Proposal: The Devils desperately need goaltending, and are willing to overpay

[HugeInTheShire]

That totally makes sense and I don’t think anyone is discounting that it’s the fact that he’s blocked by Hamilton, Marino and Nemec.

You have to trade something to get something…it’s just odd to see him as almost untouchable

I don't think Casey should be off the table at all, I don't know that Ullmark is the guy they'd sacrifice him for though. I think there is a genuine concern that Ullmark is benefiting from a goaltender friendly system in Boston and that might not translate to success in a much different system in NJ.

He'd definitely be an upgrade on their current duo, but I could see them once again balking at the price. Especially if the cost is Casey plus a high pick.

Plus Casey grew up a Devils fan and was extra excited to be drafted by his favorite team, knowing they'd be crushing his childhood dream, before he played a game would be a tough pill for fans to swallow, as they can't help but see this player as a fellow fan, and not an asset.

 

[Xirik]

If I could know that Ullmark greatness was 100% him and not the team playing in front of him I would trade for him in a second. For the last 10+ years the Bruins have had good defensive structure and its hard to tell how much the goaltending is affected by that.

If he joins the Devils would he be standing tall above Schmid and Vanecek or will we have traded good assets for just a slightly better goalie? Bruins fans especially should know how asset management is and how making a bad trade can sink your chances of getting the cup. a lot of Bruins trades helped the team but some didn't and eventually you have a bare cupboard where all you have is Lysell.

The Devils cupboards may be full but they still should exercise caution before making huge trades.

 

[HBK27]

That totally makes sense and I don’t think anyone is discounting that it’s the fact that he’s blocked by Hamilton, Marino and Nemec.

You have to trade something to get something…it’s just odd to see him as almost untouchable

Casey almost assuredly would need to spend next season in the AHL if he decides to leave Michigan, after which point Hamilton could become expendable.

Hamilton has already lost his role on PP1 to Luke Hughes, which hurts his value to the team - especially as he's not contributing on the PK. I'm sure NJ could also use his $9M cap hit elsewhere, especially given that Luke Hughes' next contract kicks in for the 2025-2026 season. If Nemec can start to show he's capable of becoming a top pairing defensemen by then, that really makes Hamilton expendable.

Hamilton's NMC changes to a 10 team trade list prior to the 2025-2026 season, as which point he'd be 32 years old and owed just $14.65M in actual salary for the remaining 3 years on his contract. Not easy to move as he can easily set up his trade protection in a way that he'd have to approve any trade, but not impossible either.

 

[My3Sons]

I guess every person needs to define what a "write-off" actually means. For me, it's building off of last year's successful season and pushing further than last year's playoff results. For you, maybe you're fine having a year of transition, where you are building up the experience levels of some of your young players and getting a better feel of what you have in goaltending and that's cool if you want to lower your expectations.

Where was the reasonable bar of expectations for Devils fans going into the season and has your mindset changed 14 games in?

I don't think many NJ posters expected a seamless transition losing 1/3 of the defense. I recall a fair number of posters acknowledging the team was likely to backslide a bit. The team went from picking second overall in the draft to being third overall in the league in one off season. That's a dramatic swing. They were not as terrible a team as the record showed the year before and they were overachieving last season. If they finish in a playoff position while adding Luke Hughes, Bahl, and Holtz that's not terrible. Beyond that they are integrating a bunch of new veterans (Meier, Toffoli, Nosek, and Lazar - some spent some time with NJ last year but this was their first training camp with them) into what is a complicated (and in my view mediocre) defensive system. Oh, and what was their record with Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier playing versus those two not playing? Again, putting all of that on one goalie is unrealistic.

 

[Score8]

Ulmark for hiscier

 

[Score8]

Ulmark for hiscier

What!?! It said willing to overpay!

 

[HugeInTheShire]

What!?! It said willing to overpay!

Are you actually talking to yourself in an attempt to have your troll job work?

Yes, yes you are.

 

[Score8]

Are you actually talking to yourself in an attempt to have your troll job work?

Yes, yes you are.

In case the obvious was not obvious for some of you, it was sarcasm in response to the title of “willing to overpay “ . Settle down Francis.

 

[Score8]

Are you actually talking to yourself in an attempt to have your troll job work?

Yes, yes you are.

You must be a blast to hang out with.

