Devils President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Tom Fitzgerald speaks to the media about a variety of topics surrounding the first part of the season.
@@karlheinzvonkroemann221760% of his starters were injured last year. No matter who your goalie is you can’t win with that amount of injuries. Stop the slander and get over it.
@@johntempleton3560maybe the ones who wanted Soros instead of Markstrom or the ones that wanted Stamkos and or Marshassault and they all are playing terrible lol trust the process baby
@QueensNewYorkguy the vast majority of fans wanted serious help at D and an upgrade in net, and that was addressed in the summer. as far as Stamkos goes, for all we know Fitzgerald maybe even wanted him, but couldn't crunch the cap numbers without trading someone from the core. either way, i'm glad he is not in NJ. i'd say the consensus was Fitz accomplished his offseason missions. i heard very little doubt or hate towards him, that was the point
Moves he made in the off-season have been epic. Even a guy like Kovocevic has made a huge difference, to say nothing about the rest of the new or returning guys
@@p00l95 idk about all that as far as he has to win us a Cup this year which i think very well might happen but if we go deep in the playoffs that’s still better than what we’ve been able to do for like over 10 years now so his window should be at least 2 to 4 more years
I’ve been saying this for like forever now it seems but there’s absolutely no coincidence why this guy was hired to be our GM! He was always a defense first guy as a player especially when he was on the Islanders back in the 90s and he knows that if you play defense, you’ll always have a roster spot in the NHL! He was the Islanders captain and once again, not by any type of coincidence, the guy was a leader and a warrior! Just like Nemec, Fitzgerald had offense but knew his team in some ways didn’t need him to make that a priority with super offensive guys like Pierre Turgeon and Steve Thomas on that Islanders team! Many of These young kids just don’t get it!
I think overall the team has played better compared to last season, and that's a given. The team could not have continued going down that path. So, changing Ruff and the goalies certain helped "springboard" the team to transition to a new coach in Keefe. Word of caution - regular season is one thing, playoffs is another. As this team is currently constructed, I think they lack a few elements necessary to win in the clutch. They lack playoff experience, size, and they will need Allen and Markstrom to rob a few games when the team isn't playing its best.
Last year Lindy Ruff was basically given Vítek Vaněček a third string Czech journeyman goalie who showed Devils fans what a .890 Save Percentage looks like. It wasn't pretty! The rest of the Goalie team was Nico Daws and Akira Schmid, both rookies with yeah, you guessed it, sub .900 save percentages that never stood a chance because the number ONE defense pairing consisted of two more rookies that were just terrible. Most fans understand that it takes 3 years to really make a good NHL defensmen. Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec were the number ONE Def pairing. Yeah, they were awful but so were the Devils. You can't win in the NHL with no goalies and no D-men. That's the difference between this year and last year. If you watched the Devils play regularly last year then You know it wasn't Ruff's fault. Fitzgerald just got busy this past off-season and addressed most of the lingering problems that that he should have tried to fix last year. They could've had Jacob Markström last year...
@@missstar219 Two years ago he was up for coach of the year! So much for that theory. One year goes by and he's not built for the league anymore. If I understand you correctly that is.
He just needs to be decent and (like the rest of the team) get hot at the right time. Far worse have gotten to the finals and even won cups in recent years. Yea, given his age he’s probably a stopgap and he’s obviously not among the very best in the league but a blanket statement like he “isn’t the answer” is simply a no
@@atte2661he's right. They better win this season but they won't. You cannot win without big top 6 scoring Centre and abysmal bottom 6 the Devils have.
@@p00l95 shark, ducks are even younger and as much talented as the devils. Or do you think Devils is the only team has a bright future. Dallas has been a better team for years and still cannot get over the hump. Oilers have two best players in the league and cannot do it. Leafs,Canes cannot do too. The league is tough and no team is guaranteed dominance or success. Washington had a fantastic team 15 year ago winning Presidents Trophy every year but chocked in playoffs. To say the Devils will dominate the league for a decade is the stupidest thing to say.
Screw Brady, how would we be able to resign Luke and Kovacevic? We need an affordable big heavy body on that top 6 to go along with Meier and or one more bottom 6 guy and we’ll be fine!
@@QueensNewYorkguy The Sens also just aren't moving him. Goal this summer should be both Dougie and Palat out with another legit top 6er in and another good bottom 6er
Excellent interview! LG Devils! 🏒 Every new season I get a new piece of Devils gear to wear during each game, my wife thinks I’m silly but I look forward to every single game…even when we struggle!
You’ve done a great job fitz!
This year he's done a great job. Last year not at all.
@@karlheinzvonkroemann221760% of his starters were injured last year. No matter who your goalie is you can’t win with that amount of injuries.
Stop the slander and get over it.
In Fitz we trust!
Fitzy has been terrific! All you doubters from the summer are rather quiet now!
who were the doubters?
@@johntempleton3560maybe the ones who wanted Soros instead of Markstrom or the ones that wanted Stamkos and or Marshassault and they all are playing terrible lol trust the process baby
@QueensNewYorkguy the vast majority of fans wanted serious help at D and an upgrade in net, and that was addressed in the summer. as far as Stamkos goes, for all we know Fitzgerald maybe even wanted him, but couldn't crunch the cap numbers without trading someone from the core. either way, i'm glad he is not in NJ. i'd say the consensus was Fitz accomplished his offseason missions. i heard very little doubt or hate towards him, that was the point
@@QueensNewYorkguysurprised you didn’t mention Ullmark
He was terrible last year.
Thank you Josh Harris for hiring this guy! Really loving the direction of this team! The future is SO bright!!
