2019 Development Camp thread

[MadDog2020 7,877]

28 minutes ago, NJDevils1214 said:

It makes me weirdly happy that Sarge and Elias are there.

Me too.

[nessus 435]

2 hours ago, CommonDreads said:

(player impressions)

Thanks for the write up. It's good to hear that Maltsev impressed. He is my dark horse vote for a player that really impresses this season, even if that means in Binghamton. He seems like a physical, high energy kind of guy who can bring a lot of what Coleman does.

Did you (or anyone else who was able to watch) have any thoughts on Okhotyuk? I get the feeling that the organization must have been super high on him given that they traded down and still arguably drafted him early.

[CommonDreads 1,437]

53 minutes ago, nessus said:

Thanks for the write up. It's good to hear that Maltsev impressed. He is my dark horse vote for a player that really impresses this season, even if that means in Binghamton. He seems like a physical, high energy kind of guy who can bring a lot of what Coleman does.

Did you (or anyone else who was able to watch) have any thoughts on Okhotyuk? I get the feeling that the organization must have been super high on him given that they traded down and still arguably drafted him early.

I'm really intrigued to see more of him in the OHL next year, he can really skate and he seems like a real physical player too, blanking on who it was he hit but he laid a real solid check on someone at the blue line during the scrimmage. Russia might be an interesting team for us to watch at the World Juniors this year, could see us having up to three players on the team in Misyul (lock, IMO), Gritsyuk, and Okhotyuk.

[mfitz804 9,879]

3 hours ago, NJDevils1214 said:

It makes me weirdly happy that Sarge and Elias are there.

i don't find it weird at all...i love when alumni stay involved, whether its as an actual coach, or "special assignment" or whatever. 

[NJDfan1711 1,629]

20 hours ago, mfitz804 said:

i don't find it weird at all...i love when alumni stay involved, whether its as an actual coach, or "special assignment" or whatever. 

I was going to say the same thing - not weird, it makes sense.  You, we, I - all of us - we respect, admire, and love guys like Elias and Brylin who were staples of our organization for so long and helped us achieve what we achieved and become the franchise we were/are known for.  Having them there and present is sort of like a comfort and reassurance that we're being watched over by a higher power.  If this corp of players at development camp gets the approval of Brylin and Elias, then I think that leaves most of us feeling pretty optimistic. 

[mfitz804 9,879]

6 minutes ago, NJDfan1711 said:

I was going to say the same thing - not weird, it makes sense.  You, we, I - all of us - we respect, admire, and love guys like Elias and Brylin who were staples of our organization for so long and helped us achieve what we achieved and become the franchise we were/are known for.  Having them there and present is sort of like a comfort and reassurance that we're being watched over by a higher power.  If this corp of players at development camp gets the approval of Brylin and Elias, then I think that leaves most of us feeling pretty optimistic. 

It’s why I don’t mind Dano being the color guy despite his obvious limitations. Having one of the most recognizable guys in the history of your franchise hanging around is good for building a team tradition. 

[DJ Eco 491]

20 hours ago, mfitz804 said:

i don't find it weird at all...i love when alumni stay involved, whether its as an actual coach, or "special assignment" or whatever. 

Same. I think what we're seeing is that we're now able to be a team that can celebrate a legacy; and a very proud legacy at that. Current and future Hall of Fame players, Stanley Cup winners, record-breakers: we have a stable of these high end talents and careers, all retired now and part of our legacy.

It's good to have them around and keep them involved with the team to remind the fans, the prospects, and the media that we are a proud and winning franchise full of history and elite players who loved playing here, and enjoy coming back. Tradition is important to hold onto during transitional times like this, and hopefully gets guys like Jack Hughes, P.K. Subban, Taylor Hall, etc. all itching to write new chapters in our story.

Edited July 16, 2019 by DJ Eco

[Devilsfan118 2,700]

22 hours ago, mfitz804 said:

i don't find it weird at all...i love when alumni stay involved, whether its as an actual coach, or "special assignment" or whatever. 

I'm glad the new regime - from the owners down - have really embraced the heritage/history of the Devils.

It'd be easy to sort of 'close the door' on some of these guys (not Elias so much, but your Brylin's, Grant Marshall's, etc.) but as far as I can tell management has really decided to embrace them.  

Really happy to see it.

Edited July 16, 2019 by Devilsfan118

[CommonDreads 1,437]

I'm just happy they're embracing the history of the Newark Bulldogs, I thought they were lost in the annals of time until we thankfully added the black stripe on the bottom of the jerseys.

[mfitz804 9,879]

9 minutes ago, CommonDreads said:

I'm just happy they're embracing the history of the Newark Bulldogs, I thought they were lost in the annals of time until we thankfully added the black stripe on the bottom of the jerseys.

Yeah, they should have Bulldogs Night and wear throwbacks and all dogs get in for free.