Triumph Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 (edited) I thought this was one of the best games the Devils had played all year - Cammmalleri-Zajac-Jagr looked to actually have some sort of chemistry, they scored 4 goals and had other chances to score, and they were playing the 2nd of a road back to back where the opponent was rested and waiting for them. Like I said and got laughed at earlier, this team is going to have to win on nice passing plays, and there were 3 of them for goals tonight. The defense is activating a lot more through the neutral zone, and that's how this team is going to get chances off the rush, because they're not likely to be getting them with their forwards as is. It's good to see some adjustments and I think they are paying off. The bad of course is that NJ took 6 penalties to Calgary's 2, and this is a continuation of an awful trend - NJ basically takes a penalty more than the opposition each game, and it sucks to be spotting a penalty to the other team. Even though I think the PK has been fixed - the shot rate is coming down - I still don't expect it to be great and goals still go in even on the best PK. I'm curious what happens when Merrill comes back, because I feel like Larsson has earned his spot in the lineup going forward and that Gelinas is earning a spot in the doghouse - last night he only played 13 minutes, granted NJ was ahead, but those are still miinor minutes for him. DeBoer has gotten into a trend of throwing out Helgeson-Larsson in the D zone and using Gelinas-Zidlicky in the O zone - I'm curious if that will sustain itself when Merrill draws back in, if they'll go with Merrill-Larsson/Gelinas-Zidlicky or Gelinas-Larsson/Merrill-Zidlicky. Or throw out Gelinas and keep Helgeson (this I doubt). Edited November 23, 2014 by Triumph Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sundstrom Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 it doesn't make sense, but i'm not as furious about this loss as i should be. maybe it's because western canada is usually a house of horrors for the devils. there was a lot to like about the devils play last night. i thought each line did plenty of good things and the defense, for the most part, was pretty solid. regarding pulling the goalie with a bunch of time left, you see how this affects the entire league. devils did it vs st louis and nearly got 3 goals in 2 minutes. edmonton did it two nights ago and had splendid chances. and obviously calgary last night. there was no reason as 4-2 w/ 3:30 left that the devils should have gone into a shell, but that's what they did. that is on pdb for sure. i think it's something they will now be plenty conscious of. re: clemmensen - i honestly think you got the best you possibly could out of him. he looked like a beer league goalie, but made some terrific saves and was in position on all initial shots. the two late goals, themselves, were a bit flukey but its what led to those situations in the first place. i wanted 5/8 points on this west coast trip. if they win in Vancouver, they'll have accomplished that and I'll be ok with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfitz804 Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 All I know is I stayed up till 1AM watching that abortion. I will not be repeating that mistake Tuesday, I'll DVR the game, avoid this website, and watch it at my own convenience on Wednesday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Triumph Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 I don't think the Devils went into a shell really - a little sleuthing on hockeystats.ca shows that NJ only gave up 6 shot attempts with the goalie pulled, which was probably around 2:20 of time. I don't think that's egregious and I don't think they really played poorly with the goalie out. Jagr made a mistake, they got a rough offsides call, a tough break on a bounce, Larsson couldn't take his man, and Clemmensen couldn't find a rebound. Lot of tough breaks there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Brown Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 I thought this was one of the best games the Devils had played all year - Cammmalleri-Zajac-Jagr looked to actually have some sort of chemistry, they scored 4 goals and had other chances to score, and they were playing the 2nd of a road back to back where the opponent was rested and waiting for them. Like I said and got laughed at earlier, this team is going to have to win on nice passing plays, and there were 3 of them for goals tonight. The defense is activating a lot more through the neutral zone, and that's how this team is going to get chances off the rush, because they're not likely to be getting them with their forwards as is. It's good to see some adjustments and I think they are paying off. The bad of course is that NJ took 6 penalties to Calgary's 2, and this is a continuation of an awful trend - NJ basically takes a penalty more than the opposition each game, and it sucks to be spotting a penalty to the other team. Even though I think the PK has been fixed - the shot rate is coming down - I still don't expect it to be great and goals still go in even on the best PK. I'm curious what happens when Merrill comes back, because I feel like Larsson has earned his spot in the lineup going forward and that Gelinas is earning a spot in the doghouse - last night he only played 13 minutes, granted NJ was ahead, but those are still miinor minutes for him. DeBoer has gotten into a trend of throwing out Helgeson-Larsson in the D zone and using Gelinas-Zidlicky in the O zone - I'm curious if that will sustain itself when Merrill draws back in, if they'll go with Merrill-Larsson/Gelinas-Zidlicky or Gelinas-Larsson/Merrill-Zidlicky. Or throw out Gelinas and keep Helgeson (this I doubt). I agree with just about everything posted. I don't think several of the people on here have the capability to actually analyze what's going on like you do. Good job. it doesn't make sense, but i'm not as furious about this loss as i should be. maybe it's because western canada is usually a house of horrors for the devils. there was a lot to like about the devils play last night. i thought each line did plenty of good things and the defense, for the most