SB Nation - Kevin Weekes

G Martin Brodeur played his 1,000th NHL game and his 15th straight opener Saturday night but it wasn't a good game as he gave up five goals on 27 shots in a 5-2 home loss. "Not really his best game," said Devils coach Jacques Lemaire. "It was kind of tough for him. You get a couple of easy goals on him and, after that, maybe he was questioning himself."

QUOTE TO NOTE: "What's new? When the team isn't playing well they're not going to praise you. It's disappointing for everybody, a situation like that. I hate to break the news to you, but it's going to happen again. If we don't perform, people won't be happy. That's the nature of everything." -- Devils goalie Martin Brodeur, after allowing five goals on 27 shots in the opening-night loss to Philadelphia. (Fox Sports)

New Jersey Devils Evening News, Oct 1

TibbsBeastoftheEast — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 12:05:52 -0000

Brodeur has no retirement plan, yet; has "zero concerns" about team's future - (Fire & Ice)
Devils' players surprised by decision to let Shanahan go - (Fire & Ice)

Pandolfo's tight back feeling better - (Fire & Ice)
Tough decision for Lemaire to dump Shanahan, but says kids are "ready to play" - (Fire & Ice)
Brendan Shanahan let go by Devils - (Fire & Ice)
Shanahan missing from today's practice - (Fire & Ice)
NJ Devils players surprised to see Brendan Shanahan cut; Jay Pandolfo's sore back is improving - (The Star Ledger)
Jacques Lemaire: Cutting Brendan Shanahan was hard, but NJ Devils kids are ready - (The Star Ledger)
NJ Devils cut winger Brendan Shanahan - (The Star Ledger)
NJ Devils winger Rob Niedermayer and brother Scott are chasing the Sutters and Hatchers - (The Star Ledger)
Devils ditch Shanny - (The New York Daily News)
Shanahan leaving Devils - (The New York Post)
Shanahan Leaves Devils, Who Want to Get Younger - (The New York Times )
Shanahan decides not to continue with Devils - (NewJerseyDevils.com)
Statement from Brendan Shanahan - (NewJerseyDevils.com)
Players react to Shanahan's departure - (NewJerseyDevils.com)
Shanahan, no longer a Devil - (Hockeybuzz.com)
Devils Part Ways With Shanahan, Josh Cries A Little - (2 man advantage)
1-2-3 Hockey: 38 Things You Don’t Know About The 2009-2010 Devils - (Interchangeable Parts)

EARLIER TODAY

Devils' position breakdown - (The Bergen Record)
Devils delay roster cut - (The Bergen Record)
New Jersey Devils coach Jacques Lemaire's passion for the game still burns - (The Star Ledger)
NJ Devils keep rookie Matt Halischuk on opening night roster - (The Star Ledger)
Ask The Maven: Regular Season Begins - (Msgnetwork)
Devils Family Fun Festival Day - (NewJerseyDevils.com)
Puck Daddy's 2009-10 Eastern Conference staff prognostications - (Yahoo NHL)
NHL Eastern Conference preview - (Ottawa Citizen)

TRENTON DEVILS
T-Devils prepare for season in new ECHL alignment - (The Trentonian)

New Jersey Devils Evening News, Sep 30

TibbsBeastoftheEast — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 12:56:50 -0000

Devils' keys to the season - (The Bergen Record)
Devils retool before opener - (The Bergen Record)
Pikkarainen placed on IR to start season; will be in NJ when healthy; No need to place Elias on LTIR - (Fire & Ice)
Leach, Davison, Sestito assigned to Lowell - (Fire & Ice)
Ilkka Pikkarainen placed on IR; NJ Devils roster set at 23 - (The Star Ledger)
Three NJ Devils assigned to Lowell (AHL); no more cuts may be needed - (The Star Ledger)
NHL Network will televise NJ Devils games Nov. 12 and Dec. 2 - (The Star Ledger)
With Pikkarainen on IR, Devils May Have Final Roster Set - (In Lou We Trust)
Devils place two on IR, trim roster to 23 - (NewJerseyDevils.com)
Brodeur to join HNIC Radio at 4:15 p.m. ET - (NewJerseyDevils.com)

