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

[DevilChuk*]

I think the anger about Clarkson comes from ridiculous expectations. Everyone expects him to score goals on a consistent basis and that's really not the player he is.

Remember him early in his career? He was absolutely terrible. Hands of stone. All he was good for was fighting and the occasional dufus penalty.

In recent years (point of origin: his beautiful breakaway goal off a toe-drag against Anaheim 3-4 years ago before he broke his leg), he's worked extremely hard off the ice to where he's not a useless, interchangable 4th liner and can actually chip in offensively as well.

Think about it. The guy went undrafted. The fact that he's still even in the league (let alone here in the first place) speaks enormously to his commitment and dedication. Guy cares a lot.. and he needs to because he doesn't have the skill others possess.

I'd love him back here with a decent salary (3-4M) and in a good role for him: 3rd line winger, occasionally stepping up the 2nd line and playing in front of the goalie on the PP.

 

[Saugus]

Ledger_NJDevils: Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello said "it won't be very long" before Ilya Kovalchuk starts skating. Should be some time this week.

Good, we need him back as soon as possible. Just absurd how we haven't been able to win without him.

 

[MartyOwns]

my thoughts on clarkson, via QuoteHive:

@QuoteHive: "A pint can't hold a quart - if it holds a pint it is doing all that can be expected of it." -Margaret Deland

 

[The Devil In I]

if Gary Bettman announced that NJ could take one D-man from any team in the NHL, I'd hope it was Chara

I'd take Karlsson in an instant. Our team can play pretty good D. Offensive skill is needed much more than additional defensive skill at the moment.

 

[CerebralGenesis]

They better not rush Kovy back to save this sorry bunch.

 

[Holtz My Bahls]

They better not rush Kovy back to save this sorry bunch.

That's my biggest concern, I feel like we did that with Pari$e too but I can't remember at this point.

 

[DEVILS ALL THE WAY*]

They better not rush Kovy back to save this sorry bunch.

This.

Kovalchuk should sit out the remainder of the year and that's all I have to say about the matter.

 

[NJDevs26]

I'd take Karlsson in an instant. Our team can play pretty good D. Offensive skill is needed much more than additional defensive skill at the moment.

Plus Karlsson's about twelve years younger.

Chara is the best defenseman now though, if you were looking strictly short-term.

 

[DEVILS ALL THE WAY*]

David Clarkson is getting on my last nerve and Zajac looks like complete garbage since opening night.

Clarkson needs to realise he's no Brett Hull and that his goals came from him being opened and not him trying to stickhandle threw 3 players. If that's the type of player he's turned into and that's the kind of game he'll play for the next couple of years, I hope to god Lou cuts the cord like he did with sooooo many pending UFA's that were demanding "X" number of money and Lou judged that they were getting wayyyy overpaid.

The last thing we need, especially with Zajac looking like a complete train wreck this year, is yet another brutal contract we'll have to carry for the next 3 to 5 years.

 

[The Devil In I]

David Clarkson is getting on my last nerve and Zajac looks like complete garbage since opening night.

Clarkson needs to realise he's no Brett Hull and that his goals came from him being opened and not him trying to stickhandle threw 3 players. If that's the type of player he's turned into and that's the kind of game he'll play for the next couple of years, I hope to god Lou cuts the cord like he did with sooooo many pending UFA's that were demanding "X" number of money and Lou judged that they were getting wayyyy overpaid.

The last thing we need, especially with Zajac looking like a complete train wreck this year, is yet another brutal contract we'll have to carry for the next 3 to 5 years.

I can't understand the people saying "no more than $4 million" for Clarkson, and at the same time saying he's a good 3rd liner. I'd never want to pay $4mill for a guy who can only beat up on low quality competition. Much more than 3.25, and we're gonna regret it. And I only say 3.25 because he's at 2.7 now...and he's definitely gonna get a raise after last season.

 

[DEVILS ALL THE WAY*]

I can't understand the people saying "no more than $4 million" for Clarkson, and at the same time saying he's a good 3rd liner. I'd never want to pay $4mill for a guy who can only beat up on low quality competition. Much more than 3.25, and we're gonna regret it. And I only say 3.25 because he's at 2.7 now...and he's definitely gonna get a raise after last season.

