2013 New Jersey Devils (Team News, Player Discussion - Part VI)

[Chessarmy]

Kovalchuk at LW playing with Zajac would be a much better option than at RW, just sayin.

The team is not nearly as bad as its made out to be on here, that's for sure. Its like if they don't play perfectly the sky is falling. I'd hit the panic button if they lose their next two games, but I don't think they will.

 

[Feed Me A Stray Cat]

I wonder how the majority of complainers would have reacted if, before the start of the season, you told them NJ would be 9-3-4 at this juncture.

 

[NJDevs26]

Also, in regards to Zajac, the guy just came back from playing 15 games over a year and a half. Give him some time to get back into the groove.

Zajac was good in the playoffs so I'm not sure how much I buy this. It isn't like Parise last year (or Tallinder this year, for that matter) where the guy literally hasn't played regularly in 11-12 months.

 

[DevilChuk*]

I wonder how the majority of complainers would have reacted if, before the start of the season, you told them NJ would be 9-3-4 at this juncture.

I'm not in the "complainer" camp as I think this team has been playing as well as I expected, but at some point, we do have to realize that 9-3-4 is really 9 wins and 7 losses. This team is 2 games above .500. Yea, we're in great shape playoffs wise but in terms of gauging how well we can stand up to some of these teams in the East.. one point in OT doesn't matter.

9-3-4 ceases to be an amazing record when you realize the above plus the fact that our wins came on a 5 game winning streak and a 3 game winning streak. Right now, it seems that if we aren't hot, we won't win. Good teams win still find some way to win when they have bad games.

Good thing about this start is we know we can do better and we've set ourselves up perfectly for the playoffs. But if the playoffs started tomorrow, I'm not so sure how far we go.

 

[NJDevs26]

Eh people keep trying to make SO losses equivalent to hockey losses. They aren't. It's more like a 9-5-2 record to me with two 65-minute ties and two bonus (loser) points

 

[DevilChuk*]

Eh people keep trying to make SO losses equivalent to hockey losses. They aren't. It's more like a 9-5-2 record to me with two 65-minute ties

Fact remains that out of 16 games, we were only able to win 9. SO loss doesn't equate to a real loss but we didn't win that game either when we could've in regulation or overtime.

Just don't like the idea that the team is free from criticism because they are 9-3-4 when that's not really the most perfect record out there.

 

[manilaNJ]

Fact remains that out of 16 games, we were only able to win 9. SO loss doesn't equate to a real loss but we didn't win that game either when we could've in regulation or overtime.

Just don't like the idea that the team is free from criticism because they are 9-3-4 when that's not really the most perfect record out there.

Then look at it this way:

http://www.nhl.com/ice/standings.htm?season=20122013&sort=regulationPlusOvertimeWins&type=LEA

 

[onefatsurfer]

:d :d

The only sorting button on there that really stinks is the shootout record. LOL

 

[Devil X]

I'm not in the "complainer" camp as I think this team has been playing as well as I expected, but at some point, we do have to realize that 9-3-4 is really 9 wins and 7 losses. This team is 2 games above .500. Yea, we're in great shape playoffs wise but in terms of gauging how well we can stand up to some of these teams in the East.. one point in OT doesn't matter.

9-3-4 ceases to be an amazing record when you realize the above plus the fact that our wins came on a 5 game winning streak and a 3 game winning streak. Right now, it seems that if we aren't hot, we won't win. Good teams win still find some way to win when they have bad games.

Good thing about this start is we know we can do better and we've set ourselves up perfectly for the playoffs. But if the playoffs started tomorrow, I'm not so sure how far we go.

I care about points and thats all anyone should care about in a short season. 9-3-4 is 22 POINTS i dont care that we are only 2 games over .500 overall. Fact of the matter points are important more then anything and making the playoffs.

I dont care how we got to 22 points win streaks or not.

1 last thing... Its the playoffs and as all of us learned last year it doesnt matter how far you think you can go. It about getting hot at the right time and having the right players. These guys know that to expect they went 7 games in the first after being down 3-2 (if i remember correctly) hammered a highly favored Flyers team. Controlled emotion and did a great job against a good Rangers team in 6 that saw us get shut out for out 2 losses.

My point just get all the points you can OT, Regulation wins who care get them all make the playoffs and i will GLADLY go to war with almost the same exact lineup we had that went to the cup finals last year.

 

[CerebralGenesis]

wow its like every game is going to the shootout in the west. Pretty crazy stuff over there.

 

[Holtz My Bahls]

Besides Tallinder, I am fine with this team, I just cannot stand that traffic cone.

 

[DevilChuk*]

I care about points and thats all anyone should care about in a short season. 9-3-4 is 22 POINTS i dont care that we are only 2 games over .500 overall. Fact of the matter points are important more then anything and making the playoffs.

I dont care how we got to 22 points win streaks or not.

1 last thing... Its the playoffs and as all of us learned last year it doesnt matter how far you think you can go. It about getting hot at the right time and having the right players. These guys know that to expect they went 7 games in the first after being down 3-2 (if i remember correctly) hammered a highly favored Flyers team. Controlled emotion and did a great job against a good Rangers team in 6 that saw us get shut out for out 2 losses.