EARLIER TODAY

Niedermayer shakes off rust; Bergfors gets the point; ZZ Pops busts out - (Fire & Ice)
Peters has no respect for Rechlicz actions - (Fire & Ice)
Lemaire still not completely satisfied with Devils' play - (Fire & Ice)
Live post: Devils defeat Islanders 4-2 - (Fire & Ice)
Lemaire says "other moves" will be made; Halischuk's given No. 16 - (Fire & Ice)
Slideshow: NJ Devils 4, NY Islanders 2 - (The Star Ledger)
NJ Devils scuffle their way past NY Islanders, 4-2, to close out preseason - (The Star Ledger)
Is this the season Niclas Bergfors makes an impact with NJ Devils? - (The Star Ledger)
Devils nearing final look - (The New York Post)
Devils beat Isles, 4-2 - (NewJerseyDevils.com)
Lemaire eyes solid game from Niedermayer - (NewJerseyDevils.com)
Devils go unbeaten in preseason play - (Yahoo NHL)
Gunning for the big four - (FOXSports.com)...The NHL's Eastern Conference is a story of four very strong teams - the Pittsburgh Penguins, Boston Bruins, Washington Capitals and Philadelphia Flyers - and then a mad scramble for the final four playoff spots... Interesting
Commissioner Bettman in-studio Wednesday on NHL Live - (NHL.com); New Jersey Devils' star forward Zach Parise will be on at 1:30
ESPN reaffirms love for hockey; considered film on Devils' trap - (Yahoo! Sports)
2009-'10 NHL Predictions and Awards: Where They'll Finish - (Bleacher Report)

AROUND THE NHL
NHL preview: Can Sid & Co. win again? - (The Bergen Record)
Post Poll: The top 25 players in hockey - (National Post)
Stanley Cup contenders - (calgarysun.com)
The puck drops here - (stltoday.com); milestones in the NHL for this season... a few Devils in there
The Popsicle Brothers present NHL '09-10 - (BlackAthlete.net)

MISCELLANEOUS
Florida Panthers' Scott Clemmensen happy with opportunity - (MiamiHerald.com)
Weekes says he'll provide unique perspective to HNIC - (The Winnipeg Free Press)
Q&A with coach Sutter - (Calgary Sun)
Some life returns to the Gardens ice - (Toronto Sun); Ken Daneyko
UND hockey: Faces of the franchise - (Grand Forks Herald)

New Jersey Devils Morning News, Sep 22

TibbsBeastoftheEast — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 12:07:34 -0000

Center Mike Swift no longer in awe as he competes for a job with Devils - (Fire & Ice)
Enforcer Andrew Peters determined to make NJ Devils' roster - (The Star Ledger)

NJ Devils will choose between keeping Andy Greene or Cory Murphy - (The Star Ledger)
Bluelines: Kevin Weekes' New Career in TV - (Msgnetwork)
2009-10 Team Preview: New Jersey Devils - (ESPN.com)
On the hot seat - (Sportsnet.ca); Brian Rolston

AROUND THE NHL
4 Playoff Teams 4 Years In A Row? Yep, It's Gonna Happen Again! - (FanIQ)

MISCELLANEOUS
Pats get star defencemen back - (Regina Leader-Post); Matt Delahey

Note: in case you missed it, I posted an updated version of yesterday's news and notes last night. I will post another update tonight.

2009-10 Season Preview: New Jersey Devils

John Fischer — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 13:00:16 -0000

More photos » by Bill Kostroun - AP

The Devils hired a new head coach, plan to have a few faces on the team, and yet keep the core together for 2009-10. How well will they succeed? (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)

Browse more photos »

At the start of every season for a team there are so many uncertainties that could make the difference between a successful and a disappointing season. In fact, we can save time by just listing what is certain that we will see from the New Jersey Devils:

The Devils will play 82 games, 41 on the road and 41 at home. There will be games where the Devils are the better team, and win. There will be games where the Devils aren't the better team, but find a way to win anyhow. There will be games where the Devils are the better team, but lose somehow (a bad break, a fatal error, etc.). There will be games where the Devils look terrible and deserve to lose.

None of that answers the real question: Given the current team, how well will the New Jersey Devils do in 2009-10?

Overview of Last Season

The Devils had a fantastic regular season and managed to prove that there is indeed life after Martin Brodeur. Martin Brodeur was sidelined for 4 months with a torn bicep injury that required surgery in early November. Yet, contrary to what one may have expected, the Devils didn't wilt with the loss of their legendary goaltender. They soared. Brent Sutter managed the team to play solid possession hockey en route to another Atlantic Division title and a 51-27-4 record, a franchise high for wins in a season. Not a bad mark to hit given the success the team has had since 1993-94. As with most successes, there is much credit to be given: Scott Clemmensen playing very well in Brodeur's absence; the excellent play of Brodeur before the injury and not skipping a beat when he returned; the emergence of Zach Parise as a top scorer; Patrik Elias, Jamie Langenbrunner, and Travis Zajac rebounding to put up some really productive seasons; and Paul Martin leading an unheralded defense.

