Haula is, “Hoping he finds a home in Jersey.”
Chatted with #njdevils’ Erik Haula for awhile this morning. He’s hoping he finds a home in Jersey. Devils coaches love the way he has played here and same with GM Tom Fitzgerald
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) March 21, 2023
by mustachiolong
21 Comments
I feel like this is the first expiring UFA, other than Sevo, that has commented about wanting to stay or move on. I think a cheaper value contract for 2-3 years would be a good fit.
He’s been dogged on a lot this year, but now that we’ve come full circle with Haula centering Jack it feels like a return may be in the cards. Jack clearly feels comfortable playing with him, almost as if he’s a safety blanket. He’d definitely need to take a pay cut.
I hope we keep Haula. A solid overall player that shouldn’t be too pricey.
Haula should definitely be kept around, especially with it being evident Jack is most comfortable playing with him
While he doesn’t always show on the stat sheet and might not be the best finisher, he’s ability to win 50/50 battles and clutch face offs has helped a ton this year.
I really hope we bring him and Graves back.
Haula I would be fine repeating the same contract he had 2-3 years at 2.3-2.5M.
Would love to have Graves at 4.5-5M on a 4-5 year deal.
find the back of the net
Would like to see more offensive production but there were periods this year where he was basically the only forward i had any trust in to always make the right play while in the defensive zone. I wish forwards got more credit for their D work.
He’s a good 4C who can play up the lines if anyone gets injured, sounds good if he’s cheap
Please no.
No denying he did something for Jack on his wing and has been very unlucky, creates chances, good defensively, just a great guy to have on the right deal. This fanbase is brutal but let’s see how it goes now that he is seemingly with Jack again.
I’ll take another serving of Haula if Jack suddenly takes off with him on his line, thank you.
Damn, even professional athletes can’t afford this housing market.
I hope so too. For Al the shit he gets, if he’s in a legit bottom six role our teams in a good spot.
I’d keep him for consistency alone. He & Jack have good chemistry out there. Better than I was anticipating when we brought him in for his veteran-ness this season. Maybe a cheap deal for 2 years?
I wouldn’t mind resigning Haula
If the price is right I would gladly take him back. He has really played noticeably better lately since moving into the 3C spot because it puts him into a better role for his skill set. Trying to keep up with Hughes and Bratt on a primary scoring line just wasn’t the right position for him to be in.
I will say though that he should consult a witch doctor or someone with similar credentials this off-season to see about removing the scoring curse he was afflicted with this year. I can’t recall seeing a player so snake bitten in my life. The number of times he had no doubters denied was just insane.
Id say keep him and Tatar if you can do team friendly deals.
I dont hate Haula. But we need to tread lightly when it comes to signing mid tier guys. As much as I like them both, not sure it makes sense to sign both him and Tatar unless its cheap and short term. We are heading torwards a cap crunch. Meier, Bratt, Mercer are all due for big raises. Pay for your high end talent, plug holes with young ELC players or vets on cheap deals is the recipe for success. Spending $10M+ on a 3rd line puts you in a bad spot.
Sorry but Haula has to go. Jack should really be paired with someone like Palat and Mercer who can take plenty of face offs.
Hughes played his best with Haula on his line.
Haula won the faceoffs, he went to the dirty areas, he got the hell out of Hughes way.
Makes sense that could work out long term
Haula graves and Tatar have all shown they deserve to be resigned. But I’m a little worried that we sign all 3, there’s a high chance that at least one of them doesn’t replicate their performance. Maybe haula could even exceed this year though, his goal totals have to go up. Anyway, food for thought but no final decisions can be made. I think graves is the most important re sign. We are almost certainly losing severson and replacing him with hughes. so offence will probably be a wash or maybe in favour of hughes, but serverson has played really well this season, especially in 2023. I desperately wish we could fit him on the roster, he deserves to be a part of a good devils team for the rest of his career.