part, was pretty solid. regarding pulling the goalie with a bunch of time left, you see how this affects the entire league. devils did it vs st louis and nearly got 3 goals in 2 minutes. edmonton did it two nights ago and had splendid chances. and obviously calgary last night. there was no reason as 4-2 w/ 3:30 left that the devils should have gone into a shell, but that's what they did. that is on pdb for sure. i think it's something they will now be plenty conscious of. re: clemmensen - i honestly think you got the best you possibly could out of him. he looked like a beer league goalie, but made some terrific saves and was in position on all initial shots. the two late goals, themselves, were a bit flukey but its what led to those situations in the first place. i wanted 5/8 points on this west coast trip. if they win in Vancouver, they'll have accomplished that and I'll be ok with it. Another rational minded poster. They do exist on this board! Anyways, I don't see us beating Vancouver. The only thing that helps is that they're not so good at preventing goals. But we'll see. All I know is I stayed up till 1AM watching that abortion. I will not be repeating that mistake Tuesday, I'll DVR the game, avoid this website, and watch it at my own convenience on Wednesday. The Devils actually outplayed them all game. They deserved to win, and there was far more positives than negatives. If we play this game 100 times, we win 90 of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devilsfan118 Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 The Devils actually outplayed them all game. They deserved to win, and there was far more positives than negatives. If we play this game 100 times, we win 90 of them. The Devils have "deserved" to win a stupidly significant amount of games like this the past two years. And yet, they don't. If they play this game 100 times, they win maybe 50 with the current system and leadership. That's being generous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Triumph Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 The Devils have "deserved" to win a stupidly significant amount of games like this the past two years. And yet, they don't. If they play this game 100 times, they win maybe 50 with the current system and leadership. That's being generous. If they play with Schneider in net they win it a lot more than 50. There were a lot of scoring chances for New Jersey. And again, they could've won it in OT and the shootout anyway, which would completely change how everyone feels about this game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Brown Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 If they play with Schneider in net they win it a lot more than 50. There were a lot of scoring chances for New Jersey. And again, they could've won it in OT and the shootout anyway, which would completely change how everyone feels about this game. I don't think Schneider would have made a huge difference tonight. Just my opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdgeControl Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Man oh man. I fell asleep at 4-2, thinking it was over. I'm so sick of this team right now. I feel asleep after the second, and expected a win...we were playing very well and seemed to have the flames figured out through two.. I was surprised to see they scored 4..glad I missed the ending, lol terribly disappointing..but at least we got a point Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Brown Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Think of it this way guys. Coming into the game last night, how many would have been happy with a point with Clemmensen in net? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadDog2020 Posted November 23, 2014 Author Share Posted November 23, 2014 This would be hilarious if it wasn't so sad. It IS a pattern, and it has nothing to do with young guys blowing games when Greene's a -3 and Zajac has a horrid turnover on the first goal. Or when Jagr makes a rookie mistake turning the puck over in the last thirty seconds of the game.I honestly want to punch DeBoer in the face for this quote... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Triumph Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 I love taking Greene to task for a -3 when it's Severson who lost his man on goal #2 and Larsson who did on goal #4. But since Salvador or Zidlicky isn't out there in the waning minutes, can't go crazy about DeBoer's selections anymore, so I guess it's now protest what he says. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sundstrom Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 I love taking Greene to task for a -3 when it's Severson who lost his man on goal #2 and Larsson who did on goal #4. But since Salvador or Zidlicky isn't out there in the waning minutes, can't go crazy about DeBoer's selections anymore, so I guess it's now protest what he says. it's not the -3. he's been not great coming off what was a terrific season last year. and yes, larsson and severson were big issues the end of the game. we've discussed how they're trying to turn larsson into something different than he was, but he's becoming very strong in his own zone as they essentially squeeze any offensive life out of him. what he hasn't learned to do yet is take care of the front of the net. with 5-10 seconds left, you murder anyone in front of the net, penalty or not. take the penalty. i'm not going to go crazy over it, and severson's dzone work has also not been great lately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