The playoffs were not what one expected. The Devils drew the Carolina Hurricanes in the first round. The series was quite tight series with each team trading off wins, with Brodeur and Cam Ward playing excellent in net as the only constants. Alas, the Devils couldn't build off the momentum after either one of their three wins. They paid for it as the team collectively collapsed under some bad breaks to blow a 2 goal lead in 80 seconds in Game 7 to take an early exit from the postseason.

Offseason Overview

Disappointment was the best feeling one could have after that Game 7. Such a great season was marred by an embarrassing playoff exit. This was the first major reason that, I think, drove the Devils management - Lou - to reconsider the team's plans going forward. The second was Brent Sutter ~~quitting on~~ resigning from the New Jersey Devils instead of fulfilling the last year of his 3 year deal with New Jersey, and signing with the Calgary Flames to be their head coach in late June. After a season where the Devils thrived on offense due to Sutter's system, the Devils had to find a new head coach in addition to dealing with the NHL Draft and the beginning of free agency.

So the Devils basically stood pat on July 1. Truth be told, the Devils didn't do nothing; but their major deals were to retain Johnny Oduya, Andy Greene, Brendan Shanahan, Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond, and Travis Zajac - all of whom received raises. It can be argued that the biggest move made in the offseason, however, was to hire Jacques Lemaire as a head coach. Lemaire initially made his mark as a NHL head coach with New Jersey back in the mid-1990s. He's best known for bringing back the Montreal Canadiens' "neutral zone trap" to the NHL and leading the Devils to be NHL contenders and their first Stanley Cup in 1995. Initially, the concern was - perhaps still is among some fans - that he would be a defensive minded head coach. However, training camp has revealed so far that he wants to more offense within the team and the first preseason game indicates that he is planning to tweak Sutter's system instead of starting from scratch.

Who's Out: Outside of Oduya and Shanahan, the rest of the Devils unrestricted free agents were left to pursue other offers. Brian Gionta? Off to Montreal. John Madden? Off to Chicago. Mike Rupp? Off to Pittsburgh. Niclas Havelid? Off to Finland. Barry Tallackson? Off to St. Louis. Kevin Weekes? Now off to the television studio. Bobby Holik? Off to his ranch in Wyoming, as he retired. The only restricted free agent to not return to the organization is Petr Vrana, who will play for Vitkovice in the Czech Republic; though his NHL rights are still owned by New Jersey.

Who's In: The New Jersey Devils only made signings for depth. They added goaltender Yann Danis, brought back former draft pick forward Ilkka Pikkarainen from Finland, and signed two-way deals with defensemen Rob Davison and Cory Murphy along with some minor-league specific moves (e.g. trading Tony Romano for Ben Walter). The lack of activity was a clear sign that the Devils intend to go with a "youth movement" to spark the team overall, and to keep the overall salary cap low when the cap goes down next season - something that Lou is confident will happen.

Three Team Strengths

Chemistry - While the Devils lost a number of free agents, the core really is still the same. When Patrik Elias is healthy enough to play, they will have 5 of their top 6 forwards available - and the sixth may be Brian Rolston, who was on the team last season. The entire defense from last season returns for a third season. I don't think it's unreasonable to expect the blueline to work even better as a unit now that they have been working together for so long. There may be open spots of the team, but the main parts of the team that won 51 games last season remain.
Coaching - Jacques Lemaire may have a reputation for defensive hockey and the trap. But he's publicly stated that he wants "a little more offense" than what the team was doing under Sutter. Based on the first preseason game, I felt the team played similarly to how Sutter had the team play. A few tweaks here and there, of course. And that's the strength. Lemaire is smart enough to know that the Devils don't need to be taught a completely different system or force square pegs into round holes. He knows what the organization wants and demands, he knows what the players can do, and he has responded accordingly.
Goaltending - Martin Brodeur is still one of the best goaltenders in the world today and he's completely healthy. I'm confident opposition forwards are already trying to figure out how to deal with it. Yann Danis did a fairly good job last season on an awful Islanders team and looked good in his first preseason game with New Jersey. Really, there's no reason not to be confident in this goaltending tandem.