 

[Smitty426]

I don't think many NJ posters expected a seamless transition losing 1/3 of the defense. I recall a fair number of posters acknowledging the team was likely to backslide a bit. The team went from picking second overall in the draft to being third overall in the league in one off season. That's a dramatic swing. They were not as terrible a team as the record showed the year before and they were overachieving last season. If they finish in a playoff position while adding Luke Hughes, Bahl, and Holtz that's not terrible. Beyond that they are integrating a bunch of new veterans (Meier, Toffoli, Nosek, and Lazar - some spent some time with NJ last year but this was their first training camp with them) into what is a complicated (and in my view mediocre) defensive system. Oh, and what was their record with Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier playing versus those two not playing? Again, putting all of that on one goalie is unrealistic.

Well said

 

[HugeInTheShire]

In case the obvious was not obvious for some of you, it was sarcasm in response to the title of “willing to overpay “ . Settle down Francis.

I don't know this Francis you speak of.

and in case it wasn't obvious by my laughing at your post, I'm fully aware and was attempting to play along.

You must be a blast to hang out with.

Yes, I am.

I'm a massive fan of me.

 

[Score8]

I don't know this Francis you speak of.

and in case it wasn't obvious by my laughing at your post, I'm fully aware and was attempting to play along.

Okay my bad then, carry on! Fyi look up the movie stripes with bill Murray and just Google Francis .

 

[HugeInTheShire]

Okay my bad then, carry on! Fyi look up the movie stripes with bill Murray and just Google Francis .

LMAO, Surely you can't be serious... I'm old so, I've seen Stripes and will gladly exchange quotes from old movies with ya.

 

[Score8]

Game on!

 

[Zippy316]

I really don’t see who the Devils would add that makes sense.

The only option out there who might be available and could be a nice stop gap to get Schmid some time is Comrie.

Even then, I don’t think I’d give up much there. Definitely nothing that would incentivize Sabres to move him any time soon. He’s also injured now and they’re struggling a bit, they likely want to wait and see if he can be a spark.

Stolarz would be another option once Knight moves back up to the Panthers, if they feel his issues are behind him.

 

[The Flying Octopus]

Jack Hughes for Lyons straight up

 

[HugeInTheShire]

Jack Hughes for Lyons straight up

How many Alex Lyon are we talking about?

I really don’t see who the Devils would add that makes sense.

The only option out there who might be available and could be a nice stop gap to get Schmid some time is Comrie.

Even then, I don’t think I’d give up much there. Definitely nothing that would incentivize Sabres to move him any time soon. He’s also injured now and they’re struggling a bit, they likely want to wait and see if he can be a spark.

Stolarz would be another option once Knight moves back up to the Panthers, if they feel his issues are behind him.

Vladar makes sense as well, he's not really much of an upgrade but at least it prevents Schmid from getting lit up every start.

 

[Kane One]

What’s the Devils cap situation? They can probably get Jack Campbell for dirt cheap even with a lot of the cap hit retained.

He sucks, but maybe he can bounce back and the Devils don’t really have much to lose with him.

 

[Zippy316]

How many Alex Lyon are we talking about?


Vladar makes sense as well, he's not really much of an upgrade but at least it prevents Schmid from getting lit up every start.

Vladar has an extra year I believe. I don’t believe the Devils want to make that commitment at his AAV.

I think the better option is to try to grab a pending UFA in that “good backup tier”. Teams really don’t want to give up goalies either, so it would have to ones that look expendable.

Comrie with UPL and Levi as a trio could be the odd man out eventually. Stolarz if Knight returns is in the same boat. Reimer is another one if the Red Wings want to go with Lyon as a back up.

What’s the Devils cap situation? They can probably get Jack Campbell for dirt cheap even with a lot of the cap hit retained.

He sucks, but maybe he can bounce back and the Devils don’t really have much to lose with him.

No thanks. Devils already have their version of Campbell in Vanecek who is signed for less years and less AAV.

If we’re going to take a shot in the dark on a bad contract goalie, it would be Gibson. Even that is probably a no.

 

[HugeInTheShire]

Vladar has an extra year I believe. I don’t believe the Devils want to make that commitment at his AAV.

I think the better option is to try to grab a pending UFA in that “good backup tier”. Teams really don’t want to give up goalies either, so it would have to ones that look expendable.

