Notes on Brad Shaw and Brendan Shanahan

The New Jersey Devils are rumored to have landed a new assistant coach. Plus, thoughts on the New York Islanders' interest in Brendan Shanahan.

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While there isn’t much happening on the ice these days (we’ve reached one game a day SZN), there are plenty of noteworthy items off of it.

Let’s take a look at the latest and greatest surrounding the New Jersey Devils and a Metro Division rival.

On the rumored Brad Shaw hiring

The New Jersey Devils recently moved on from assistant coach Ryan McGill, who helped run the defense and penalty kill in what was a good season as a whole.

While McGill’s departure may surprise some, it makes more sense when you dig beneath the surface.

For one, the level of defense we saw from the Devils at 5v5 – and on the penalty kill – dropped significantly in the second half of the year.

The Devils fell to the middle of the pack in xG suppression at 5v5 from January 1st onward. The penalty kill ranked bottom 10 in expected goals allowed during that span and was picked apart a little too easily against the Hurricanes in the 1st round.

McGill’s units struggled as the year progressed, former No. 2 pick Simon Nemec took a step back in his development, and Sheldon Keefe wasn’t the one who brought McGill on board.

Given those three factors, it’s not surprising the team is moving on – and they’ve seemingly found their replacement.

Brad Shaw is a John Tortorella favorite and Tortorella and Sheldon Keefe have a relationship. At the very least, there’s a strong mutual respect.

Torts has gone to bat for Keefe publicly a few times over the years, and I’m sure is happy to see Shaw land on his feet with Keefe.

There’s reason to be excited about what he might be able to bring to the Devils. The Flyers’ personnel leaves a lot to be desired yet they defended well across the board this past season.

Philadelphia was a top-5 shot suppression team on the penalty kill and limited xGA more effectively than the Devils, which says a lot.

The Flyers also ranked tied for 3rd in expected goals allowed at 5v5, trailing only the Florida Panthers and Los Angeles Kings in that category.

They couldn’t keep the puck out due to horrendous goaltending but Shaw and co. put good systems in place to help the Flyers defend at a high level.

Shaw has tons of experience and did a lot with a little in Philadelphia. It’s possible, if not likely, he can help the Devils defend better than they did in the 2nd half, especially with the personnel they have.

It also can’t hurt to have a fresh voice working closely with Nemec, Seamus Casey, and some of the talented young defensemen in the organization as they try and ascend the depth chart.

Shanahan to the Islanders?