Sam Woo: Hughes’ Two Goals, Devils Win 3-2 in SO

I was never in favor of signing Dougie. It was stupid to spend $9M on him. This season he is putting up numbers you can get from a guy making the league minimum. If he's still producing at this level by the end of next season, NJ is going to be in major trouble. We will have essentially just extended PK Subban's contract for 8 years.

I was never in favor of signing Dougie. It was stupid to spend $9M on him. This season he is putting up numbers you can get from a guy making the league minimum. If he's still producing at this level by the end of next season, NJ is going to be in major trouble. We will have essentially just extended PK Subban's contract for 8 years.
- jtylerm

someones always gotta complain right?

someones always gotta complain right?
- Eklblad

Someone's always gotta show they don't know what they're talking about right?

https://www.nhl.com/player/dougie-hamilton-8476462 you're an idiot if you think that's worth $9M

Someone's always gotta show they don't know what they're talking about right?

https://www.nhl.com/player/dougie-hamilton-8476462 you're an idiot if you think that's worth $9M
- jtylerm

The guy has had multiple injuries and is currently playing with a plate in his jaw and a jaw protector that im sure is annoying to play with. I'm not worried about him at all, nor is anybody else who actually understands hockey. His underlyings are all still very good, even with the struggles lately. The first 2 1/2 - 3 months of the season before he broke his jaw he was pretty much as expected, the play was severly tilted towards the Devils when he was on the ice pretty much night in and night out. Obviously with some bad games along the way, which everybody has.

His 'low' point totals is due to a dogpoop PP and not even playing on PP1 anymore. Dont link a statline/boxscore as an argument as to whether someone is playing well or not.

If you think his contract is bad, after 1 injury-riddled year, then that shows how little you actually know.

The Devils have signed college free agent Brian Halonen. Doubt he makes any kind of impact with the Devils but don't mind taking a chance like this. One of the top UDFAs available this year, 'physical' winger whose scoring popped this season and is a Hobey Baker finalist. Should be a nice addition to Utica.

Someone's always gotta show they don't know what they're talking about right?

https://www.nhl.com/player/dougie-hamilton-8476462 you're an idiot if you think that's worth $9M
- jtylerm

are you paying for it? no? then stfu

The guy has had multiple injuries and is currently playing with a plate in his jaw and a jaw protector that im sure is annoying to play with. I'm not worried about him at all, nor is anybody else who actually understands hockey. His underlyings are all still very good, even with the struggles lately. The first 2 1/2 - 3 months of the season before he broke his jaw he was pretty much as expected, the play was severly tilted towards the Devils when he was on the ice pretty much night in and night out. Obviously with some bad games along the way, which everybody has.

His 'low' point totals is due to a dogpoop PP and not even playing on PP1 anymore. Dont link a statline/boxscore as an argument as to whether someone is playing well or not.

If you think his contract is bad, after 1 injury-riddled year, then that shows how little you actually know.
- vlongo4419

Time will tell. you can make up a million excuses, but we aren't getting what we paid for so far. if he is going to be ineffective due to a "dogpoop PP" then what is the point in paying him so much? As I said earlier, where you obviously didn't read, the real trouble for NJ will be if he is doing this again next year too. So far, it's not looking good.

If his injuries are that bad then he shouldn't be playing yet. The Devils were never going to make the playoffs this year. It's stupid to rush him back if he's not healthy.

Sorry things like stats trigger you so much snowflake, but in adult discussions we tend to use evidence to back up our claims. Just saying "His underlyings are all still very good" with nothing to corroborate that doesn't mean anything.

I'm not saying he's a bad player, I'm saying that contract isn't looking worth it so far.

are you paying for it? no? then stfu
- Eklblad

this is the dumbest argument to make to fans

Time will tell. you can make up a million excuses, but we aren't getting what we paid for so far. if he is going to be ineffective due to a "dogpoop PP" then what is the point in paying him so much? As I said earlier, where you obviously didn't read, the real trouble for NJ will be if he is doing this again next year too. So far, it's not looking good.

If his injuries are that bad then he shouldn't be playing yet. The Devils were never going to make the playoffs this year. It's stupid to rush him back if he's not healthy.

Sorry things like stats trigger you so much snowflake, but in adult discussions we tend to use evidence to back up our claims. Just saying "His underlyings are all still very good" with nothing to corroborate that doesn't mean anything.

I'm not saying he's a bad player, I'm saying that contract isn't looking worth it so far.
- jtylerm

Using a boxscore backs absolutely nothing up. It means you dont actually watch the game and all you care about is points. Somebody can play like complete dogpoop but still put up multiple points, and somebody can play fantastic but be held pointless. Its not my fault you dont understand this.

