Devils defenseman Brandon Dillon will play at 1,000th Career nhl game tonight. The undrafted veteran has played 14 seasons with Dallas, San Jose, Washington, Winnipeg and New Jersey.
“It would be nice to sit back and think about the people who have helped me,” he said. “If we listed every name from minor hockey growing up in Surrey, going to junior hockey and moving away from your parents, your family, the billet family you live with, the professional coaches when I got there, there are so many people at every step and every level who make (this) happen, we would be here all day.
“And there are some lucky things, too. I’ve been very lucky and fortunate. The biggest thing I tell all kids is to never take a day for granted. I love coming to the rink. The people everywhere I’ve played have been amazing. I’ve equally enjoyed the booing and the yelling and the hassles of practice, the travel hassles and arriving late. I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I love being a hockey player every day.”
Simon and Hughes
The Devils have used freshman defensemen Simon Nemec and Luke Hughes in a pairing for the last six games. They have flourished together offensively, but there are still some improvements to be made on the defensive side of the puck.
“We can’t give up goals, breakaways, odd-man rushes, being aware of when to get out, knowing where each other are, especially with two offensive-minded guys,” Hughes said. “We’re both looking to jump in early. We’re taking turns. Know when to go and when to stop. I love playing with him. He’s playing great for our team.”
Although difficulties are increasing in this combination, the good definitely outweighs the bad.
“You want to show confidence in the young players, especially with some of the guys we have,” Keefe said. “We kicked around different ideas and other mixes that came out we didn’t really like. We’ve seen a lot of great stuff from those guys together.
“It’s a challenge. You want them to keep doing good things on offense, but let’s be great defensively. The thing you lose is two young players playing a lot of minutes.”
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Keefe on Nico Hischier: “I don’t give him any easy transitions. He goes through a lot. It’s compounded with Jack (Hughes) being out and he hasn’t missed a beat.”
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