Three Team Weaknesses

Depth at Center - Travis Zajac had a great 08-09 season and will continue to improve. At least, I expect him to improve. Dainius Zubrus may not be a good second line center, but he showed he can play the center position well enough and he's good on faceoffs. Beyond that, the Devils are hurt here by not replacing John Madden. Lowell's Rod Pelley is expected to be on the team (and was tipped by Lou as his replacement back in July, who knows if that's true now) but his lack of experience is a cause for concern. There were plans of Elias playing center yet again, but that's not happening because he had recent surgery to remove scar tissue from his groin. So Elias is now out for 3-6 weeks. The Devils have some options to get a fourth center on the team, but even then they will have to hope no other center gets injured.
Special Teams - The Devils power play wasn't so bad last season at 18.9%, but they only scored 48 goals in 5-on-4 situations (1 of 8 teams to score less than 50) and the majority of those goals came from either Parise, Elias, or Rolston. The penalty kill was poor, finishing with a success rate under 80%. The Devils will do well to improve the power play; but the penalty kill was surprisingly porous despite the Devils' normal commitment to defense.
Offense...from the Defense - Paul Martin was the only defenseman to put up more than 30 points last season; Oduya led the blueline in goals scored with 7 and shots on net with 108; and the defensemen combined for 3 power play goals. None of the Devils' top 6 can be considered as a true offensive defenseman and it showed when Brent Sutter used 1 defenseman on a power play (and sometimes, none at all). Cory Murphy was signed to help out on that front, as he put up 15 points in 25 games - 4 goals and 6 assists on the power play. He may be a specialist at best, though, so it'll still take a team effort to provide more points from the point.

Player Mentionables

Most Important Player: In most seasons, the answer to this question is normally Martin Brodeur. But last season proved that success doesn't rely entirely on Brodeur's shoulders. Don't get me wrong, I'll happily have Brodeur in net anytime. It's just that I think Zach Parise is the most important player for the Devils' offense and for the team. Parise broke through last season and his goalscoring and play making abilities made opposing defenses crazy and ensured success for the Devils more often than not. Parise led the team with 45 goals - a total that included 8 game winners, 3 overtime goals, 14 power play goals last season. He's pretty crucial, and what's more, he has the skills to prevent from being a one-year wonder (like Brian Gionta) since his game is so dynamic. It's not that he'll crash the net and put in a rebound, but he can also fire from mid-to-long range, set someone up from the side, and beat defenders for loose pucks all game long.

As the team's best offensive weapon, he'll need to continue to put up points at a similar rate next season to give the Devils the best chance of success. When Lemaire is saying you can't sit on a lead anymore in this league; that means the best defense is a good offense. Otherwise, the Devils' offense will be significantly weaker and the team will suffer for it. As a result, Parise is crucial to the team's success this season.

Player with the Most to Prove: Brian Rolston signed a 4 year, $20.25 millon deal in the summer of 2007 with the intention that he would an immediate significant contributor to the offense. Instead, he suffered an early injury, and ended up contributing only 15 goals and 32 points - his lowest totals since 1999-2000 - from the third line after said injury. Now that Brian Gionta is signed to Montreal, there is at least one spot for a top 6 winger available. Rolston will almost assuredly get the chance to play on an offensive line and attempt a comeback season. I'm expecting him to do that and replace Gionta's numbers in the process, and he's himself told the media that he's looking to rebound from last season. Now he just has to do it. Keep an eye on him.

Player who will Breakout in 2009-10: While multiple previews are tipping David Clarkson (and I don't disagree), I'm going to through some respect and high expectations to Johnny Oduya. Since coming to the NHL from Frolunda after the lockout, he has risen from a third pairing defenseman to be Paul Martin's defensive partner. He's pretty good at moving the puck, but his positioning and awareness in his own zone has improved by leaps and bounds over the years. He's not an offensive powerhouse, but he's improved his point totals with every season in addition to his defensive play. Now that he's guaranteed to be a Devil for another 3 years, I think the best is yet to come from Oduya - who is still only in his fifth season in North America professional hockey.

A Bold Prediction of a Depth Chart: This is a guess at a depth chart, assuming all players are healthy. I emphasize guess due to the ongoing training camp, along with injuries making a difference. So don't write these down in pen just yet.

Zach Parise - Travis Zajac - Jamie Langenbrunner
Brian Rolston - Patrik Elias - David Clarkson
Jay Pandolfo - Dainius Zubrus - Brendan Shanahan
Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond - Rod Pelley - Ilkka Pikkarainen
Extras/Could Make Team: Nicklas Bergfors, Vladimir Zharkov, Patrice Cormier, Tim Sestito, Matt Halischuk

Paul Martin - Johnny Oduya
Colin White - Mike Mottau
Bryce Salvador - Andy Greene
Extras/Could Make Team: Cory Murphy, Jay Leach, Rob Davison, Matthew Corrente

Martin Brodeur
Yann Danis

A Bold Prediction

Predictions are risky by their nature. The unknown could strike at any kind and throw all hopes and predictions into doubt: a series of massive injuries, an unforeseen incident or problem wrecks the team internally, or even a string of bad hockey games. So many uncertainties can cause problems. Or even bring fortune, like a player unexpectedly becoming a regular producer or blowing out a rival when they least expect it. Again, the list of what is certain is far shorter and doesn't really tell us much about what a team will do in the future. Still, I think based on past history and what we do know about the team, we can make a decent attempt at a prediction.

