New Jersey Devils notes: On Marino's impact and (potentially) targeting Tarasenko

No matter what the Devils do at the deadline, they will soon add a key piece to their lineup in John Marino.

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A couple New Jersey Devils notes as we inch closer and closer to their return to action:

On New Jersey’s internal acquisition

Timo Meier has been the the talk of the town in New Jersey leading up to the trade deadline.

Whether the Devils can close a deal for Meier – or another player of impact – remains to be seen. However, the Devils stand to add a key piece in advance of the deadline no matter what happens externally. That piece is John Marino.

It is hard to overstate how important the 25-year-old back is to this Devils team. Some felt the praise during the peak of Marino Mania™ was a little out of control. The theory was that his numbers lagged a little behind Dougie Hamilton, Jonas Siegenthaler and, in some ways, Damon Severson. While there is absolutely some truth to that, context is key.

Marino starts more of his shifts in the defensive zone than all but Ryan Graves and he spends more of his time against top tier competition than anybody on the Devils’ blueline. Not only does he handle himself adequately in those difficult minutes; he dominates them.

As you can see, Marino has helped lead the Devils to a higher shot share than any of the other big five. His goal differential is also second best despite playing nearly 20 games fewer than possible to this point. On a per game basis, he’d be right there with Graves had he continued at his current pace.

Marino’s presence will give the Devils five defenders capable of consistently winning their minutes and allow Severson – who ranks top-10 in the NHL in high-danger chance share – to feast on opposing depth players each and every night.

Getting him back will be huge for a team that needs to be jumpstarted at 5v5.

Vladimir Tarasenko SZN?

If the Devils get priced out for Timo Meier – in terms of the trade return or the amount they’d be willing to pay him on a new contract – and still wish to add a scoring winger, Vladimir Tarasenko seems to be a name worth watching.