My point just get all the points you can OT, Regulation wins who care get them all make the playoffs and i will GLADLY go to war with almost the same exact lineup we had that went to the cup finals last year.

I disagree. Obviously, points are what you are going for but they don't tell you the full story about a team's ability to win games. We set ourselves up great for the playoffs but that doesn't mean we can beat anyone when we get there. Just because we made a run last year, doesn't mean we will do the same this year if we don't get better. I'll take last year's team every day over this year's right now.

0-48 same as 24-24?

This isn't NHL 13. Things don't happen in a vacuum. When you win games, how you win games and who you win games against matter big time.

 

[DevilChuk*]

Then look at it this way:

http://www.nhl.com/ice/standings.htm?season=20122013&sort=regulationPlusOvertimeWins&type=LEA

And again, I think that's great and where I expected them to be.

But until this team can win on a more consistent basis (i.e. not long winning streaks and long losing streaks), i'm not buying it.

We have what it takes but we aren't playing up to our potential yet, IMO. Which is great as a Devils fan because we're doing pretty decently right now and our ceiling is higher..

 

[Devil X]

I disagree. Obviously, points are what you are going for but they don't tell you the full story about a team's ability to win games. We set ourselves up great for the playoffs but that doesn't mean we can beat anyone when we get there. Just because we made a run last year, doesn't mean we will do the same this year if we don't get better. I'll take last year's team every day over this year's right now.

0-48 same as 24-24?

This isn't NHL 13. Things don't happen in a vacuum. When you win games, how you win games and who you win games against matter big time.

I was not at all saying we were going to make the finals this year like last year. I was saying that it doesnt matter how you get into the playoffs. Collect as many points as you can however you can and GET to the playoffs once there anything can happen as we learned.

 

[manilaNJ]

We have what it takes but we aren't playing up to our potential yet, IMO. Which is great as a Devils fan because we're doing pretty decently right now and our ceiling is higher..

And this is basically the point that many of us are trying to make right now.
Far too many people punching the panic button in distress over a handful of lackluster games.

Inconsistency is going to be a major issue over the duration of this season. With this team and around the league.

It's all going to be about who can battle through a tough schedule and find their groove at the same time. Having a low turnover on the roster will be a major advantage in the long run.

Watch any other team around the league for 2 straight games and guaranteed you're going to ask yourself, "but how is this team going to play tomorrow?"

Actually, watch a Blackhawks game. Watch the first 20 minutes compared to the last 20 minutes of the majority of their games. World beaters 1 period, clinging on for dear life 2 periods later.

This is the reality of a shortened season. There's little to be convinced of anything of any team.
The best you can do is look at the peaks and see what the team's best effort is and how easily they can go back and match it.

 

[Feed Me A Stray Cat]

I'm not in the "complainer" camp as I think this team has been playing as well as I expected, but at some point, we do have to realize that 9-3-4 is really 9 wins and 7 losses. This team is 2 games above .500. Yea, we're in great shape playoffs wise but in terms of gauging how well we can stand up to some of these teams in the East.. one point in OT doesn't matter.

9-3-4 ceases to be an amazing record when you realize the above plus the fact that our wins came on a 5 game winning streak and a 3 game winning streak. Right now, it seems that if we aren't hot, we won't win. Good teams win still find some way to win when they have bad games.

Good thing about this start is we know we can do better and we've set ourselves up perfectly for the playoffs. But if the playoffs started tomorrow, I'm not so sure how far we go.

Just because a win occurred during a "winning streak" doesn't make it any less valuable. We should hope that we have a lot of winning streaks. That means we're playing well.

And the correct way to think of 9-3-4 is not 9-7. It's that we've captured 68.75% of all possible points, which is very good. A 68.75% point capture rate over an 82 game season puts you at 113 points.

 

[Feed Me A Stray Cat]

And again, I think that's great and where I expected them to be.

But until this team can win on a more consistent basis (i.e. not long winning streaks and long losing streaks), i'm not buying it.

We have what it takes but we aren't playing up to our potential yet, IMO. Which is great as a Devils fan because we're doing pretty decently right now and our ceiling is higher..

Your argument makes no sense. You're arguing the Devils should win more consistently, but shouldn't do it via winning streaks. Do you understand that winning consistently creates winning streaks?

Before the season, If I told you that the Devils would be going at a 113pt (over an 82 game season) pace 1/3 of the way into this season, I imagine that you'd be very pleased.

 

[DevilChuk*]

I was not at all saying we were going to make the finals this year like last year at all. I was saying that it doesnt matter how you get into the playoffs. Collect as many points as u can however you can and GET to the playoffs once there anything can happen as we learned.

And I strongly disagree. You want the team playing well, not slipping into the playoffs because "Hey, this is how it happened last year and the same for the Ravens, Giants, Packers, etc."

People are going overboard these last few years with the runs that we've seen in the NFL and the run by both teams last year in the NHL. None of those teams got to the finals by just 'making the playoffs.' Doesn't work like that. Also forgetting we were 4th overall in the Eastern conference last year in terms of points, not like we just slipped in.

