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Thoughts On Loss of Bastian To Kraken Expansion Draft |
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Like I said on the live podcast night, all these Kraken leaks really spoiled the fun on who would be selected as the newest members of the Seattle Kraken organization. At least we have the NHL draft tomorrow to look forward to!
I am a little bummed about Nathan Bastian leaving the Devils organization. I wanted to see continuity of success of the BMW line and the energy and physicality it brings to each game. Wood, McLeod, and Bastian all grew up within the Devils farm system and they were one of the few bright spots last season. But it is not the end of the world.
The Devils can easily bring in someone from free agency that can bring a physical game in the corners and battle hard in front of the net. The Devils lost a good fourth liner but Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald must replace him with someone that takes this role seriously. Last season when Bastian was out with an injury, opposing teams were walking all over the Devils physically without any accountability. This simply cannot happen again. But what choice did Fitzgerald have but to leave Bastian exposed?
McLeod, Kuokkanen, and Sharangovich were the biggest surprises last season and were protected for those reasons. They were able to produce and now expected to build upon on their individual successes of last season. P.K. Subban and Will Butcher will be back in the fold barring any trade opportunities that may emerge.
Loss of Bastian kind of stinks but the Devils will move forward.
Live Draft Podcast
I'll be at Pasta Grill By Enzo's at 1916 Rt. 57 in Hackettstown, NJ and will be live podcasting the NHL draft. Come stop by if you are in Northwest Jersey!
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Sam Woo is co-host and executive producer of the Let's Go Devils Podcast which can be heard live every Sunday at 9pm ET and Wednesday at 8:30pm ET.
You can follow Sam on Twitter: @PrimetimeSamWoo
New Jersey Devils Blogger • 
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