As I've told Wyshynski, when asked for a "testimonial" for his preview, this is a franchise that has missed the playoffs exactly once and has the second best combined record in the NHL since 1993-94. The core of the team is back, Martin Brodeur is healthy, and so far, it seems that Lemaire really is just tweaking Brent Sutter's system. No, this team probably won't match the 51-win season last season unless they go some torrid streaks in 2009-10. Yes, there are still issues the Devils still have to address. Yes, the other teams in the Atlantic/East/League have made big changes that may make things harder for the Devils. But again, that core has been through a lot over the years and they know how to handle adversity. The history and the core lead me - and perhaps you - to be bold and confident in the Devils' chances this season.

So let's be bold and confident. Not only will this team definitely make the playoffs; I'd be shocked if they finish by more than 10 points behind the Atlantic Division winners. I'm predicting that the Devils finish second in the Atlantic and fourth in the Eastern Conference.

Given that I've been going through and criticizing other Devils previews, I fully invite you to tear this apart as you see fit. Feel free to leave any other comments you have about this preview and where you think the Devils will finish in 2009-10 - or just vote in the poll. I thank you for reading this preview and your continued readership.

Poll

Where will the New Jersey Devils finish in the Eastern Conference in 2009-10?

1st Place - Atl. Division & Conference Winner

21 votes

2nd Place - Atl. Division Winner

26 votes

3rd Place - Atl. Division Winner

30 votes

4th Place - ILWT Prediction

27 votes

5th Place

17 votes

6th Place

14 votes

7th Place

2 votes

8th Place

3 votes

9th Place or Worse - Out of Playoffs, Specify in Comments

11 votes

151 votes | Poll has closed

2009-10 NHL Season Preview: New Jersey Devils

James Mirtle — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 12:00:16 -0000

More photos » by Bill Kostroun - AP

Browse more photos »

Who's in: Yann Danis, Rob Davison, Cory Murphy
Who's out: Scott Clemmensen, Brian Gionta, Niclas Havelid, Bobby Holik, John Madden, Mike Rupp, Kevin Weekes

Outlook: Never a huge player in free agency, GM Lou Lamoriello stayed relatively silent this summer, adding only a backup netminder/bench door opener in Yann Danis to replace the loss of Scott Clemmensen and Kevin Weekes and two depth defenders in Cory Murphy and Rob Davison.

Also leaving via free agency were Brian Gionta, John Madden and Niclas Havelid, while Bobby Holik opted to hang em up after averaging just 10 minutes a night under now departed head coach Brent Sutter last season.

All of the departures leave plenty of question marks up front in New Jersey, although the scoring lines appear to be relatively set. What there may not be much of, however, is scoring from those lines.

Sutter exited stage left in the summer, heading back to his ranch in Alberta, and as a replacement, Lamoriello turned to Jacques Lemaire and his patented brand of defensive hockey. As a result, the Devils are sure to be (a) low scoring, (b) strong defensively and (c) hard to beat, factors that will make Martin Brodeur a good fantasy pick and perhaps not many others.

If anyone takes a step forward in the offence department, however, it’ll be Lemaire favourite Brian Rolston, who averaged 67 points a season in the low-scoring environment in Minnesota under his former coach.

Ultimately, even with the losses, this should still be a playoff team, but there’s always the danger Brodeur, now 37, hits the decline at some point. That he'll likely also see significant duty at the Olympics in February only adds cause for concern.

X-factor: Brian Rolston

For a more in-depth Devils preview, visit In Lou We Trust
For more NHL analysis, check out the McKeen's Hockey Yearbook

Poll

Where will the Devils finish in the Eastern Conference this season?

1

10 votes

2

12 votes

3

14 votes

4

36 votes

5

37 votes

6

30 votes

7

36 votes

8

9 votes

9

12 votes

10

9 votes

11

2 votes

12

0 votes

13

0 votes

14

0 votes

15

9 votes

216 votes | Poll has closed

Devils Postpone Cuts Until Next Week

Steve Lepore — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 17:59:31 -0000

More photos » by Bill Kostroun - AP

Browse more photos »

The Devils had planned to make their team's first cuts today. However, according to Tom Gulitti, that will be postponed maybe - from what the article quotes coach Jacques Lemaire as saying - until after the team's pre-season game against Philadelphia a week from Saturday. By then, the Devils will have played four of their five pre-season games.

