Post Game Thread: New Jersey Devils at Buffalo Sabres – 29 Mar 2024

38 comments

1. We need to get Palat a one way ticket to New Zealand but tell him it’s a vacation.

   Also hopefully Holtz can hold it together for a few more games to really set the hook for a Saros trade

   I’m so fucking angry. This team had a shot and then lost to a middling sabres team which deserves absolutely no credit for anything

2. We haven’t won 3 games in a row this year. Why did people think they would do it today?

3. Crazy how quickly we get away from what is effective. They allow a few good saves, mostly generated on chances from chaos around the net, to make them allergic to shooting under any circumstance. If they can’t pass it into the open net it’s never going in because the big bad goalie made a good save.

4. Team desperately needed a players only meeting so many times this year.

   I’ve never seen a team make so many overly confident dumb plays that lead to chances for the opposition.

   The lack of chemistry on this team is appalling and while a good coach will help that I’m just so baffled that a team of talented pros can be so lacking in cohesion.

5. They come off good wins vs Penguins and Jets, play like crap and lost to Senators. Then beat Islanders and Toronto and lose to Buffalo who got killed by the Senators in their last game. As soon as I saw that I had a bad feeling about this game so thanks Ottawa for ruining the season! Obviously not the case and they have no one to blame but themselves. For people saying they can’t beat “teams like Buffalo”, unfortunately this year, they are right there with Buffalo. Next year is a big year to see what their identity is in the league.

6. gg

7. My only comfort is Tage getting 4 goals wins my season prop that he’d get at least one game w 4+. Couple hundred buck consolation prize.

8. So many Facebook Devils fans in here

9. We looked a lot tonight like I expected us to look last season 😅

10. Serious teams would have secured a point at minimum.

11. that was severely depressing. only positive in the moment I can think of right now is at least we can all move on to next year and stop falling for this team’s false hope bait. LGD.

12. Idk how all these guys are sitting here saying “the effort was there”…they got fucking blown out of the water for 2 periods, it didn’t even look like we had any energy after 3 days off…I swear the organization is fucking delusional, team looked like ass after the first 10 mind

13. this season hurts even worse seeing the rangers with the #1 spot lmfao how depressing

14. OK so someone please explain to me, a stupid European still learning about American sports culture. Every hockey community I frequent, be they on here or on Facebook all talk about the Devils being the disappointment of the season cause they were supposed to be contenders. But why? I’ve kept up with the Devils now since 2013 but only really becoming a “die hard” so to speak in more recent years, but we’ve had a really shitty decade and I just can’t see why anyone thought we’d be a contender yet when we’re still in a rebuild having had one good season in 10 years.

    It’s such a young team, time is on their side and there will be cup runs.

15. At what point do we start seriously questioning some “core pieces” on this team

16. The Bahl-Marino pairing is a complete disaster.

17. Jake Allen deserved better than whatever team was out in front of him tonight. Dude had some HUGE stops and we couldn’t pull any momentum from it

18. OK, this quote from Nico (via Stein) is seriously infuriating:

    “Some things just (don’t) change. Everyone has to look themselves in the mirror. If you play against teams like that, the only way they’re going to beat you is you beat yourself. And that’s what we did here tonight. Again.”

    The fact they think they’re so much better than “teams like that” tells you exactly why this team is where it is. Hey, Nico you have **ONE** more point than Buffalo. You are a team like that.

19. We fuckin suck bro

20. The entire D core needs to be restarted.

    Marino, siegenthaler have been out worked, out played and out contracted by a random rookie throw in and a waiver pick up.

    And Bahl I think is just really stupid?

    You are a big body that’s your only hockey asset but you won’t use it because you think you’re good at hockey?

    Awful.

    Entire back end needs to be reworked.

    Bottom 6 needs to not be a old veteran grind lines + a random kid who can only shoot.

    Stop playing people out of position and stop signing name brand players instead of positional fit..

    Fucking infuriating.

    Almost want a complete POS like Babcock at this point..

21. I know palat has a no movement contract but this guy is stealing money. Would the devils be willing to eat some salary to get rid of him? I don’t know what changes to make but palat is not worth his salary and Marino has really regressed. The last 2 weeks have been desperate times and Nico and timo seemed to pick up their game a notch along with a few role players. Jack is obviously still hurting but he has to know he can’t skate through a whole team by himself. Still love the guy and will score 45 if healthy. Luke is good but he has to realize he is a defenseman. And finally, who will coach this team next year?

22. When X speaks the room listens. Who on the current roster is that?

    This team doesn’t have a true leader. If this is going to be a dynasty like the last one, who is this team’s Scott Stevens? Or at least 75% of that. We are sorely missing that.

23. This team is literally the leafs 2.0. play up and play down to their opponents, luckily we don’t have the same contract situation..

24. It’s amazing what expectations will do. I’ll see y’all in the fall

25. just give me Kermit vs. Rempe for the pain and let me die

26. I think it’s unrealistic to think this D core will grow and get better together , quite frankly , I think it’s a pipe dream. We are banking on a bunch of young guys playing long enough together that they are no longer young but have incredible chemistry? Who are they learning from ? It ain’t each other. We need some veteran D guys here. We are too young to a flaw across the hoard. N the vets we have are wrong god the team. We have enough talent to shop for what we need. Cause this team. Needs to have some new skaters on it n some need to go.

27. Where can we get the global series jersey for next season? I want to wear one when we play them to open the season.

28. Let’s not let fitz off the hook. If the goalie situation was addressed early and we picked up a veteran defenseman when Hamilton got hurt(had cap space money) we would be in the playoffs.

29. Honestly I don’t know how much they genuinely want to make the playoffs this season anyway and the statement is literally just some noise to give an answer to a reporter. Given how poor and injured the team has played and is.

    But it’s not a great look.

    Can someone do a study on having a kid in the NHL and production dropoff?

    I feel like every person who had a kid sucked dick all season.

30. The core doesn’t seem to like to compete and there’s waaaay too many passengers collecting checks. Roster needs another overhaul 🤦🏼‍♂️

31. I think it’s bizarre that more people aren’t putting pressure on fitz. I respect fitz, his patience in addressing long-term issues played a big part in why I thought we were successful last year. He’s given us great long term contracts with our core, but when he had the opportunity to help us get some defensive pieces and a goalie after Dougie’s injury, he has completely floundered on all those fronts.

    I understand that he’s got a long term vision for the team, but I think a good gm also needs to be able to make big moves during the season as well, and not wait to address them all until the trade deadline and offseason. I’m afraid that fitz may continue this trend of refusing to make fixes to the team during the season, and this does not bode well for next year, after this team and its core have been exposed for all the world to see.

32. I know playoffs are a very long shot but dammit the first period had me believing.

33. Revamp the entire roster outside of the top 6 and Nemec, Hughes, and Dougie on D. Everyone else should be available. I no longer trust Fitz. Took him until the end of Feband TDL to fire Lindy and get a goalie. Even with the goalie the defense is ass.

34. It seems like Travis Green has done some decent things. But continually playing the fourth line with Brendan Smith? He lost me on that one.

35. Jake Allen is a cup winning goalie on a good team right now. I feel bad for the guy.

36. Shouldn’t have fired the coach, this team is super talented just had a lot of injuries with Jack and Dougie out. Just a season of some poor early goaltending and injuries

37. Jfc I missed this one, but it seems like possibly the worst trajectory: hope followed by a very slow bleed.

38. Remove the 1st letter from Devils, they don’t deserve it!