Follow me on Twitter @ToddCordell

Thursday was a big day for the New Jersey Devils.

They named Lindy Ruff the new head coach. They removed the interim tag from Tom Fitzgerald and made him the full-time general manager.

Ruff spoke to the media. Fitzgerald spoke to the media. Ownership spoke to the media. It was a busy afternoon with lots of interesting quotes and tidbits shared throughout.

I want to comment on some of the notables.

Ruff on what he can do w/ young #NJDevils team, mirroring young mid-00s Sabres:

"We played a super-fast, possession type of game which is the same type of game I’d like to bring (here). A lot of puck pressure & using skills we have to own the puck & dominate with possession."

— Chris Wescott (@TheChrisWescott) July 9, 2020

The Devils have played a low-event, defense-first style for more than a decade with little to no success. I know they haven’t been overflowing with talent but, at times, the pieces they did have went to complete waste because the system neutered their abilities. That won’t be the case with Ruff. His teams usually play fast paced and he gives his stars rope to be creative with the puck. The key here is making sure that doesn’t come at the complete expense of defensive play. New Jersey tried to play low-event hockey all these years to mask their lack of talent and they still couldn’t do it. They simply don’t have the personnel to play quality defense if they’re consistently out of structure so, again, it’s important that Ruff finds a happy medium. He wasn’t able to do so in Dallas or New York so there’s reason to be concerned he can do it here.

If not anything else it’s exciting to know, should the Devils suck again, they’ll suck playing entertaining hockey. I don’t know about anybody else but I’ve had my fill of 3-2 losses where the Devils muster up 22 shots and six scoring chances. There’s no better way to spend a Saturday night than watching that.

#NJDevils Ruff: "All these young skilled players have played the game a certain way until they get to this point. You try to utilize those players to the best of their skills. I've been criticized for coaching teams too offensive, & I've been criticized for being too defensive!"

— Amanda Stein (@amandacstein) July 9, 2020

This is more or less echoing the sentiments above. Ruff wants the Devils’ skill guys to, well, use their skills. Again, it is refreshing to hear. I don’t think putting Jack Hughes, Jesper Bratt, and co. on leashes is going to maximize what they bring to the table. They need some freedom and, within reason, it sounds like they’ll get it.

What I’d like to know is who exactly has been criticizing Ruff for coaching too defensive. His Dallas Stars teams traded goals and chances like nothing. A 5-2 lead was never safe regardless of who was holding it.

He followed that up by coaching New York’s defense to three last place finishes in four years in terms of giving up Expected Goals. I wouldn’t exactly call that too defensive.

At any rate, Ruff very clearly has to do a better job implementing a solid defensive structure with the Devils or we’re going to be heading for another messy season.

#NJDevils Tom Fitzgerald says that Ruff and Nas will meet together.

"Nas, he did an incredible job in a tough situation. He grew into that leadership role [...] I was very proud of Nas. He'll have an opportunity to sit down with Lindy to get to know each other."

— Amanda Stein (@amandacstein) July 9, 2020

Tom Fitzgerald really likes Nasreddine. The players really like Nasreddine. I could definitely envision a scenario where he sticks around and continues running the PK, as he has done over the last few years.

If Nasreddine does feel slighted – or Ruff wants to pick his own guys – and moves on as a result, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him reunite with a certain someone in Nashville (when the season concludes). Nasreddine and John Hynes are very, very close. I don’t think the latter would have much trouble finding a role for him.

#NJDevils Co-Managing Partner David Blitzer: "It was evident that Tom was the right person for this job. He has worked with Hockey Ops, ownership and the way he navigated the Trade Deadline. [...] it made it clear to us that he is deserving."

— Amanda Stein (@amandacstein) July 9, 2020

I agree that giving Fitzgerald a chance as GM was a perfectly reasonable decision, especially following several quality deadline deals.

My question is this: what took so long? If it was clear his familiarity with the organization – and his work as the interim GM – made him the right man for the job, why was he hired full-time in July?

The Devils haven’t played a hockey game since early March and we’ve known for a long time they wouldn’t be playing another anytime soon. Did ownership really need to drag the decision out this long?

They could have put an end to a lot of questions, and bad PR from the apparent uncertainty within the organization, months ago.

Recent Posts

Some thoughts on the hiring of Lindy Ruff

Three potential targets for the Devils with the 7th pick

Most underrated player on the Devils?

Trading season is open for the Devils

The Devils should *not* draft Askarov with one of their 1st round picks

Ranking the Devils’ contracts: part 2

Ranking the Devils’ contracts: part 1

Three platoon targets for the Devils

We should probably temper expectations for Nolan Foote in 2020-21

Join the Discussion: » 108 Comments » Post New Comment

» Thank you

» On the Chayka rumors and finalists for the Devils' GM job

» Notes on quotes from Lindy Ruff's appearance on 31 Thoughts

» The New Jersey Devils may not have hired the coach they wanted

» On the imminent hiring of Lindy Ruff