The culprit behind the cuts being so difficult to make at this point, according to Lemaire, appears to be Patrik Elias' injury status:

That said, Lemaire sounded like he has a pretty good idea of who will be on his team in certain positions, with the obvious biggest question mark being at center.

"Now it is because of [Patrik] Elias," Lemaire said. "If Elias would be playing, we wouldn't have a problem. One of the four kids we have we can play easy."

The four kids Lemaire was reffering to are Rod Pelley, Patrice Cormier, Mike Swift and Tim Sestito.

Lemaire claims that defense and wingers are pretty much set, with Gulitti stating that the Devils may keep as many as eight defensemen with the big club, none of them being prospects such as Matt Corrente:

It looks like Cory Murphy and Jay Leach are the seventh and eighth defensemen and both might end up staying with the team if Murphy can show he can produce on the power play. The top six will probably be Paul Martin, Johnny Oduya, Colin White, Mike Mottau, Andy Greene, and Bryce Salvador.

It's a shame that the Devils won't be able to bring the highly-touted Corrente onto the roster. It's good for him to get another year under his belt professionally, but it certainly makes training camp next Fall somewhat make-or-break for him. It also speaks quite a bit to how impressive the Devils' supposed "no-name defense" has been during camp that a new coach hasn't seen fit to shake things up at all.

As for the battle to play center, it will be interesting to see who plays in the AHL game vs. Adirondack on Saturday and who does not. As all veterans have off, it pretty much gives Lemaire the license to use anyone from the Pelleys and Leblonds of the world on down, which means we could see Rod Pelley, Patrice Cormier, Mike Swift and Tim Sestito as the four centerman, each fighting for ice time and a chance to play with the big club next Wednesday with the Islanders.

THROW-AWAY NOTES: As both Gulitti and Chere mentioned earlier today, Kevin Weekes is not giving up hockey for good, despite being named a permanent analyst for this season's "Hockey Night in Canada" broadcast... With Howie Rose still working for some terrible baseball team, Hockey Hall of Famer Jiggs McDonald will call the Devils-Islanders pre-season game next Wednesday on MSG Plus with Billy Jaffe. No word on whether MSG Plus will add a Devils analyst to join them, as they did Joe Micheletti for the Devils-Rangers game (though we're sure it's not hard to convince Chico to go to Long Island).

What Do You Think of the New Jersey Devils' Summer?

John Fischer — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 00:07:07 -0000

Free agency frenzy took place on July 1, a seemingly long time ago now that it's September 3rd. The summer may be over and so the Devils head into training camp with many changes in their roster. Going into training camp, the Devils have their defense, their goaltending, and their core still intact. I think the biggest loss won't be Brian Gionta, but John Madden as the Devils are now quite thin at center and you may have to pencil in the relatively-inexperienced Rod Pelley to fill in a big, big hole on the third line.

Now, the offseason isn't technically over yet, as the regular season starts in October. The Devils can still sign and trade players at any point in 2009. Moves can still be made. The roster is definitely not set and with the number of players who are still free agents (e.g. Manny Malhotra) as well as teams who are near or over the salary cap (e.g. Vancouver), I can imagine that there will plenty of action should Lou want to get involved. With a little over $5 million in cap space available to New Jersey, they have the room to sign another player or take on salary in a trade.

Overall, when looking back at the posts I made after a signing, I made a point of it to looking back at the polls asking for your reaction to the signing as well as comments. While the Devils lost 8 players to free agency and 1 to retirement, followed by the lack of action on July 1, your comments and the poll results indicated a positive reaction to most of the deals. I think this largely because the Devils were able to re-sign Johnny Oduya and Travis Zajac, two players that I think were important to retain. In my opinion, the only signing that garnered the most negative reaction was Ilkka Pikkarainen and that may be more confusion than anything else as well as frustration at the lack of other activity on July 1 by New Jersey.

So that being said, I would like to know your opinion about how the Devils did this past summer. Time has past and so the initial "gut reaction" won't be a factor. The poll is looking for your overall feeling; hence, it is an arbitrary rating. Given the reaction to the individual signings at the time, I expect it to be positive - but, as always, I'm willing to be proven wrong. If you have a more specific comment - praise, complaints, criticism - please bring it up in the comments and let's discuss the matter. After the jump is a quick summary of the Devils' current cap situation, all the moves the Devils made as well as who's released.

New Jersey Devils Total Salary as of Sept. 3, 2009 per CapGeek: $51,620,833

Available Cap Space: $5,179,167

Players Out: John Madden (UFA -> Chicago); Brian Gionta (UFA -> Montreal); Mike Rupp (UFA -> Pittsburgh); Niclas Havelid (UFA -> Linkoping HC in Sweden); Scott Clemmensen (UFA -> Florida); Barry Tallackson (UFA -> St. Louis); Kevin Weekes (UFA); Petr Vrana (RFA -> Vitkovice in Czech Rep.); Bobby Holik (Retired)

Players Re-Signed (Links to ILWT Post about Signing unless otherwise specified):

Johnny Oduya: $10.5 million for 3 years - Reaction from Comments: Positive.

