Triumph Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 if this has nothing to do with it then the move makes no sense. To send Boucher down after a solid game and him just starting to click with jagr only to replace him with a player with 0 nhl games is not a good move unless there are other factors involved. This is Lou we're talking about, there are always ulterior motives and secondary reasons. I don't know if I would call Boucher's game solid. There were I believe 3 plays where Jagr passed the puck to nobody and that nobody was probably where Boucher should have been. Now only the Devils know whose error that is, but if it was Reid's I can see why they sent him down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmann422 Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 I don't know if I would call Boucher's game solid. There were I believe 3 plays where Jagr passed the puck to nobody and that nobody was probably where Boucher should have been. Now only the Devils know whose error that is, but if it was Reid's I can see why they sent him down. that's fair but I guess the larger point is they just had they're most impressive game by far this season. granted the blues looked like they were sleeping throughout the game, but if there is no other reason then it seems like change for change's sake.They've put up with boucher's learning curve so far, so why all of a sudden does he need to go down for Whitney? I could see if it was for Harrold or Larsson or some other move. I don't believe Lou when he says this Olympic thing isn't an issue. Just last week he told TG it would affect his decisions and now all of a sudden it won't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NJDevs4978 Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 if this has nothing to do with it then the move makes no sense. To send Boucher down after a solid game and him just starting to click with jagr only to replace him with a player with 0 nhl games is not a good move unless there are other factors involved. This is Lou we're talking about, there are always ulterior motives and secondary reasons. Not always. I happen to believe him in this case....people forget when taking these supposed tertiary reasons for moves into account the Devils are still tooth-and-nail for a playoff spot. Above all else, Lou's not going to put out an inferior lineup in games that matter just to get Boucher more AHL game time. He proved that last year when he burned a year of Matteau's UFA status for really next to nothing just because he was the best option at that point. Plus even if you don't take the whole playing in the AHL during the break thing into account, Boucher was really up here weeks beyond what he should have been. He should be honing his scoring at the AHL level and not be pigeonholed into a fourth-line plugger here. And quite honestly Whitney deserved a chance LONG before he finally got one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmann422 Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Not always. I happen to believe him in this case....people forget when taking these supposed tertiary reasons for moves into account the Devils are still tooth-and-nail for a playoff spot. Above all else, Lou's not going to put out an inferior lineup in games that matter just to get Boucher more AHL game time. He proved that last year when he burned a year of Matteau's UFA status for really next to nothing just because he was the best option at that point. Plus even if you don't take the whole playing in the AHL during the break thing into account, Boucher was really up here weeks beyond what he should have been. He should be honing his scoring at the AHL level and not be pigeonholed into a fourth-line plugger here. And quite honestly Whitney deserved a chance LONG before he finally got one. I agree he should have gone back down weeks ago, but they finally use him on the top line for 2 games, he shows some flashes and we have our most complete game of the season, and he gets sent down in favor of a guy who has been waiting 3 years for a call up. It doesn't make much sense- why not just bring Whitney up weeks ago for Boucher when he was only playing those 4th line minutes?Whitney deserves a shot no doubt, and I don't think it's a bad move, but the timing combined with the fact that Whitney is the guy coming in makes me believe the Olympics did have a say in this. Either way it's not a big deal I suppose - I don't think this move lessens our chance to win- but as I said in my previous post, Lou specifically told TG the other day that the Olympic ahl rule would play a part in his decision making. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgb6397 Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Thought this would mean Matteau up. Does that mean he won't come up too because of the whole game limit/Sochi thing that sent Boucher down? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mouse Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 I agree he should have gone back down weeks ago, but they finally use him on the top line for 2 games, he shows some flashes and we have our most complete game of the season, and he gets sent down in favor of a guy who has been waiting 3 years for a call up. It doesn't make much sense- why not just bring Whitney up weeks ago for Boucher when he was only playing those 4th line minutes? Whitney deserves a shot no doubt, and I don't think it's a bad move, but the timing combined with the fact that Whitney is the guy coming in makes me believe the Olympics did have a say in this. Either way it's not a big deal I suppose - I don't think this move lessens our chance to win- but as I said in my previous post, Lou specifically told TG the other day that the Olympic ahl rule would play a part in his decision making. You may be right. It certainly wouldn't surprise me, but like Tri said, they may have seen some things we can't prove (the missed passes from Jagr). Either way, I do think he benefits from AHL time, and even if the timing isn't perfect, long term this helps him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Triumph Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Not always. I happen to believe him in this case....people forget when taking these supposed tertiary reasons for moves into account the Devils are still tooth-and-nail for a playoff spot. Above all else, Lou's not going to put out an inferior lineup in games that matter just to get Boucher more AHL game time. He proved that last year when he burned a year of Matteau's UFA status for really next to nothing just because he was the best option at that point. Plus even if you don't take the whole playing in the AHL during the break thing into account, Boucher was really up here weeks beyond what he should have been. He should be honing his scoring at the AHL level and not be pigeonholed into a fourth-line plugger here. And quite honestly Whitney deserved a chance LONG before he finally got one. He already honed his scoring at the AHL level. The AHL is not really a developmental league for top wingers - it's a waystation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hystyk28 Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 No one gets sent to the minors for missed passes. They are obviously rummaging the cabinets for any goals they can find. Probably not a whole lot of difference between Boucher and Whitney at the moment, plus you kerp Boucher skating during the break. Also, Jagr plays a very unorthodoxed game in regards to his passing. He should shhot more instead of trying to slide so many passes backdoor/weakside, but he himself says he enjoys being a playmaker, which sometimes catches guys out of position because I am sure they are thinking he is gonna shoot it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jas0nMacIsaac Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 (edited) Wow, Deboer must be reading my thoughts because this was my idea over a week ago, Whitney was the only viable replacement for Boucher. This is not a Stephen Gionta skilled player, this is closer to Brian Gionta skilled. Edited January 23, 2014 by Jas0nMacIsaac Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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