If we wanted to overpay for a top line player, we should've went "all-in" on Parise and not Clarkson. I agree, the money issue isn't comparable AT ALL, but at the end of the day, you keep a player that is 20x more productive then Clarkson.

If Clarkson walks, the only thing I'll be pissed about is not moving him when his value was at it's highest and the fact that we might lose a little grit if he isn't replaced during the offsesaon.

I loved the move that Wilson pulled in San Jose. He moved Ryan Clowe for a 2nd and 3rd round pick plus a conditional 2nd in 2014 if he resigns with the Rags and acquired Raffi Torres, who's basically the same type of player Clowe was for them this year, for a 3rd round pick. So at the end of the day, he landed a extra 2nd this year and possibily a 2nd next year and won't lose a single step in the process.

That, to me, is called maximising your assets while looking towards the future at the same time. Brilliant move by San Jose

 

[BrodeursCups]

If we wanted to overpay for a top line player, we should've went "all-in" on Parise and not Clarkson. I agree, the money issue isn't comparable AT ALL, but at the end of the day, you keep a player that is 20x more productive then Clarkson.

If Clarkson walks, the only thing I'll be pissed about is not moving him when his value was at it's highest and the fact that we might lose a little grit if he isn't replaced during the offsesaon.

I loved the move that Wilson pulled in San Jose. He moved Ryan Clowe for a 2nd and 3rd round pick plus a conditional 2nd in 2014 if he resigns with the Rags and acquired Raffi Torres, who's basically the same type of player Clowe was for them this year, for a 3rd round pick. So at the end of the day, he landed a extra 2nd this year and possibily a 2nd next year and won't lose a single step in the process.

That, to me, is called maximising your assets while looking towards the future at the same time. Brilliant move by San Jose

I may be in the minority but I'd like to keep clarkson for 4 mil or under. He's the perfect 3rd line player. The clarkson hate around here has reached levels of absurdity..

 

[Devils Dominion]

This.

Kovalchuk should sit out the remainder of the year and that's all I have to say about the matter.

If we're within a few points or tied for 8th and he really is 95-100% healthy, I have no problem putting Kovy in the lineup.

The Devils have misused Kovy this season by playing him out of his natural and favored position along with giving him too many minutes which has diminshed his level of play due to fatigue and/or conserving energy on most nights.

It's one of the many things that have me down on the Devils coaching brass and hockey management this season.

 

[Feed Me A Stray Cat]

For all of you saying the Devils suck:

If you apply last year's shootout winning percentage to this year, we're 22-14-3, and the 5th seed.

And in that scenario I don't envision nearly as many of you complaining about all our "problems".

 

[Devils Dominion]

For all of you saying the Devils suck:

If you apply last year's shootout winning percentage to this year, we're 22-14-3, and the 5th seed.

And in that scenario I don't envision nearly as many of you complaining about all our "problems".

Well, shootouts are a part of the game.
They are losing them because they are weak on individual skill when it comes to goal scoring and their goaltending has been subpar in them.

We don't need the shootout stats to see that the team is not a good one.
Mediocre to bad in too many areas.

Injuries to key players have been a major factor too.

 

[DEVILS ALL THE WAY*]

If we're within a few points or tied for 8th and he really is 95-100% healthy, I have no problem putting Kovy in the lineup.

The Devils have misused Kovy this season by playing him out of his natural and favored position along with giving him too many minutes which has diminshed his level of play due to fatigue and/or conserving energy on most nights.

It's one of the many things that have me down on the Devils coaching brass and hockey management this season.

We did the same thing with him last year and he was perfectly fine.

The knock on this team is the way this team was built or should I say, wasn't build, properly. When you lose a guy like Parise, it'll hurt your offensive production and when you let Sykora walk and bring in chumps like Butler/D'Agostini/Sullivan/Kostopoulos or think that Tedenby will magicaly flip the switch and stay at the NHL level, is the #1 mistake that has put us in this brutal position to start with.

We lost a TON of goals with the departure of both Parise and Sykora and didn't replace a 10th of their production and we're here scratching our heads as to why this team is having a hard time scoring goals... seriously?

Also, the fact that Kovy is playing over 24 minutes per game is that DeBoer has no one else to put at the point on the PP cause we don't have a ****ing d-men who can shoot the puck from the point and be a little bit of threat to the opposition. He's over utilising Kovy cause he has no other choice and to Pete's credit, I'd do the same cause we all know how quick the life spand of a NHL coach is around New Jersey, so he's playing his best asset as often as possible.

