2.
It may have come as a surprise for some to see Nemec on the Devils penalty kill when John Marino was in the box against the Canucks, but the ability to put him out there down a player, and have trust in the job he will do is part of the reason why only now was the right time to recall him from the American Hockey League.
It’s why the patience for his NHL debut was necessary. If he wanted to be successful and trusted at the NHL level, his defensive game needed work and growth.
So, down with Utica, head coach Kevin Dineen made a development decision that has paid early dividends.
"Because [Nemec] has a tendency to feel the need to have an impact on the game, there's a little bit of an offensive bend towards things and I think that's an area in which we've had a lot of conversations," Utica coach Kevin Dineen said during training camp. "He's a really mature kid and needs to know he can be a real impact player even if it's not on the scoreboard. You can go out there and kill penalties too.”
Nemec, in his second NHL game, played 2:52 on the PK, time on ice behind just Nico Hischier and Jonas Siegenthaler.
3.
Dan MacKinnon made sure to emphasize that his coaching staff in Utica deserve a ton of credit for the transition - through two games - that Nemec has made.
"Kevin Dineen and Ryan Parent deserve a lot of credit for their work with Simon since he arrived as an 18 year-old in Utica," MacKinnon shared, "The AHL is a very tough league for young players and they worked extremely closely with Simon from Day 1, providing direction and feedback with the mindset that this young man is a very talented defenseman but there is a steep learning curve for the position of defense to prepare for the NHL level.
"The NHL is not and shouldn’t be considered a “development league” so we are all grateful for how Simon’s time has gone down in Utica and that we have such valuable resources down there in terms of the facilities, operations and coaching staff."
4.
Just before Nemec's NHL debut, I saw him in the hallway outside the Devils locker room, just before heading to put on his gear. You would never have been able to tell this monumental moment was in front of him, a lifetime of work about to come to fruition.
He was smiling, came over and said hello, and chatted briefly, as if nothing was unusual about the night.
Nemec told me it was Dan MacKinnon who called him, later in the evening, to tell him he had been called up, so I checked in with the Utica GM to get a glimpse into that conversation with the young man.
"It was actually a later in the evening phone call for that type of news," MacKinnon said, "I left a message and he called me right back. He was excited naturally and mentioned that his girlfriend from Slovakia was visiting. I said of course she was welcome to come up to Jersey with him, so they drove up that night together."
MacKinnon also mentioned that on that drive from Utica to New Jersey, Nemec also spoke with Utica head coach Kevin Dineen.
Nemec and his girlfriend packed up his stuff and began the drive, arriving around 1 a.m.
5.
You never want to lose your captain, especially when it's Nico Hischier, particularly for an extended time. But that was the reality for the Devils when Hischier was knocked out of the game in late October against the Sabres. It's clear, by having talked to him and his teammates, that his recovery was tough, it was long, but what is undeniable is that Nico did not return before he was ready.
All you have to do is look at his numbers and his immediate impact since returning. His team is 4-1-0 since he returned on Nov. 25, the captain helped lead the way with 2 goals and 4 assists.