Today’s guest post was written by C.J. Turturo. You can find him on Twitter @CJTDevil. There have been a few different things said by both scouts, and New Jersey Devils management that have, to some degree or another, anointed Jack Hughes as an immovable member of the team’s core and a likely future superstar.
Nico also played with Hall his whole rookie season which happened to be Hall’s MVP season and the year they made the playoffs. The team has been terrible ever since then for a number of factors.
Jack played with Wayne Simmonds and or miles wood stuck to his wing for pretty much all year. I cannot count the number of times he set teammates up and they missed. Get Jack someone who can shoot the puck and he will be fine.
I'd still bet on the dominant player that led to him being the 1st OA pick being closer to what we get in Hughes. I'm willing to throw away last season and see what we get in Hughes this year. However if we don't get a 'breakout' type year from Hughes, then I think it's time to readjust expectations and understand you're getting Clayton Keller+ instead of McDavid lite.
But as far as insurance goes, that's never a bad idea. And I'll reiterate my argument from Todd's post the other day. Sergachev isn't the only player on TB worth discussing in a trade. The Devils should be considering Cirelli as well. TB is pretty screwed. Instead of taking assets for a player that's about to turn 30 and won't be a realistic part of the team's future (Gourde, Johnson, Palat, Killorn), make a bigger splash and pick up a guy has some upside left and who, best case scenario ends up being your 3rd line center or gets moved to the wing because Hughes and Hischier are perennial all-stars. But there's your insurance policy right there.
As far as cost goes, well again, TB is kind of screwed. NYI gave up one of their best defensemen for 2 2nds so that's an idea what the market is like. Now, Toews is 26 already and likely a finished product, and I think the Islanders cap situation is worse than TBs, but I still think you're paying less than market value for Cirelli.
Nico also played with Hall his whole rookie season which happened to be Hall’s MVP season and the year they made the playoffs. The team has been terrible ever since then for a number of factors.
Jack played with Wayne Simmonds and or miles wood stuck to his wing for pretty much all year. I cannot count the number of times he set teammates up and they missed. Get Jack someone who can shoot the puck and he will be fine.
I'd still bet on the dominant player that led to him being the 1st OA pick being closer to what we get in Hughes. I'm willing to throw away last season and see what we get in Hughes this year. However if we don't get a 'breakout' type year from Hughes, then I think it's time to readjust expectations and understand you're getting Clayton Keller+ instead of McDavid lite.
But as far as insurance goes, that's never a bad idea. And I'll reiterate my argument from Todd's post the other day. Sergachev isn't the only player on TB worth discussing in a trade. The Devils should be considering Cirelli as well. TB is pretty screwed. Instead of taking assets for a player that's about to turn 30 and won't be a realistic part of the team's future (Gourde, Johnson, Palat, Killorn), make a bigger splash and pick up a guy has some upside left and who, best case scenario ends up being your 3rd line center or gets moved to the wing because Hughes and Hischier are perennial all-stars. But there's your insurance policy right there.
As far as cost goes, well again, TB is kind of screwed. NYI gave up one of their best defensemen for 2 2nds so that's an idea what the market is like. Now, Toews is 26 already and likely a finished product, and I think the Islanders cap situation is worse than TBs, but I still think you're paying less than market value for Cirelli.
Zacha!