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Devils aquire Sami Vatanen for Henrique + Blandisi + '18 3rd


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11 minutes ago, lazer said:

turns out this deal was real genius 

It is never wise to judge a deal this early on. Keep in mind Rod Pelley scored a goal his first game for the Ducks after we traded him (not that we got anything great back in Kurtis Foster) and he looked like Crosby doing it. I believe Shero when he says this trade is about the long term picture. And it makes sense, because Vatanen has an extra year over Henrique and he's a top-4  d-man, which we badly need. Greene's days as a 1D are numbered and Vatanen can't really fill that role either. There's more work to do on that front.

I hope Henrique is indeed able to produce for the Ducks. But don't confuse production on the Ducks with production on the Devils. If Adam scored 30 goals for the Ducks, it doesn't mean he would have done that had he stayed with us. Actually, it would only justify the trade more in a utilitarian sense. The Devils addressed a need with the trade, and didn't pay very much to do so. You can't ask for much more than that.

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On ‎12‎/‎2‎/‎2017 at 7:04 PM, RizzMB30 said:

2)  Why move Larsson if we are just going to acquire another righty in Vatanen?  It seems to be trading for trading sake at this point.  Just trading to shake things up.  I think a little more loyalty was owed to Henrique (and I'm saying that after the Larsson trade) and Shero even admitted (iirc) that it was one of the hardest talks he ever had to have with a player.  Maybe I've been brainwashed into thinking that we need a good balance of lefties and righties on defense.  
 

I think the argument there is that Hall/Vatanen > Henrique/Larsson.  

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24 minutes ago, NJDfan1711 said:

I think the argument there is that Hall/Vatanen > Henrique/Larsson.  

Rather, the argument is Hall was available and the cost to get him was Larsson.

We needed to replace Larsson, and the cost to do so was Henrique. 

Clearly nobody was thinking about Vatanen or Henrique when that deal was made. 

I don't know how much better Larsson is than Vatanen or vise versa; I simply haven't seen enough of Vatanen to know. But I'm pretty fvcking sure Hall beats Henrique. 

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1 hour ago, mfitz804 said:

Rather, the argument is Hall was available and the cost to get him was Larsson.

We needed to replace Larsson, and the cost to do so was Henrique. 

Clearly nobody was thinking about Vatanen or Henrique when that deal was made. 

I don't know how much better Larsson is than Vatanen or vise versa; I simply haven't seen enough of Vatanen to know. But I'm pretty fvcking sure Hall beats Henrique. 

Yeah exactly, plus, if Larsson doesn't develop into the player we think he can be, thenwe may win on both deals that were made.

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I was sad to see Henrique go because he was one of my favorite players, and probably my favorite through the tough times in recent years. But him being a core player became less and less relevant from the Palmieri trade, to the Hall trade, to drafting Nico. It seemed that these were the new players the team wanted to build around, even if Henrique seemed to be that player in the past. This was even more evident when Henrique didn't have a steady spot in the lineup this season. There was no longer a "Henrique" line; he sort of filled in spots wherever he was needed on any given game. That speaks volumes of his versatility, but it doesn't suggest he was a player the organization was building around. Then, add Zacha, Quenneville, and McLeod to the mix, and you've got a bunch of players capable of playing center, who soon may be able to give us what Henrique did and more.

Also, I do think that Larsson is a better player than Vatanen at the moment, but that is subject to change (hoping it does!). But if that doesn't have you convinced that Shero is not just trading for the sake of trading, Vatanen is a much different player from Larsson. Vatanen is much more offense-minded, and can handle a PP very well. He's got a great shot too, so he should be able to score some goals. He fills a role that was not the same role that Larsson had while he was here.

Regardless of the Hall + Vatanen > Henrique + Larsson argument, this is a trade that could really work out for us. It reminds me a bit of when the Devils got Zidlicky. In both cases, you're adding a player with a ton of talent, who is coming in to an organization that lacks a lot of what he can bring. Only in this case, the player is younger and can be a part of a long term plan. Zidlicky stepped up to the plate in a big way, and Vatanen will have a real opportunity to thrive here.

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yeah if were talking offensive talent. Vatanen is miles ahead of Larsson. Watching all those videos of Vatanan deking through guys like he was taken over by Mario Lemieux shows the skills he has. Plus Larsson played years for us and i can't think of a time that he actually deked someone... he made great passes and might beat you going around you here and there but he doesnt have the shot and hands Vatanen has for sure

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  • 2 weeks later...

Some Henrique quotes from Andrew Gross today via Twitter: 

The #Ducks - and Adam Henrique - practiced at Pru Center today in advance of tomorrow game vs. #NJDevils. Rico: "After the initial (trade) shock everything has settled down here. I think getting through tomorrow will certainly help moving forward. But it is nice to be back"

#Ducks Adam Henrique on how he expects #NJDevils fans to react to him: "I'm nervous, anxious, excited. A little bit of everything. People have been awesome ever since that day. I've got some very nice messages from fans."

Adam Henrique on #NJDevils fans: "Lots of people have reached out and said their thoughts. It’s a great feeling. That kind of helps the initial shock. You feel good about what you left behind and what I did in my time, not only at the rink but away from the rink as well."

