

Because this will be relevant in the very near future if not now. Sprong and Dunn are the 2 names that stick out to me as at least recognizable on the NHL rosters from a fantasy perspective. Given that goalies are supposed to be slower to make it to NHL level development I'd say the outlook is favorable at this point if Mac sticks for the season.

7 players outside the first round of the 2015 have already played 70+ games. And that is going to more than double by the seasons end.... probably triple.

You're seeing guys like Anthony Cirelli from the 3rd round 72nd overall, Jotdan Greenway 2nd round 50th overall, Oliver Kylington 2nd round 60th overall, Jakob Karlsson 45th overall among others just getting their careers underway.... Blackwood is also one of them just getting his career started...Which is another interesting point...he is the second goalie from 2015 to get his career going...Adin Hill, 3rd round 76th overall was the 1st. None of it means anything right now and we won't know anything for years...

But It was an excellent draft, we were a team with very few prospects and I can never be convinced taking a goalie with the #36 overall was the right decision. Especially in a league where goaltending differences on a year to year basis are almost non-existent and largely determined by the strength of the team they play for.