😂
Moves he made in the off-season have been epic. Even a guy like Kovocevic has made a huge difference, to say nothing about the rest of the new or returning guys
Love everything Fitzy has done to revamp this team
Fitzy is a great GM. So happy to be here to ride this wave. It’s been a long time but patience has paid off
he has to win a cup. yeah the moves he made are great but they need to get it done in the spring.
@@p00l95 idk about all that as far as he has to win us a Cup this year which i think very well might happen but if we go deep in the playoffs that’s still better than what we’ve been able to do for like over 10 years now so his window should be at least 2 to 4 more years
@@p00l95 I'm still surprised that he was canned after last season.
Great team, great job Fritz! ❤
Fitzgerald is Irish NOT German!
the only video i like so far from this channel
LGD.
In fitz we trust
Jump on that bandwagon!
we dont. here is a fraud
Thank you Fitzgerald and your scouting staff for all the work you do! Do not let the scouting staff leave to any other team.
Lou Lamb was the best , Fitz is damn good
@@williamjulian1331 Lou was cheap, we could’ve won more Cups if not for that
Fitzgerald is fraud
03 never more
I’ve been saying this for like forever now it seems but there’s absolutely no coincidence why this guy was hired to be our GM! He was always a defense first guy as a player especially when he was on the Islanders back in the 90s and he knows that if you play defense, you’ll always have a roster spot in the NHL! He was the Islanders captain and once again, not by any type of coincidence, the guy was a leader and a warrior! Just like Nemec, Fitzgerald had offense but knew his team in some ways didn’t need him to make that a priority with super offensive guys like Pierre Turgeon and Steve Thomas on that Islanders team! Many of These young kids just don’t get it!
He has never been the Islanders captain
@@sst6601 okay assistant captain hockey police sorry lol
@@QueensNewYorkguy yeah, I'm watching over you all) someone has to)
I think overall the team has played better compared to last season, and that's a given. The team could not have continued going down that path. So, changing Ruff and the goalies certain helped "springboard" the team to transition to a new coach in Keefe.
Word of caution - regular season is one thing, playoffs is another. As this team is currently constructed, I think they lack a few elements necessary to win in the clutch. They lack playoff experience, size, and they will need Allen and Markstrom to rob a few games when the team isn't playing its best.
Last year Lindy Ruff was basically given Vítek Vaněček a third string Czech journeyman goalie who showed Devils fans what a .890 Save Percentage looks like. It wasn't pretty! The rest of the Goalie team was Nico Daws and Akira Schmid, both rookies with yeah, you guessed it, sub .900 save percentages that never stood a chance because the number ONE defense pairing consisted of two more rookies that were just terrible. Most fans understand that it takes 3 years to really make a good NHL defensmen. Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec were the number ONE Def pairing. Yeah, they were awful but so were the Devils. You can't win in the NHL with no goalies and no D-men. That's the difference between this year and last year. If you watched the Devils play regularly last year then
You know it wasn't Ruff's fault. Fitzgerald just got busy this past off-season and addressed most of the lingering problems that that he should have tried to fix last year. They could've had Jacob Markström last year...
lol sabres are on a 10 game winning streak doesn’t matter the players he is not built for this league anymore
@@missstar219 Two years ago he was up for coach of the year! So much for that theory. One year goes by and he's not built for the league anymore. If I understand you correctly that is.
@ that season was a fluke let’s be real
So were 1927 Yankees, right. No Goalies, no Defensemen. Which one was the fluke? This year or last year?
Please address the goaltending this offseason. Markstrom isn't the answer.
He just needs to be decent and (like the rest of the team) get hot at the right time. Far worse have gotten to the finals and even won cups in recent years. Yea, given his age he’s probably a stopgap and he’s obviously not among the very best in the league but a blanket statement like he “isn’t the answer” is simply a no
Team has no cap left with several long-term unmovable contracts. They better win or else our 15 year rebuild will continue. Trade Luke
nice troll comment
@@atte2661he's right. They better win this season but they won't. You cannot win without big top 6 scoring Centre and abysmal bottom 6 the Devils have.
@@sst6601 The team is very young. They will have 10+ years of dominance in the NHL. rags, canes, isles, will all get older.
@@sst6601 You're an idiot.
@@p00l95 shark, ducks are even younger and as much talented as the devils. Or do you think Devils is the only team has a bright future. Dallas has been a better team for years and still cannot get over the hump. Oilers have two best players in the league and cannot do it. Leafs,Canes cannot do too. The league is tough and no team is guaranteed dominance or success. Washington had a fantastic team 15 year ago winning Presidents Trophy every year but chocked in playoffs. To say the Devils will dominate the league for a decade is the stupidest thing to say.
Find the way to get Brady and get heavier on the 4th line . Trade Nemec and Casey for him and Pinto .
Trade Nemec and Mercer + 2nd for Brady. Keep Casey.
How does that work with the salary cap?
Screw Brady, how would we be able to resign Luke and Kovacevic? We need an affordable big heavy body on that top 6 to go along with Meier and or one more bottom 6 guy and we’ll be fine!
Brady is a cancer
@@QueensNewYorkguy The Sens also just aren't moving him. Goal this summer should be both Dougie and Palat out with another legit top 6er in and another good bottom 6er
Excellent interview! LG Devils! 🏒 Every new season I get a new piece of Devils gear to wear during each game, my wife thinks I’m silly but I look forward to every single game…even when we struggle!
struggle or stink?
Meritocracy! YES... thank you, no hand outs, no DEI rubbish... just whoever is best plays. Very cool 😎 Let's Go Devils 😈🏒
Youre the only DEI rubbish i see around here. LGD!
There's always one nut case
@@ttvteacher9980Kamala voter triggered 😂
imagine voting you cuck
@@ttvteacher9980you also promised to leave the country but yet are still here dingbat?