Devils Re-Sign Center Pavel Zacha - 3 years @ $2.25m AAV

[RunninWithTheDevil]

"I'm smaht! Not dumb like mfitz says, IM SMAHT! I WAS PASSED OVAH!"

[vadvlfan]

23 hours ago, Devils01 said:

He won’t do much on that 4th line I can tell you that.

Ever think he may end up on the left side on one of the top 3 lines. Although he is a decent pivot.  They might give him a look at wing? Big, good along the wall. You never know

[NJDfan1711]

On ‎9‎/‎10‎/‎2019 at 1:32 PM, Crisis said:

Looking at this comparison to Wood, it seems kind of strange to me that the Devils see Zacha as less valuable.  I feel like Zacha is useful in more situations than Wood.

I would have probably disagreed with this a year ago, but present day?  Yeah, I think Zacha has probably usurped Wood in value.  He's more versatile, and Wood in general just really regressed last year. Here's hoping he takes a step forward this year.

[mfitz804]

4 minutes ago, NJDfan1711 said:

I would have probably disagreed with this a year ago, but present day?  Yeah, I think Zacha has probably usurped Wood in value.  He's more versatile, and Wood in general just really regressed last year. Here's hoping he takes a step forward this year.

Agree totally. Wood totally sh!t the bed last year. I had higher hopes for him coming off the 19 goal year. 

He was fun when he was scoring and fighting guys, but last year he just fell a lot and took penalties crashing into the goalie on partial or full breakaways.

[T0asterleav1ns]

Not a huge fan of M. Wood either. I don't think his brain will ever catch up to his feet. 

And his contract is bad. 

[mfitz804]

1 hour ago, Toasterleavins said:

Not a huge fan of M. Wood either. I don't think his brain will ever catch up to his feet. 

And his contract is bad. 

Depends which version of him we get. If he's playing 3rd or 4th line and he gives you 19 goals and 32 points, $2.75m AAV a year isn't bad. 

Also "bad" is a relative term. He may be overpaid but its not hurting us at this point. 

 

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

Not ready to give up on Wood just yet.  Sometimes guys need a year like last year to realize that progress (or even status quo) isn't necessarily ensured after a breakout kind of season.  And his contract is really too cheap to be called "bad".  Deals like his can be moved pretty easily. 

[mfitz804]

13 minutes ago, Colorado Rockies 1976 said:

Not ready to give up on Wood just yet.  Sometimes guys need a year like last year to realize that progress (or even status quo) isn't necessarily ensured after a breakout kind of season.  And his contract is really too cheap to be called "bad".  Deals like his can be moved pretty easily. 

i just want him to take less goalie crashing penalties. For a 4th liner, I'll be happy with 12-15 goals, 10-15 assists, and not taking needless penalties. 

[Lateralous]

On 9/11/2019 at 12:37 PM, vadvlfan said:

Ever think he may end up on the left side on one of the top 3 lines. Although he is a decent pivot.  They might give him a look at wing? Big, good along the wall. You never know

I think they should give him a shot at LW.  We have a pretty small lineup and he's good along the boards.  Also, maybe throwing him on the wing would free him up to use that shot more often.    

[CommonDreads]

I wouldn’t really call Wood’s contract “bad,” the going rate for a 15 goal scorer I would imagine is around $2M, so I’d really only say Wood is overpaid by about $0.75M, which is really about the cost of a replacement level player. We’re not having any issues with signing guys and with the cap going up over the next couple years, I’m not too fussed over Wood’s contract. If he’s the worst contract we got up front, we’re in pretty good shape.

[Daniel]

Thinking that Wood is the problem is much like thinking Andy Greene was the problem last year or Stephen Gionta was the problem way back when.  

A player is only a problem when he prevents you from doing something you otherwise would like to do.  That category includes the Milan Lucics or Andrew Ladds of the world.

[mfitz804]

7 hours ago, Daniel said:

Thinking that Wood is the problem is much like thinking Andy Greene was the problem last year or Stephen Gionta was the problem way back when.  

A player is only a problem when he prevents you from doing something you otherwise would like to do.  That category includes the Milan Lucics or Andrew Ladds of the world.

Well said. We don’t have any problem contracts at the moment. And, to the extent that everyone gets a raise in the next 2-3 years, any “problem” we have from having drafted or otherwise acquired too much talent only means Ray & Co. did their job and we will have choices we have to make. 

[Nicomo]

11 minutes ago, mfitz804 said:

Well said. We don’t have any problem contracts at the moment. And, to the extent that everyone gets a raise in the next 2-3 years, any “problem” we have from having drafted or otherwise acquired too much talent only means Ray & Co. did their job and we will have choices we have to make. 

I’d say Cory’s still has the potential to be a problem. If he doesn’t bounce back this season it’s probably never going to happen. And 3 more years of that contract would suck if he’s not at the very least capable of splitting starts with Blackwood. 

[pumpkin cutter]

17 minutes ago, Nicomo said:

I’d say Cory’s still has the potential to be a problem. If he doesn’t bounce back this season it’s probably never going to happen. And 3 more years of that contract would suck if he’s not at the very least capable of splitting starts with Blackwood. 

Maybe Seattle takes him if he doesn’t work out for us?

[MantaRay]

Zacha is still developing into a really strong player and clearly our best transitional forward and stellar PK.   This is a steal for us.    