Andy Greene: $1.475 million for 2 years - Reaction from Comments: Positive.

Travis Zajac: $15.55 million for 4 years - Poll Results: 49% love it, 40% like it, 7% on the fence, 1% don't like it, <1% hate it.

Brendan Shanahan: $1 million for 1 year - Poll Results: 45% love it, 45% like it, 6% on the fence, 2% don't like it, <1% hate it.

Patrick Davis: $522,500 for 1 year, Source: CapGeek.

Players Signed:

Ilkka Pikkarainen (Reaction from Comments: Confused/Underwhelmed) - Salary per CapGeek: $500,000 for 1 year.

Yann Danis: $550,000 for 1 year. - Poll Results: 57% like it, 24% on the fence, 9% love it, 5% don't like it, 2% hate it)

Cory Murphy: Two-way deal, $500,000 for 1 year per CapGeek (I got the salary wrong in the initial post) - Poll Results: 39% like deal, 32% on the fence, 19% love it, 5% don't like it, 2% hate it)

Minor Player Deals: Conditional pick traded to Edmonton for Tim Sestito; Rob Davison, Ben Walter, 6 others signed for Lowell.

New Coaches: Jacques Lemaire and Mario Tremblay (assistant); John MacLean named head coach of Lowell

Poll

On a scale of 1 (lowest) to 5 (highest), how would you rate the New Jersey Devils offseason?

5 - I love what the Devils did this summer!

1 votes

4 - I liked most of the deals the Devils made; they had a good offseason.

41 votes

3 - I liked some deals, I didn't like others; the Devils just had an average summer.

82 votes

2 - With a few exceptions, I don't like what the Devils did overall.

31 votes

1 - I hate what the Devils did (and didn't do) this summer!

16 votes

171 votes | Poll has closed

Pick The Rival: The Southeast Division

Yankee Canuck — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 17:18:43 -0000

Vinny? Pudge. Pudge? Vinny.

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Fellow SBN'er Five For Howling is busy trying to figure out who the rivals are for Phoenix in each NHL division. And it got me thinking that I have no clue not only who Phoenix's divisional rivals are, but Vancouver's either.

It's a safe bet we can all make a case for who gets the bullseye on the heart of a Northwest team, but other divisions? I'm not so sure. I hate the Rangers to the fiber of my being, but maybe one of you out there likes them (hang you head in shame peasant). Or maybe you're a closet Habs fan while others would willingly accept a jackhammer to the groin instead of pulling their sweater on. Les marteau-piqueurs à l'aine sont mauvais vous savez!

(I have no idea if that translated correctly)

So, with a tip of my helmet in FFH's direction, I present you guys and gals with the same option: Who is Vancouver's biggest divisional rival and why?

We'll kick it off with the Southeast. Follow along for a look at the contestants.

Atlanta Thrashers

Franchise Record: 9GP, 5W, 2L, 1T, 1OTL, 12pts

You read that correctly: 9 games played between the two, by far the least amount of games Vancouver has seen against any other franchise. I honestly can't remember too much of any game against Atlanta. Ever. Though I do recall this past season when the Canucks shit the bed against them, letting Joseph Crabb (what?) open the game with a shorthanded goal, Kovalchuk would pot one in the second and Eric Christensen scored the winner in the shootout. The Sedins provided all the offense in regulation while Demitra remained healthy enough to score in the shootout. Mats Sundin didn't make the road trip for this one. Ass.

And the longer Kovalchuk remains a potential UFA next summer, expect the CDC to go out of their minds with trade proposals to bring him West. In fact, a new drinking game: go google "Kovalchuk canucks trade" and take a shot for every "Sedins for Kovalchuk" rumor you see. We'll send you flowers as you recoop in the hospital. Lillies ok?

Fun fact: Not surprisingly, Vancouver's 30 goals against Atlanta in nine games, and 23 against in the same time frame, both rank dead last for GF/GA in Vancouver franchise history.

Carolina Hurricanes

Franchise Record: 62GP, 28W, 23L, 11T, 0OTL, 67pts

We stole their old Whaler colors on the new uni's, they stole Bret Hedican. Then again we stole Dave Babych before they absconded from Hartford. In turn they sent us Enrico Ciccone, Sean Burke and Geoff Sanderson for Kirk McLean and Martin Gelinas in 1998. We got their Andrew Cassels for a few years, they got our Matt Walker. Noted nothing players Darren Langden and Trevor Letowski both played for each squad. More recently (around the time Burke finished up his domestic disputing) the Hurricanes snatched up old Canuck enforcer Wade Brookbank (shown here telling Sundin he's an ass). So...yeah, a rich history indeed.