 

[Feed Me A Stray Cat]

Well, shootouts are a part of the game.
They are losing them because they are weak on individual skill when it comes to goal scoring and their goaltending has been subpar in them.

We don't need the shootout stats to see that the team is not a good one.
Mediocre to bad in too many areas.

Injuries to key players have been a major factor too.

If that's really your argument, then that's cool. But the majority of people are inventing reasons why we suck, rather than simply acknowledging that this team's actual performance is not very different from last year save for the shootout.

 

[GentlemanOfLeisure]

If we lose to Boston at home which is almost a certainty unless the Bruins come in completely unmotivated, our playoff chances are over. We won't be mathematically eliminated till about the 3rd-to-last game of the year and at that point hopefully we'll play Hedberg and not play Kovy anymore and risk further injury.

If we do somehow beat the Bruins I honestly think we have a legit shot at the 8th.

 

[CerebralGenesis]

If that's really your argument, then that's cool. But the majority of people are inventing reasons why we suck, rather than simply acknowledging that this team's actual performance is not very different from last year save for the shootout.

Hey I said that before. Then we got shutout for 140 minutes. I was sad.

 

[BrodeursCups]

If we lose to Boston at home which is almost a certainty unless the Bruins come in completely unmotivated, our playoff chances are over. We won't be mathematically eliminated till about the 3rd-to-last game of the year and at that point hopefully we'll play Hedberg and not play Kovy anymore and risk further injury.

If we do somehow beat the Bruins I honestly think we have a legit shot at the 8th.

Agreed. Beating the Bruins at home could get us on a little roll. We need to rip off 3-4 wins in a row here...

 

[DEVILS ALL THE WAY*]

I may be in the minority but I'd like to keep clarkson for 4 mil or under. He's the perfect 3rd line player. The clarkson hate around here has reached levels of absurdity..

If David goes back to his old self and doesn't think he's in line for the Rocket Richard trophy, I wouldn't mind if he's resigned at a "ok" price.

It's the "other" David I can't stand... the David who thinks he's a pure goal scorer cause he went on a magical run for about 10 games, the David who doesn't throw his weight around anymore, the David who cries after each wisthle for no ****ing reason, the David who olds on to the puck for like 7 seconds trying to skate a full circle in the offensive zone whitout even lifting his head to see what's going on around him.

That 2nd David, can sign elsewhere for all I care.

 

[GentlemanOfLeisure]

Agreed. Beating the Bruins at home could get us on a little roll. We need to rip off 3-4 wins in a row here...

Forget about the Rangers games in MSG- they are rivalry games and we can find a way to get a split there if need be. The hardest game left on our schedule is the Boston game. We've played well against the Sens and they're struggling a little now. Montreal @ home is beatable. The Penguins will be playing for nothing by the time they come to us. We played well against the Leafs in TO last month but Hedberg cost us that game.

I think the Isles are going to get to 51 points at the most. We need 52. We need 12 points in 9 games. Very do-able if we beat Boston. If we don't, it's tank time!

 

[Devils Dominion]

Forget about the Rangers games in MSG- they are rivalry games and we can find a way to get a split there if need be. The hardest game left on our schedule is the Boston game. We've played well against the Sens and they're struggling a little now. Montreal @ home is beatable. The Penguins will be playing for nothing by the time they come to us. We played well against the Leafs in TO last month but Hedberg cost us that game.

I think the Isles are going to get to 51 points at the most. We need 52. We need 12 points in 9 games. Very do-able if we beat Boston. If we don't, it's tank time!

Every game is winable, but they have to find a way to score more goals with the combo of Marty being even better.

IMO, the games @ MSG will be the hardest, I am not optimistic for either of them based on their body of work the last few months.

 

[CerebralGenesis]

EVery game is winnable. Problem is that they have been for 27 gamse and we've only won 7 of them.

 

[DEVILS ALL THE WAY*]

This team has been in a downward spiral for the past 27 games and when you're in that bad of a losing streak, it just seems as if everything is falling on your head, you're not getting a single bounce and that you'll never be able to come out of that slump.

I don't see us playing with any type of emotion or fire and that's a bad mix if you combine both things together.