New Jersey Devils: Steve Santini’s Weird Season Continues
By Nick Villano
New Jersey Devils defenseman Steve Santini may be the most frustrating player on this entire team. He needs to go over the top this week in order to hold his spot on the roster.
The New Jersey Devils thought early in the season that they had a true shut-down defenseman when Steve Santini was going up against the best players and holding them to nothing. Think about this, Santini played 25 minutes against the best team in the league, the Tampa Bay Lightning, and the Devils won. In fact, he played more than 20 minutes in seven of the Devils first 10 games.
Now, he feels like a shell of his former self. Santini went from a guy I called possibly the most important player, to a player that Tyler Kelley gave a D for a midseason grade.
Santini has been very mistake prone, which some might expect since he started a majority of his shifts in the defensive zone. However, things came to a head this week.
When the Devils needed to call up a goalie when Cory Schneider got sick, the team didn’t hesitate to send Santini down to the minors. Sure, it ended up being just a “for now” move, but it definitely sends a message.
I know on paper it all has to do with waivers and who is eligible, but head coach John Hynes could have easily sent down Blake Coleman. However, Hynes knows that he doesn’t deserve that. He may have lost his spot temporarily in the starting lineup, but he wasn’t deserving of a bigger demotion.
More from Pucks and Pitchforks
- Should New Jersey Devils Try Load Management With Vitek Vanecek?
- New Jersey Devils Will Prove That Last Year Wasn’t A Fluke
- New Jersey Devils: Luke Hughes’ Playmaking Will Outshine His Mistakes
- New Jersey Devils: Chase Stillman’s Performance Causes Concern
- Can Devils Fans Separate Zach Parise Heartbreak From Achievements?
What should we expect from Santini moving forward? It’s hard to say, because he could find himself in Binghamton sooner rather than later. Mirco Mueller was just sent to Binghamton for a conditioning assignment. He hasn’t played since November 12th when he broke his clavicle against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Mueller will likely get a shot once he gets his skates under him in the NHL. He was playing very well prior to his injury.
Santini definitely has a role on this team, especially if he can subtract his mistakes. He’s something the Devils don’t really have in a pure shutdown guy. Santini isn’t out there to score goals or to rack up points. He’s out there to hit someone and stop the top guy from getting to the net.
If he can find that Santini, the one that helped the Devils dominate early in the season, then Hynes will have a hard decision to make. If he can’t, then he might end his season in the AHL.