#Ducks Adam Henrique on potential video tribute tomorrow and being back at Rock to face #NJDevils: "I don’t know what I’ll think. Honestly I'm going to try to not think about all that all day. But it’ll be hard not to. I’m sure it’ll be emotional."

:evil:

Also, two quotes from TG:  Tom Gulitti‏ Verified account @TomGulittiNHL

One thing that didn't make it into the Henrique story is that he said fans have been asking him already if he'd come back to NJ as a UFA after next season. He said he hasn't thought that far ahead, but noted Ray Shero told him he has a history of bringing back his former players.

Also, though Henrique's favorite on-ice memory is the obvious one, he mentioned a few times one of his favorite memories from the Devils-Rangers rivalry was game at MSG with 3 fights off opening faceoff. "That was one of best starts to any game I’ve ever been a part of."

ETA: TG's full article on AH coming back for Monday's game: https://www.nhl.com/news/adam-henrique-returns-to-new-jersey-to-play-with-ducks-vs-devils/c-294118740

Edited by LittleBallofHate
Link to TG's article
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59 minutes ago, Martyisth3b3st said:

Every time he touches the puck I want loud, building shattering cheers.

I’ll be there, and will give him a nice cheer at the first opportunity.  But dude, I have a life.  After that I’ll just enjoy the game as I usually do.  

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1 hour ago, Martyisth3b3st said:

Every time he touches the puck I want loud, building shattering cheers.

Yeah that’s a bit much. I’ll cheer for the guy when he takes the ice for the first time, but every time he touches the puck? That’s a bit much for me for Adam. 

Also, our fans don’t cheer that loudly for our current players...

Edited by mfitz804
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7 hours ago, LittleBallofHate said:

Some Henrique quotes from Andrew Gross today via Twitter: 

The #Ducks - and Adam Henrique - practiced at Pru Center today in advance of tomorrow game vs. #NJDevils. Rico: "After the initial (trade) shock everything has settled down here. I think getting through tomorrow will certainly help moving forward. But it is nice to be back"

#Ducks Adam Henrique on how he expects #NJDevils fans to react to him: "I'm nervous, anxious, excited. A little bit of everything. People have been awesome ever since that day. I've got some very nice messages from fans."

Adam Henrique on #NJDevils fans: "Lots of people have reached out and said their thoughts. It’s a great feeling. That kind of helps the initial shock. You feel good about what you left behind and what I did in my time, not only at the rink but away from the rink as well."

#Ducks Adam Henrique on potential video tribute tomorrow and being back at Rock to face #NJDevils: "I don’t know what I’ll think. Honestly I'm going to try to not think about all that all day. But it’ll be hard not to. I’m sure it’ll be emotional."

:evil:

Also, two quotes from TG:  Tom Gulitti‏ Verified account @TomGulittiNHL

One thing that didn't make it into the Henrique story is that he said fans have been asking him already if he'd come back to NJ as a UFA after next season. He said he hasn't thought that far ahead, but noted Ray Shero told him he has a history of bringing back his former players.

Also, though Henrique's favorite on-ice memory is the obvious one, he mentioned a few times one of his favorite memories from the Devils-Rangers rivalry was game at MSG with 3 fights off opening faceoff. "That was one of best starts to any game I’ve ever been a part of."

ETA: TG's full article on AH coming back for Monday's game: https://www.nhl.com/news/adam-henrique-returns-to-new-jersey-to-play-with-ducks-vs-devils/c-294118740

Sounds like his heart is very much still with the Devils.

That being said, man is he being overglorified in some circles.  He did some nice things (the "Henrique!  It's over!" moment, scoring 30 goals one season), and he seems like a great guy on and off the ice, but it wasn't that long ago that people were bitching about his lack of production, when he had one assist in a nine-game stretch.   And BTW he's now gone without a point in three straight with Anaheim...not knocking him, but his having been dealt for a need is not some travesty.  He deserves a nice opening cheer and then maybe a couple of others.  But nothing really more than that. 

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38 minutes ago, devlman said:

It's a refreshing change of pace to actually be able to cheer a player upon his return. Usually we're getting ready to boo the sh!t out of Parise, Gomez, Holik, etc...

Not for nothing, but it would be funny as sh!t if everyone booed him for like 5-8 seconds before starting to cheer. 

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  • 2 months later...

Since we have a few days before our next game and we're revisiting threads how about this one.

Vatanen now has 25 points in 45 games as a Devil. This all the while absolutely CARRYING our Captain and eating anywhere from 23-28 (!!) minutes a night on our top pair.

Henrique has been good for Anaheim... 27 points in 44 games. Still... think you gotta be crazy if you're not thrilled with this trade by now. He's been everything we needed. Obviously still need help on defense but acquiring him was a massive step in the right direction.

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13 minutes ago, mfitz804 said:

I don’t consider the trade a steal, but I’m happy and I definitely think we came out as the winner. 

Worked out well for both sides, really.  They had a need, Devils had one, and there was a match that made sense.

Devils did give up a little more the other way, though I consider Blandisi little more than a bag of pucks.  

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