Sutter not going at it alone

Darryl Sutter showed a surprising amount of candor today when asked about seeking advice from coaches within his own staff and his own family. Sutter was asked about Jeff Carter and Mike Richards, specifically, and whether he sought insight from assistant coach John Stevens, who previously coached Carter and Richards in the Philadelphia Flyers system. Rather than shoot down the question, Sutter took it a step beyond, and talked about his brother Brent, who coached two seasons in New Jersey (2007-09) and got a long firsthand look at players such as Zach Parise, Travis Zajac, Patrik Elias, Andy Greene, Bryce Salvador, David Clarkson, Dainius Zubrus and Martin Brodeur. Sutter said he has sought some insight…

Q. Richards and Carter, did you get or seek any insight into those two guys?
SUTTER: “A lot. A lot. Brent had Colin Fraser, also. He had a lot of the boys we’re playing on the other team now. So, a lot. All the information you can gather. The coaching fraternity, it’s a pretty tight one. There’s some that you can really rely on a lot. For me, obviously with Johnny being here, you can really rely on him, and Brent’s experience also.’’

Of course, it cuts both ways. No doubt, the Devils have tapped the minds of Peter Harrold and Alexei Ponikarovsky, who were with the Kings last season. Also, Devils assistant coach Dave Barr coached Drew Doughty in junior hockey just a few years ago.