During the Friday edition of NHL Tonight, Jamison Coyle and former NHLer and current NHL Analyst Bill Lindsay discuss how the New Jersey Devils can fix their fractures in the locker room that were alluded to by defenseman Brenden Dillon on the Donnie and Dhali Show.
DevilsNation.com Transcription
Nico Hischier Continues to Lead the New Jersey Devils His Way
Jamison Coyle: “Does that start with the GM, or is that more coaching, or is that more players inside that room? How do you fix it?”
Bill Lindsay: “It has to be cool. So, bring in Sunny Mehta, and Tom Fitzgerald was my roommate and linemate forever. I have the ton of respect for him, but it all starts with cohesiveness, from the ownership to the GM-president, players, that everybody’s on the same page, and it gets into the players, and we bring in players that are going to fit our system, and that work, and all of a sudden it all becomes one, but mostly it boils down that if you get into a coach.
So take Paul Maurice when he took over the Panthers, that this is our system, and I need the guys from our players, okay? Well, the GM, Bill Zito, provides it. Now it’s upon the players to take it upon themselves and execute those systems, and then when the dressing room becomes self-reliant, that you understand that you have the leadership that’s in that dressing room, that the coach doesn’t have to go in there.
Devils Captain Nico Hischier: “The Standard is High
I can understand that, Jack Hughes, if something happens, Jack Hughes will take care of it; he’s a captain of my team, or Nico Hischer. So there are plenty of people. Once your dressing room becomes okay, I’ve got the leaders in the room that we have had a few bad nights, I don’t even have to walk in there. They’ll take care of themselves. Maybe every now and again.
But you need a locker room that is self-contained, that is, one that can heal itself without a coach. So, it almost always comes down to the players that you have on board.”
That was an ongoing issue all season: the discussion of this group’s maturity and growth. Stefan Noesen, who missed most of the season, discussed the mental grind and noted that it has a trickle-down effect from the top to the players. There needs to be buy-in and a commitment that no game will be easy and that certain guys can’t take teams for granted. As Dillon said at the end of the season, too many guys thought it would be easy to make the playoffs every year.
But the best locker rooms, like the Florida Panthers, Vegas Golden Knights, Montreal Canadiens, the list goes on, have players come in and follow the lead of the captain. It feels like some guys want to play one way, and others want to play another. Until the New Jersey Devils realize that the coach’s way is the right way, they will have problems, and the issues in the room won’t be resolved.
But again, do the players respect each other? Former Devils player Tom Chorske was vocal on Twitter about his time playing alongside guys like Scott Stevens, Scott Niedermayer, Ken Daneyko, John MacLean, and Jacques Lemaire. Back then, GM Lou Lamoriello didn’t allow those problems to exist.
So the New Jersey Devils have to accept that things won’t be easy. There has to be accountability for every player in the room. And to succeed, every player has to buy in and agree that this is how we want to play. There is no deviation from the plan.
So the New Jersey Devils have a lot to do, not only on the ice but also off it, to be a perennial winner for a long time.
