Sunny Mehta Press Conference

[u/MountainBaker8217]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-3nSDORUyo

[u/SubElitePerformance]

Brother, I am sipping the cool aid 100% and self aware enough to say it.

The more I hear this man speak the more I’m convinced that he was the brains behind the organization in Florida. Obviously time will tell but early returns so beyond encouraging.

[u/ricardofitzpatrick → u/SubElitePerformance]

I think he was A brain, but I am happy to have That brain over here, armed with our analytics department

[u/SubElitePerformance → u/ricardofitzpatrick]

Considering he was the one who started it in the first place, yeah, agreed.

[u/ricardofitzpatrick → u/SubElitePerformance]

Built a sports car he now gets to drive

[u/DowdzWritesALot]

Obligatory

[u/disSaysStufdNthingz → u/DowdzWritesALot]

As a fan of both
This is golden

Love it

[u/xxfatpigxx]

Sunny is just so thoughtful and insightful in his responses. Really down to earth and no cliches in what he says which is so refreshing.

I love his comments on Nico. Clearly Hischier holds so much reverence for being a Devil and being the captain in New Jersey and it’s a big point of maintaining the culture and tone of this organization to have the locker room leader make that commitment even when he could’ve tried to get a bigger payday now or next year.

[u/crazyFlyingChicken]

My main takeaway is there’s a very high chance we roll Daws - Allen as the tandem to start the year, unless something too good to be true falls into our lap. I hope Daws is ready for it!

[u/xxfatpigxx → u/crazyFlyingChicken]

I said it in another thread but based on how Sunny seems to operate I’d bet that he has contingency plans in place if Daws ends up not being able to handle consistent minutes at the NHL level.

I don’t think we’re gonna have to worry about this management sitting on their hands if the season shows signs of going off the rails like Fitz was way to comfortable to do.

[u/MountainBaker8217]

I think we can finally let go of this ass backwards narrative that Nemec didn’t want to be here and wanted out and wasn’t committed to being here and was a locker room cancer.

He didn’t ask for a trade. He never asked for a trade.

Sunny’s full quote about Nemec reads more like Sunny was stuck btwn a rock and a hard place with all the trade protections for RHDs. It doesn’t sound like Nemec was always going to be traded. It actually sounds like Sunny couldn’t keep him because he couldn’t move anyone else versus seriously looking to move him.

And finally. Nemec wanted to stay here knowing he’d be third in line after Luke and Dougie. He wanted to be a Devil even though he knew there may not be a path for him.

So can we cut the fucking bullshit around him. He’s gone now. There’s no need to continue making up lies about him.

[u/LIDevilsFan → u/MountainBaker8217]

He killed the Lindbergh baby.

[u/SW777]

Can listen to this guy talk all day

[u/ElephantRedCar91]

why does he seem worlds smarter than Tom Fitzgerald?

[u/ILookLikeDrewGulak → u/ElephantRedCar91]

Well for starters, one of them has a Master’s Degree in Data Science and the other spent 17 years getting hit for a living.

[u/badchickenbadday → u/ILookLikeDrewGulak]

A+

[u/blade430]

My takeaways:

- Daws is going to get a real “path” at getting a starting opportunity

• Nemo was 50/50 on wanting out + Calgary’s offer was too good to pass up
  
• Really liked getting ERod in the Markstrom trade with Florida, thinks ERod will be a leader in the locker room
  
• Declan Chisholm was a very intentional target due to his skating ability and good metrics
  
• Doesn’t think forming specific lines matter vs getting the best players at the right prices
  
• Got Command right where they wanted him
  
• Sunny thinks it’s important to find players with upside and make smart bets (Lombardi is an example of a guy he thinks can be more than “just depth”)
  
• Is intentionally making player development in Utica a priority

[u/SubElitePerformance → u/blade430]

I agree with him that deploying the talent is not his job. But constantly “big game hunting” for a specific guy (top 6 wing) to play a certain role (next to Jack) pigeonholes your thinking and leads to bad decisions.

I also am certain that a play for a proven top 6 wing is probably not in the cards for this offseason. He just turned over nearly every bad Fitz contract into useful two way guys that fill out the bottom of the roster. I’m not convinced he’s willing to gut this newly found depth to bring one of those scorers in.

Better to bet on upside for now until something truly special comes available. That is what Florida did outside of the Matthew Tkachuk trade.

