Are the Devils Misusing Their Assets?

by Tyler Bleszinski on Nov 19, 2008 8:04 PM EST Comment 2 comments

The Devils' style of play has come under scrutiny since 1995. Certain offensive players have wanted out of the Devils' very conservative, defensive system. Lou Lamoriello has dispatched players who didn't buy into the team-first concept. Mike Van Ryn was never given a chance to be a Devil because of his me-first mentality.

Yet I can't help but think when I watch the Devils play that certain players on their team are being grossly misused. I'm thinking of Johnny Oduya and Paul Martin and to a lesser extent, Salmela. I think Oduya and Martin are more offensively skilled than they're allowed to demonstrate because the Devils are so much about taking care of their own end. Martin only has four assists this year and his career high in points was only 37, but Martin makes great choices with the puck in the offensive zone. He's very effective on the power play and I'd like to see him be given the green light a little more.

Salmela is young and he's just learning the ropes in the defensive end, so it is probably a little much to ask him to be a huge offensive contributor. But he's shown brief flashes of immense creativity. He's also a defenseman who is not at all shy about firing the puck. Which brings me to:

Oduya is the one who has shown Devils' fans flashes of brilliance. He's had some remarkable goals for the Devils. I think most Devils fans remember this one against the Canes from last year:

Oduya is one of the better skating defenseman the Devils have ever had. Scott Niedermayer was clearly number one, Rafalski was also good, but Oduya is probably somewhere between Nieds and Rafalski in terms of pure skating ability. He also has a better shot than Niedermayer could've ever hoped for.

So what am I asking for? Allow the Devils defenseman to activate more often. Let Oduya pinch a little more frequently. The Devils have responsible forwards who can cover when a defenseman activates. I mean, I feel very comfortable with John Madden covering defense when a Martin or an Oduya pinch.

I know this will fall upon deaf ears because the Devils do things the Devil way. That means not taking risks and playing percentages. But if they do want to survive during the time when Martin Brodeur is out, they might need to win more 5-4, 6-5 games than they're accustomed and that means generating some extra offense from somewhere. I think the personnel is there. Do you?

All FanPosts and FanShots are the respective work of the author and not representative of the writers or other users of In Lou We Trust.

0 recs | Comment 2 comments |

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

While I wont disagree that the Devils have played defense first for years, even in 2000 and 2001 when they had one of the most potent offenses in the league, I think that under Sutter the defenseman have been pinching more – particularly this season. Before all the injuries – Rolston, Holik, Greene, Martin, plus Gionta and Salvador briefly, and of course Brodeur, the team looked solid. They were generating a lot of shots (some high quality, some not so high quality) and save for some stretches had good puck possession. A large reason for this was defenseman like Martin, Oduya, and Mottau pinching a bit more. Salvador and White have also done more of it this season.

After the rash of injuries the Devs were trying to hang on, particularly when Gionta and Salvador were out. The last few games (Florida, Islanders) the defense has been very active offensively – dont think its a coincidence that this seemed to coincide with Martin’s return. While the Devils still wont be confused with an offensive juggernaut I really liked how they looked at the start of the season (pre-injury phase) and also these last few games. When the defense is involved in the offense to the extent they have these past two games, the Devils play a much stronger puck possession game. One should also factor in that the defense for the first time in 14-15 years doesnt have Brodeur back there for an extended period of time, there is obviously a degree of adjustment needed.

So I guess the main point is, I dont think the assets are being misused this season (other seasons are up for debate), although lets see if this type of play is maintained over the long haul.

by hgzang on Nov 23, 2008 4:05 PM EST reply actions

I’d have to agree with the comment, I don’t think it’s so much a misuse as it is a general tactic. I think it has to be considered that the Devils defenders’ responsibility is defense first for guys like Salvador and White as that’s their forte and they aren’t particularly fast. Mottau, Salmela, and Oduya are more capable with the puck and they’ve been allowed to play up/pinch in more, but they aren’t as reliable as Paul Martin so it’s a bit of a risk. Given that the Devils aren’t goal scoring machines, last 4 games notwithstanding, it’s not a bad idea to keep the D back a little bit. What they’ve been doing recently has worked in that they aren’t only doing one or the other – the freedom to move up on offense if the opportunity presents itself is certainly there and used to their advantage (notably by Martin).

by John Fischer on Nov 25, 2008 8:35 PM EST reply actions

In Lou We Trust: An SB Nation Community

Network Bar

In Lou We Trust -

A New Jersey Devils blog: World Class Hockey by Jersey's Team, the NJHC