Comrie with UPL and Levi as a trio could be the odd man out eventually. Stolarz if Knight returns is in the same boat. Reimer is another one if the Red Wings want to go with Lyon as a back up.

I'd consider taking a shot with Vladar, he'd be movable in the offseason if he doesn't perform.

I don't really see a midseason addition helping too much though.

 

[ChrisProngersEYE]

It's way early, and perhaps Vanacek and Schmid prove to be the real deal, but through four games it seems that netminding will be the major stumbling block for an otherwise stacked NJ team (who could see that coming lol).

Fitzgerald is obviously aware of this, and I suspect he will do something to address the issue by the TDL.

But what are the realistic options out there considering available players and cap concerns?

Bueller? Anyone?

Okay here is what I'm gonna do for ya Capitals offer
Keumper 5.2x4
Jensen 4 x 3
Mantha 1/2 retained 2.3 x 0 currently on IR likely LTIR

for

Siegebthaler 3.4 x 5
Vanecek 3.4 x 2
2025 San Jose lottery 1st

Kuemper fixes the goal problem, Jensen will not be better than Sieg but will do as a replacement to help Kuemper. Caps can roll with Lindy and Vanecek while paying to fix a boneheaded move by the Caps GM when he traded Sieg and shedding Mantha in the process.

Kuemper could be the key to a Jersey Cup, how much is that worth? Afterwards devils still have cap space to play with.

Mantha gots knocked upside his head with a puck and it perforated his ear drum, he will need surgery. A surgery which I have had several times. He should be down for about 3 months if not more. You can figure out how to dump him before TDL. 2.3 won't be much to shed to put towards another gem in pursuit of the cup.

/ducksandcovers /postreply

 

[Xirik]

What’s the Devils cap situation? They can probably get Jack Campbell for dirt cheap even with a lot of the cap hit retained.

He sucks, but maybe he can bounce back and the Devils don’t really have much to lose with him.

I do think the Oilers killed Campbell and he is better then what he has been showing recently but at this point he has to be having terrible self confidence problems. If he lost his first game after being traded I would worry for his life. He obviously cares and wants to be a good goaltender but something is just not working out for him.

 

[CellyHard]

Casey almost assuredly would need to spend next season in the AHL if he decides to leave Michigan, after which point Hamilton could become expendable.

Hamilton has already lost his role on PP1 to Luke Hughes, which hurts his value to the team - especially as he's not contributing on the PK. I'm sure NJ could also use his $9M cap hit elsewhere, especially given that Luke Hughes' next contract kicks in for the 2025-2026 season. If Nemec can start to show he's capable of becoming a top pairing defensemen by then, that really makes Hamilton expendable.

Hamilton's NMC changes to a 10 team trade list prior to the 2025-2026 season, as which point he'd be 32 years old and owed just $14.65M in actual salary for the remaining 3 years on his contract. Not easy to move as he can easily set up his trade protection in a way that he'd have to approve any trade, but not impossible either.

I guess that makes sense and to each your own but don’t you think that puts right back in the same situation you are this year by breaking in two rookie defenseman on the right side like you are with Hughes and Bahl now? Nevertheless losing a premier defender in Hamilton.

I feel like that’s something a rebuilding team would do. You guys are really close to making a big push and it seems like teams tend to go in the opposite direction by moving a blocked or redundant prospect for help elsewhere.

I mean you guys have like two #1 centers, elite wingers, a #1 dman and potentially two on the way…it’s almost go time for y’all IMO

 

[Xirik]

I guess that makes sense and to each your own but don’t you think that puts right back in the same situation you are this year by breaking in two rookie defenseman on the right side like you are with Hughes and Bahl now? Nevertheless losing a premier defender in Hamilton.

I feel like that’s something a rebuilding team would do. You guys are really close to making a big push and it seems like teams tend to go in the opposite direction by moving a blocked or redundant prospect for help elsewhere.

I mean you guys have like two #1 centers, elite wingers, a #1 dman and potentially two on the way…it’s almost go time for y’all IMO

Hamilton is not a premier defender and sometimes is a defensive liability, lucky for him he can score goals and QB a powerplay and that outweighs his deficiencies in defending.

I do see your point about breaking in another defenseman next year which could cause problems but there honestly I think Hamiltons spot is easier to fill then Severson and Graves were.

 

[2014nyr]

i wont be greedy and ask for jack...louis domingue for bratt