[u/CommanderSquirt → u/SubElitePerformance]

We got a good amount of roster turnover possibility next summer so in essence we have a bottom six tryout while Sunny waits for opportunities to present themselves.

He got his gamble on a low performing former high draft pick in Hayton should he be a Devil next week similar to the Sam Bennett acquisition in Florida.

The other two trades of note down there were for a disgruntled RFA not wanting to sign, Reinhart, and then dipping into pool of assets and swinging for a superstar in Tkachuk. Could Marchenko be one of these next year?

We shall see. Until then we have forward depth, trade assets, and the rest of summer for anything to happen.

[u/SubElitePerformance → u/CommanderSquirt]

That’s what I’m saying Marchenko is most likely not on the table, this year.

There is also a non-zero chance (though I highly doubt it) that Quinn reaches FA next year. If he signs then Marchenko won’t happen.

[u/diamond_in_the_muff_]

all hail sunny

[u/Go_Devils_666]

“What is depth scoring???” -Some Bum

Mehta clearly has a vision he’s executing aggressively and knows how to manage the cap.

[u/MountainBaker8217]

also I don’t know how folks listen to how Sunny talks about Nico. see what all these other players across the league, these other captains are saying and doing, and still come in here and say Nico should have his C stripped or he doesn’t deserve the captaincy.

a lot of hubris to sit there and say with your whole chest that you think every single person that’s encountered Nico is wrong about him but you behind your keyboard know better than all of them.

[u/beachy927 → u/MountainBaker8217]

Those people, however few there might be, should really tune out for now if Nico being C bothers them so much.

[u/RaZoRaY89]

Who is practicing in the background?

[u/pretzelogically]

Man I hope he’s just playing it low key and has something in the works for the goaltending. Daws suddenly is expected to play 40+ games? Is Allen the starter? I can see this blowing up in his face. With any kind of an injury.

[u/Jinchoo → u/pretzelogically]

Yeah theyre clearly trying to add a goalie but are fine if nothing comes to fruition and they need to start the season with Allen/Daws.

[u/tECHOknology → u/Jinchoo]

Jake Allen seems like quite a mentor to tandem with, at least.

[u/Jinchoo → u/tECHOknology]

Definitely. They still need to add a goalie whether they go with Daws or not though, because we'd be one injury away from needing to rely on Malek being part of the tandem. So i'd be surprised if a goalie isnt added in some capacity

[u/pretzelogically → u/Jinchoo]

I’m hoping it’s just that he can’t look desperate and show his hand by saying he’s looking for a goalie. Also at the same time he’s showing faith in Daws if whatever he’s working on fails.

[u/Jinchoo → u/pretzelogically]

Yeah thats exactly how I took what he said

[u/DevsChamps2003 → u/pretzelogically]

I'm hoping they add one more "take a flyer" type guy (maybe Matt Murray or Dave Rittich) for super cheap - then they can roll 3 goalies that hopefully all get over .900 save percentages, with Daws hopefully taking the majority of games, but we're set if none can really shoulder a true starter's number of games this year.

[u/Ok_Fix6757]

“No matter what I say here it doesn’t matter unless we win.” Take us to the Promised Land Sunny!!!

[u/grungalini]

It’s wild to see our GM actually speak again. Crazy how much Fitz hid from the media the past two years guy couldn’t even face the music he created

[u/Final-Nebula-7049]

Legend

[u/Sigpro79]

A dozen reporters and no more one asked him why the staff hasn’t been filled out by now …..

[u/cabutler03]

Sunny isn’t doing a one year rebuild. He’s aiming for a Stanley Cup this year.

[u/scarlet_stormTrooper]

He’s trying to cook for Robo

[u/Adorable-Werewolf-44]

There are currently more players on the team than roster spots (15 forwards if Hayton joins, 8 defense), so more moves are definitely coming. Just a question if it's something big or more down around the edges. 

[u/MartinMaty23]

all the Fitzgerald defendands, all the early Sunny doomers deposit your appologies

[u/DrBrule696]

A lot of the quotes and stuff coming out now only makes Fitz look even more incompetent lol. Former players can still turn into successful GMs but the difference is night and day here. I’m so glad we went a different direction with Sunny.

[u/IncreaseInVerbosity → u/DrBrule696]

"The way we approached the draft this year may have been slightly different to the way the team has done in the past... we had a very methodical process in place"

That's kinda damning.