Its not my job to provide information that you can clearly find yourself. But here you go. He has the highest game score per game on the team among defenseman and only Jack/Bratt/Nico have higher overall. His gs/game is still top 30 in the league in the down/injury riddled year among D with atleast 25 games played. Both his CF%/xGF% is top 30 in the league among D with atleast 500 minutes played. His offense this season has still been 90th percentile and his WAR has been 85th percentile. Since you want to be a moron and use his boxscore, his PPG with almost no powerplay production is still top 30 in the league among D with atleast 25 games(his current pace is also the 4th highest of his career and higher than his career average). Goes to show how dog poop Recchi and his PP is when it completely nullifies one of the best PP D's in the entire league. His athletic player card has his market value currently at 9.2M, WHICH IS MORE THAN HE IS BEING PAID. Need me to keep going, or what?

All of this in a down year filled with injuries and he is STILL an elite #1 D man. So if this is his floor, which is seems to be, yeah hes absolutely worth his contract.

I assume you're one of the people who thought Jack's extension was an overpayment too because he didn't have the production to warrant that kind of money, huh?

I'm not sure what there is to be upset about because even if you're looking at counting totals Dougie would be on pace for 48 points in 82 games played which would be the 2nd highest point total of his career (actually 3rd because of the covid shortened season, but point still stands he has produced this season).

And sure I agree players shouldn't be playing when they aren't fit but some doctor cleared him to play like this so what can you do. Him being on an all liquid diet for weeks probably didn't help either. I don't know what the expectations for a player should be in this scenario but I get the sense this is all probably too harsh.

I'm not sure what there is to be upset about because even if you're looking at counting totals Dougie would be on pace for 48 points in 82 games played which would be the 2nd highest point total of his career (actually 3rd because of the covid shortened season, but point still stands he has produced this season).

And sure I agree players shouldn't be playing when they aren't fit but some doctor cleared him to play like this so what can you do. Him being on an all liquid diet for weeks probably didn't help either. I don't know what the expectations for a player should be in this scenario but I get the sense this is all probably too harsh.
- Pomegrant

Yeah but did you know you could just get that from a 'guy making the league minimum'?? You can easily just pick someone up off the streets and have them produce at more than a half point per game.

Yeah but did you know you could just get that from a 'guy making the league minimum'?? You can easily just pick someone up off the streets and have them produce at more than a half point per game.
- vlongo4419

If you're going to be stuck with a 9mil defenseman I'd much rather have Hamilton over Jones and Nurse. We were always going to have to pay to upgrade our defense anyway and we got the best option available at the time.

If you're going to be stuck with a 9mil defenseman I'd much rather have Hamilton over Jones and Nurse. We were always going to have to pay to upgrade our defense anyway and we got the best option available at the time.
- Pomegrant

Absolutely. And Dougies game will most likely age gracefully. The projection is he'll be worth the money up to the final year. Not even sure why this is a conversation. Complete waste of time

Absolutely. And Dougies game will most likely age gracefully. The projection is he'll be worth the money up to the final year. Not even sure why this is a conversation. Complete waste of time
- vlongo4419

I think he's specifically trying to point out that deAngelo is getting paid nothing but is producing a ton. I don't buy into the "locker room cancer" claim often but that guy wasn't worth taking a shot on.

Also, I think it's easy to look at counting totals and see that a guy has a lot of points without realizing how much those stats can be juiced by their powerplay usage and more importantly the quality of their powerplay coach. Guys like deAngelo and Jones have almost half of their points coming from the power play whereas Dougie has 8/27 on the powerplay. If we had a league average powerplay he'd have way more points than he does now, and the bad coaching has cost us a lot of wins this year.

I think he's specifically trying to point out that deAngelo is getting paid nothing but is producing a ton. I don't buy into the "locker room cancer" claim often but that guy wasn't worth taking a shot on.

Also, I think it's easy to look at counting totals and see that a guy has a lot of points without realizing how much those stats can be juiced by their powerplay usage and more importantly the quality of their powerplay coach. Guys like deAngelo and Jones have almost half of their points coming from the power play whereas Dougie has 8/27 on the powerplay. If we had a league average powerplay he'd have way more points than he does now, and the bad coaching has cost us a lot of wins this year.
- Pomegrant

Yup, exactly! Even our leading scorers aren't lighting it up on the PP. Bratt has 18 power play points and Hughes has 14. You need 20 just to get into the top 50 in the league lol. Dougie has been one of the best PP Ds in the league over the past few seasons, he hasn't just magically started sucking on the PP lol. It's the system, aka Recchi. And outside of the PP, he's still an elite #1 by pretty much every metric at 5v5. His in-zone D has slipped a bit, but thats not an issue when we control the puck as much as we do when he's on the ice(when he's actually healthy and at the top of his game like the first few months of the season)

Our team literally creates more high danger chances at 5v5 than we do with the extra man on the PP lol. At 5v5 we generate 13.90 high danger chances per 60, while on the PP we generate 12.22 high danger chances per 60.