Fun fact: Remember when the Canucks were absolutely in the tank last January? Guess who pulled out a late shorty to right the ship and start the path towards the division title?

Florida Panthers

Franchise Record: 20GP, 9W, 4L, 6T, 1OTL, 25pts

When Pavel Bure had enough of Vancouver, Florida welcomed him and he reciprocated with two consecutive Rocket Richard Trophies but little long term success. Vancouver netted Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Mike Brown, Kevin Weekes, and Florida's first-rounder in 2000 (hello there Nathan Smith) and, as the Canucks were rebuilding, Gagner provided mild relief at center, Weekes eventually became Felix Potvin and Jovanovski played seven seasons for Vancouver, becoming at the time one of the premier offensive defensemen in the league. All in all the move, or subsequent moves based on the assets, helped the Canucks get back into the post season as well as win the Northwest titlea few seasons later. Gagner is still around as director of player development (and even Scott Mellanby is a special consultant to Mike Gillis).

In 2006 Todd Bertuzzi was moved to Florida with Alex Auld and Bryan Allen for Roberto Luongo, Lukas Krajicek and a sixth round pick. Bertuzzi would score just one goal (though in front of a nice Florida audience) and play seven games for Florida before being dealt to Detroit. Meanwhile, Luongo now holds the Vancouver franchise records for wins in a season (47), save percentage in a season (.921), saves in a single game (72), longest shutout streak (242:36), most shutouts in a season (9) and is tied with Kirk McLean for franchise shutouts (20). Just writing that feels cruel.

So maybe the better question is: does Florida hate Bure, Bertuzzi, Vancouver or Mike Keenan more?

Fun fact: This February Vancouver will play in Florida for the second time in Luongo's tenure as Canuck netminder (assuming he's still around by then of course). If you remember the last time, Vancouver not only lost but the Panthers gave away flat screens for every goal scored on Luongo. Said Puck Daddy at the time, "Incedently, Luongo lost the game, 4-3, giving Florida fans plenty of shiny new televisions to watch their DVD copies of "John Tucker Must Die" and have a good cry. Pussies."

Tampa Bay Lightning

Franchise Record: 21GP, 15W, 4L, 2T, 0OTL, 32pts

Prepare yourself for some media fluffiness when Vancouver visits Ohlund in his new Tampa digs in February. Ohlund and Krajicek are one of about 100 defenders that Tampa now has (and yet Vancouver still has holes on the blueline...sigh) but Matty should get plenty of face time up against the Sedins or the Kesler line. Oh to watch Burrows go after Ohlund now...

Vancouver holds a ridiculous .792 points percentage over Tampa in 21 total games, making the Lightning far and away the easiest team the Canucks have yanked two points away from in modern history. Last year SOB wanted to beat his former squad 10-0, but they could barely get by Kari Ramo with a 2-1 win. Maybe this year SOB tempers his pre-game comments accordingly. Besides, we shouldn't forget that Tampa's best moment was stopping Iginla from hoisting the Stanley Cup in 2003-04.

Fun fact: Luc Bourdon's last NHL goal came on January 31, 2008 against the Lightning in Tampa. He opened the scoring but Vancouver ultimately lost 4-3.

Washington Capitals

Franchise Record: 82GP, 34W, 37L, 9T, 2OTL, 79pts

It's often tough to look past Ovechkin when considering Washington, but up and down they have a solid roster (except in net) and I'm damned jealous of any team that can roll out Ovechkin along with Semin and Green. It helps explain last year's Vancouver/Washington game which was memorable because (a) Sergei Federov was playing defense for some reason, (b) it Wellwood's first game as a Canuck and (c) Vancouver had the least amount of shots by an opponent in Washington's history. A piss poor evening if ever there was one.

Also there was the Cooke for Pettinger deal that didn't end well. Pettinger played 20 games before being lost on waivers and is now with Ohlund in Tampa. The popular Cooke got to taste the playoffs that year with Washington and won a Cup this past season with Pittsburgh.

Fun fact: This REALLY stretches the definition of 'fun', but three seasons ago, guess who got his first goal on home ice against the Caps?

Poll

Who is Vancouver's biggest Southeast division rival?

Atlanta

6 votes

Carolina

20 votes

Florida

65 votes

Tampa

18 votes

Washington, D.C.

74 votes

183 votes | Poll has closed