They had confidence. They beat good teams in the regular season. They didn't put it all together until the end but it was all there. There's a reason that you don't see runs very often and that's because for the most part, the better teams are able to put it together faster and earn a high seed.

 

[Volodya Krutov]

Make the playoffs no matter how. Then it's a new 28 games season that begins.

 

[Feed Me A Stray Cat]

And I strongly disagree. You want the team playing well, not slipping into the playoffs because "Hey, this is how it happened last year and the same for the Ravens, Giants, Packers, etc."

People are going overboard these last few years with the runs that we've seen in the NFL and the run by both teams last year in the NHL. None of those teams got to the finals by just 'making the playoffs.' Doesn't work like that. Also forgetting we were 4th overall in the Eastern conference last year in terms of points, not like we just slipped in.

They had confidence. They beat good teams in the regular season. They didn't put it all together until the end but it was all there. There's a reason that you don't see runs very often and that's because for the most part, the better teams are able to put it together faster and earn a high seed.

Going into the playoffs on a hot streak has no bearing how a team performs in the postseason.

http://www.arcticicehockey.com/2011/2/10/1978386/feel-the-playoff-momentum

For every Los Angeles Kings, there's a team that limps out of the regular season but gets hot at just the right time in the playoffs.

 

[DevilChuk*]

This is the reality of a shortened season. There's little to be convinced of anything of any team.
The best you can do is look at the peaks and see what the team's best effort is and how easily they can go back and match it.

I'm convinced the Penguins are the best team in the East. They are beating teams they should be beating and their only recent losses were by us. They haven't shat the bed against a significantly lesser team like we have.

Just because a win occurred during a "winning streak" doesn't make it any less valuable. We should hope that we have a lot of winning streaks. That means we're playing well.

And the correct way to think of 9-3-4 is not 9-7. It's that we've captured 68.75% of all possible points, which is very good. A 68.75% point capture rate over an 82 game season puts you at 113 points.

Again, all I said was that our record doesn't look nearly as good as it seems and shouldn't be used as an excuse for the team's lackluster play. We've lost 3 of 4 against sub-par teams. That 68.75% should be much higher.

Points get you in the playoffs.. but they don't really relate to how good a team is. That's what wins are for.

Your argument makes no sense. You're arguing the Devils should win more consistently, but shouldn't do it via winning streaks. Do you understand that winning consistently creates winning streaks?

Winning consistently and winning via two prolonged winning streaks are very different things. Never did I say they shouldn't win via winning streaks. I think there is a problem though when 8 of your 9 wins have come during two winning streaks separated by multiple game losing streaks.

Winning more consistently means cutting down on the highs and lows and playing at a consistent level (hopefully closer to the high than the low). We haven't come close to that yet this year.

 

[Emperoreddy]

What are we even complaining about at this point. We are still top ten in the league, whether it be ROW, wins, points, what have you. Why ***** about our record when majority of the league is doing worse then us?

What major losing streaks? We have only lost two in a row, not really a "major" losing streak, and one was an OT loss. I think this talk of our record goes right into what Manilla said last night in that spot on post.

 

[DevilChuk*]

Going into the playoffs on a hot streak has no bearing how a team performs in the postseason.

http://www.arcticicehockey.com/2011/2/10/1978386/feel-the-playoff-momentum

For every Los Angeles Kings, there's a team that limps out of the regular season but gets hot at just the right time in the playoffs.

That's.. what I'm saying..

The common feeling I'm getting here is that any record is okay as long as we make the show and get hot at the right time. That winning just over half our games and losing the rest in OT is okay.

I don't agree with that. That works for football, but you're playing four games. Doesn't work in hockey. The better team wins a 7 game series significantly more often than not. It may get us a high playoff seed but an inflated point total doesn't equate to a better team.

Again, more points means you get a higher playoff seed. But more wins mean you are a better team. I'm happy as hell we had the start we've had but IMO, they aren't nearly as good as the 113 point pace they are on and there are multiple adjustments that we need to make before I'm happy with the team's chances in the playoffs.

 

[manilaNJ]

I'm convinced the Penguins are the best team in the East. They are beating teams they should be beating and their only recent losses were by us. They haven't shat the bed against a significantly lesser team like we have.

This is just untrue.
The Penguins still look like a porous team to me that isn't intimidating when one of Crosby or Malkin doesn't have the puck.

They're easy to frustrate and have a lack of maturity, assertive coaching to battle through adversity.

They also had a streak where they lost to Toronto, Winnipeg, forced into a SO by Ottawa and then lost to the Isles.

So no, they don't look like world beaters either.

 

[DevilChuk*]

What are we even complaining about at this point. We are still top ten in the league, whether it be ROW, wins, points, what have you. Why ***** about our record when majority of the league is doing worse then us?

What major losing streaks? We have only lost two in a row, not really a "major" losing streak, and one was an OT loss. I think this talk of our record goes right into what Manilla said last night in that spot on post.

Won 3.
Lost 4.
Won 5.
Lost 3 of 4.