If you're going to be stuck with a 9mil defenseman I'd much rather have Hamilton over Jones and Nurse. We were always going to have to pay to upgrade our defense anyway and we got the best option available at the time.
- Pomegrant

I don’t think the only 2 options were either Hamilton or Jones/Nurse though. I agree he was the best at the time, but it wasn’t like we’re going be in the playoffs anytime soon. We should’ve saved the money until we were closer and seen who’s there at that time. Now we’re locked into a long term deal and will probably miss out on a better fit when the time actually comes.

I don’t think the only 2 options were either Hamilton or Jones/Nurse though. I agree he was the best at the time, but it wasn’t like we’re going be in the playoffs anytime soon. We should’ve saved the money until we were closer and seen who’s there at that time. Now we’re locked into a long term deal and will probably miss out on a better fit when the time actually comes.
- jtylerm

When a Dougie Hamilton wants to join your team, you sign him. Especially when you're a team who typically doesn't attract big name free agents in their prime.

I don’t think the only 2 options were either Hamilton or Jones/Nurse though. I agree he was the best at the time, but it wasn’t like we’re going be in the playoffs anytime soon. We should’ve saved the money until we were closer and seen who’s there at that time. Now we’re locked into a long term deal and will probably miss out on a better fit when the time actually comes.
- jtylerm

This team should be fighting for a playoff spot next season. If they just get league average goaltending they will be a bubble team, but imagine if they somehow get better than just league average? Hamilton will be worth his contract for atleast the first 6 years, and this team should be a playoff team for 5 or 6 of his contract years, minimum. You don't pass on a player of his caliber in hopes that someone else who is likely not as good as him will want to join a few years from now. Pretty poop take tbh.

Someone's always gotta show they don't know what they're talking about right?

https://www.nhl.com/player/dougie-hamilton-8476462 you're an idiot if you think that's worth $9M

@jtylerm - who hurt you?

When a Dougie Hamilton wants to join your team, you sign him. Especially when you're a team who typically doesn't attract big name free agents in their prime.
- SteveJ123

I don't remember if we've ever had the top player in FA sign with us like Hamilton did. I guess Kovalchuk went to FA but didn't get the ludicrous term that he wanted from any other team so it was us by default.

It's the same "problem" the Rangers had in which it was clear Panarin didn't fit the exact timeline of their rebuild but if the best player in FA wants to play for you and you got the money you take them and figure out the rest.

This team should be fighting for a playoff spot next season. If they just get league average goaltending they will be a bubble team, but imagine if they somehow get better than just league average? Hamilton will be worth his contract for atleast the first 6 years, and this team should be a playoff team for 5 or 6 of his contract years, minimum. You don't pass on a player of his caliber in hopes that someone else who is likely not as good as him will want to join a few years from now. Pretty poop take tbh.
- vlongo4419

You have no idea who will be available later on, that's the point. You're assuming Dougie is the best that will ever come along. Goaltending hurt us bad, but even if Blackwood and Bernier were healthy all year it wouldn't have made a huge difference.

This team needs some elite level snipers. All we ever do is cycle the puck over and over until there's a turnover. That's why our PP is absolute garbage. We're a team of playmaking pass first guys. I love Sharangovich and Bratt, but we need legit high end snipers in the top 6. Until that changes, they'll be playing golf every playoffs. Thus, no need to waste $9M on a guy that will be 30 next year.

You have no idea who will be available later on, that's the point. You're assuming Dougie is the best that will ever come along. Goaltending hurt us bad, but even if Blackwood and Bernier were healthy all year it wouldn't have made a huge difference.

This team needs some elite level snipers. All we ever do is cycle the puck over and over until there's a turnover. That's why our PP is absolute garbage. We're a team of playmaking pass first guys. I love Sharangovich and Bratt, but we need legit high end snipers in the top 6. Until that changes, they'll be playing golf every playoffs. Thus, no need to waste $9M on a guy that will be 30 next year.
- jtylerm

Yes. That is literally the point. Nobody has any idea who will be available in the future and who will even want to play here. So when an elite player is available and willing to sign here, you dont pass on it. Notice how everybody is is coming at you, and you're the only one on your side of the take? Maybe should take the hint that you're the one in the wrong.

Of course this team needs a shooter in the top 6, but thats not the point. Everybody could always add a top end shooter. Youre making my point for me. The point is, as the team is RIGHT NOW, they are a bubble team if they get league average goaltending. Now imagine they continue adding good players and make the team better building around our stud centers(like they will this offseason). When they add, and we get non-ECHL goaltending, this team is close to the playoffs. That is the point. It's not wasting 9M when the team is close to making the jump and the guy getting that money is an elite #1 D.

Arseni Gritsyuk is continuing his strong KHL season into the playoffs. 3 point game so far today(2g and 1a) as his team tries to force game 7 in the 2nd round. Up to 10 points in 12 games in the playoffs. Strong underlying metrics too, especially as a 20 y/o in that league.(just turned 21 two weeks ago)

I really hope we can get him over here asap. You can make the argument that he's made the leap to become our 3rd best prospect behind Hughes and Holtz.

Hughes is a top 10 player in the league. Get a goalie and some defense. Dont do what the rangers did to Hank