[mfitz804]

14 minutes ago, MantaRay said:

Zacha is still developing into a really strong player and clearly our best transitional forward and stellar PK.   This is a steal for us.    

I don't know if I think it's a steal right now, but it COULD be if "this is the year" like everyone always says. 

Hate him as I might, I also advocated for giving him a 7 year deal around $2m per, because it's got zero downside and could be the biggest bargain deal anyone ever signed if he does hit. 

Edited September 13, 2019 by mfitz804

[Satans Hockey]

If Zacha hits 30 goals @mfitz804 should have to buy his jersey lol

[mfitz804]

59 minutes ago, Satans Hockey said:

If Zacha hits 30 goals @mfitz804 should have to buy his jersey lol

There's probably a way to make this bet work. What do I get if he DOESN'T hit 30 goals?

And by 30 goals, we mean for this season, not his career, correct? I am 85% confident he'll get the 1 goal he needs for that. 

[Satans Hockey]

4 minutes ago, mfitz804 said:

There's probably a way to make this bet work. What do I get if he DOESN'T hit 30 goals?

And by 30 goals, we mean for this season, not his career, correct? I am 85% confident he'll get the 1 goal he needs for that. 

Lol I don't know and it's a ridiculous bet anyway because even though I like Zacha we both know he doesn't have a chance in hell of hitting 30 lol

[mfitz804]

51 minutes ago, Satans Hockey said:

Lol I don't know and it's a ridiculous bet anyway because even though I like Zacha we both know he doesn't have a chance in hell of hitting 30 lol

Obviously. But hey, I'm willing to put my money where my mouth is or whatever. 

Someone come up with a bet that ends with me having to buy a Zacha jersey if I lose, and if I think its winnable, I'm totally down. 

[DevsMan84]

1 hour ago, mfitz804 said:

Obviously. But hey, I'm willing to put my money where my mouth is or whatever. 

Someone come up with a bet that ends with me having to buy a Zacha jersey if I lose, and if I think its winnable, I'm totally down. 

Extra incentive: it has to be this one

https://meigray.com/Zacha__Pavel__br_White_Heritage_Set_1_br_New_Jersey_Devils_2018_19_br__37_Size__56-ITEM96117.aspx

[mfitz804]

13 minutes ago, DevsMan84 said:

Extra incentive: it has to be this one

https://meigray.com/Zacha__Pavel__br_White_Heritage_Set_1_br_New_Jersey_Devils_2018_19_br__37_Size__56-ITEM96117.aspx

That is a damn nice looking jersey, but alas, not my size so I couldn't wear it proudly. 

It's fine, nobody here is fun enough to put something up on the other end so the bet won't happen lol. 

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

1 hour ago, DevsMan84 said:

Extra incentive: it has to be this one

https://meigray.com/Zacha__Pavel__br_White_Heritage_Set_1_br_New_Jersey_Devils_2018_19_br__37_Size__56-ITEM96117.aspx

If I didn't already have Bratt's Heritage (that one was a bargain, actually less than Zacha's), I would actually consider scooping that one up.  If it's still there in 5-6 months, I still might.

Will probably break out my McMullen Night Zacha around my 10th attended game of the year (hoping to go to 20 or so, and hopefully playoff games).  Opening Night will be my ASG Palms for sure.  Then (in no real order, kinda what feels "right") at least one Hall, Zajac, Coleman, Elias, one or two more Palms, probably my #26 Albelin and #18 Huscroft (love the red and greens), the Brett Heritage, possibly Wood or Severson...then Zacha.  As much as I love summer, I do miss going to Devils games...and breaking out the GWs.  Can't wait to give all of these jerseys to my daughter someday. 

[DevsMan84]

1 hour ago, Colorado Rockies 1976 said:

If I didn't already have Bratt's Heritage (that one was a bargain, actually less than Zacha's), I would actually consider scooping that one up.  If it's still there in 5-6 months, I still might.

Will probably break out my McMullen Night Zacha around my 10th attended game of the year (hoping to go to 20 or so, and hopefully playoff games).  Opening Night will be my ASG Palms for sure.  Then (in no real order, kinda what feels "right") at least one Hall, Zajac, Coleman, Elias, one or two more Palms, probably my #26 Albelin and #18 Huscroft (love the red and greens), the Brett Heritage, possibly Wood or Severson...then Zacha.  As much as I love summer, I do miss going to Devils games...and breaking out the GWs.  Can't wait to give all of these jerseys to my daughter someday. 

Haha nice and have a whole system already!  The Zacha is probably the best of what Heritage is left (5 left if I remember right).

Apparently the Devils are doing at least one "retro night" this season.  This is something I saw online that is not confirmed by any means, so it could still be BS.  I still find that interesting how they didn't call it Heritage Night but it could be just a mistake on the source's part.

[mfitz804]

2 hours ago, Colorado Rockies 1976 said:

Can't wait to give all of these jerseys to my daughter someday. 

And may she still be interested in hockey when you do!!

3 hours ago, MB3 said:

If Zacha scores 30, you buy yourself a Zacha jersey. Doesn’t have to be that one. Just a jersey you plan on wearing to games.

if Zacha doesn’t score 30, I pledge $10 to the site. 

Since the odds of him hitting 30 are so dramatically low that’s a perfectly reasonable bet.

Reasonable makes it less fun, but sure, you’re on.