devils102 Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 The Devils actually outplayed them all game. They deserved to win, and there was far more positives than negatives. If we play this game 100 times, we win 90 of them. The only problem is... they aren't going to play their best hockey that often. They've been inconsistent this year, and not only going through tough stretches within the schedule, but playing inconsistent within the games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coldply123 Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 I love taking Greene to task for a -3 when it's Severson who lost his man on goal #2 and Larsson who did on goal #4. But since Salvador or Zidlicky isn't out there in the waning minutes, can't go crazy about DeBoer's selections anymore, so I guess it's now protest what he says. Greene has been pretty mediocre this season and I don't know why he does not seem to be the guy we saw really soar the last few years after that terrible season he had back in 10-11, but I agree on the above. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derlique Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Yeah, I thought the Devils played a strong game and were efficient with the lead. Clemmensen seemed to be getting some puck luck up until the last couple minutes. Some quick thoughts: -top line was amazing and it was even more impressive considering they were up against Giordano and Brodie. -Elias line was awesome as well. Really hope they stick with Henrique at wing because its been working dating back to last year. His shot rate is up and his speed and tenacity helps on the forcheck. -with line 3 producing the last few games, I think JJ is cementing the 3C role. -like Tri said, the PP:PK ratio is disturbing. Devils got screwed a couple of times but guys like Zidlicky and Ryder need to quit it with the lazy penalties. -a win on Tuesday would make it a successful road trip where the Devils have gotten abused in the past. Get it done Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BostonNala370 Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Greene has been pretty mediocre this season and I don't know why he does not seem to be the guy we saw really soar the last few years after that terrible season he had back in 10-11, but I agree on the above. Some games Greene has been the worse defensemen on the ice this season to date. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derlique Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Btw- how good has Ruutu been this season? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devil Dan 56 Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Btw- how good has Ruutu been this season? He's been really impressive at times. A lot of people were ripping him, but he's bringing what he should Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2ELIAS6 Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 after page 14 i quit on even trying to read this thread brown is just annoying as hell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOLLYWOOD Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 The highlight of the evening: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neb00rs Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Devils having a chance to win the shootout but Dumboer letting Henrique shoot. And then having Zajac try to tie it. Zajac I think is like 0 for his last 2 years in the shootout. Just bad roster management. Every time Zajac is put out on the shootout I'm like "well, fvck." Yesterday, when I saw him come out to try and tie it, the amount of WTFs??? going through my head were infinite. Here comes a guy who most of the time shanks shots 10 feet wide of the net, has no goal-scoring sense, no creativity with the puck, and has just about never fooled any goalie ever. Meanwhile Jagr, Elias, Zidlicky, Havlat, and Ryder are all available. It's these kinds of decisions that have given us that extra push to set the all-time worst shootout record. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Triumph Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 (edited) it's not the -3. he's been not great coming off what was a terrific season last year. and yes, larsson and severson were big issues the end of the game. we've discussed how they're trying to turn larsson into something different than he was, but he's becoming very strong in his own zone as they essentially squeeze any offensive life out of him. what he hasn't learned to do yet is take care of the front of the net. with 5-10 seconds left, you murder anyone in front of the net, penalty or not. take the penalty. i'm not going to go crazy over it, and severson's dzone work has also not been great lately. I'm not going to 'rip' Larsson for that mistake - like you said, he's young, and he's been playing well. I hope they start to rebuild him soon - right now he's going around the wall and off the glass a lot more than he used to, but he's capable of much more once he gets his feet under him. Regardless, all I was saying about people ripping Deboer is to just point out the guy who's making the mistake - watch the game. Greene played 30 minutes last night, he wasn't exceptional in that time, but all DeBoer was pointing out was that the younger guys didn't have a great night defending. Zajac scored a shootout goal in preseason. Elias hasn't scored in forever. Jagr isn't good at it. I'd probably try Zidlicky over all these three and Henrique, and give Ruutu a shot as well. Edited November 23, 2014 by Triumph Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NJDevs4978 Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 I'm not going to 'rip' Larsson for that mistake - like you said, he's young, and he's been playing well. I hope they start to rebuild him soon - right now he's going around the wall and off the glass a lot more than he used to, but he's capable of much more once he gets his feet under him. Regardless, point out the guy who's making the mistake - watch the game. Greene played 30 minutes last night, he wasn't exceptional, but all DeBoer was pointing out was that the younger guys didn't have a great night defending. A) Why only single out when the younger guys have issues defending when the vets are just as much to blame? B) The PK is the best part of the team right now and three of the four guys on it are younger guys - Severson, Larsson, Hegelson As usual Pete has a skewed perspective, only find fault with the kids and never with the vets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neb00rs Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Elias hasn't scored in forever. This isn't false. He's been a disaster on the shootout. But at least he can do some creative stuff out there that makes you think he has a chance to score. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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