2013 New Jersey Devils (Team/Player Discussion)- Offseason FA and trade talk Part VI

[apice3*]

Volchenkov blows but by no means is he lazy or giving no effort. He givs 110% every shift. He just sucks.

 

[CerebralGenesis]

Volchenkov blows but by no means is he lazy or giving no effort. He givs 110% every shift. He just sucks.

I said that 3 years ago, maybe less harsh though.

 

[Richer's Ghost]

Peters gave it his best effort too...

well except for when he did that stupid golf swing stunt.

 

[Brooklyndevil]

If the Devils can, how about we go after Stephen Weiss and turn Henrique into a winger. Hopefull, sign Patty and Clarkson and we should be a playoff team once again.

It's about time we sign a decent UFA.

 

[Semak]

I don't think it has ever been a question of effort with AV. But for a guy who was never the most mobile Dman, losing a step makes a big difference. When he's feeling good, you see 3-4 game stretches were he's shows what kind of Dman he was/can be when is as close to 100% healthy as he can be. But with the wear and tear on the guy, those feeling good stretches are becoming less as the seasons go by.

 

[Devils Trap]

We keep talking about Horton and Weiss due to Deboer connection,s but Todd Cordell brought up abother connection. Deboer coached Derek Roy in Kitchner. Not sure if people would really want him though

 

[SpeakingOfTheDevils]

If the Devils can, about we go after Stephen Weiss and turn Henrique into a winger. Hopefull, sign Patty and Clarkson and we should be a playoff team once again.

It's about time we sign a decent UFA.

I would be all for signing Weiss. I'd love to see his play-making vision centering either Kovalchuk or Clarkson. He has nice hands too, and, like our own Zajac, he has a terribly-underrated, terribly-underused shot. The fact that he has had success under DeBoer is obviously a plus, too.

Honestly though, I have no idea what his contract will look like come July 5th. Half of me thinks he'll cash in on a ridiculous deal since he's one of the few legit top-6 centers available, but then half of me thinks he'll sign a short-term, fairly cheap "prove it" contract due to his very recent injury history. If he opts for the latter, I hope Lou takes a flyer on him. But if he opts for the former, I'd prefer Lou look elsewhere.

Regardless, center depth of Weiss/Loktionov-Zajac-Loktionov/Weiss (with Henrique always available to pop back to center) would be damn good.

 

[Brooklyndevil]

We keep talking about Horton and Weiss due to Deboer connection,s but Todd Cordell brought up abother connection. Deboer coached Derek Roy in Kitchner. Not sure if people would really want him though

Is Roy ufa, because the good thing about Weiss & Horton is that they would only cost money, not assets. However, I like Roy too, if he's a free agent.

 

[Devils Trap]

Yes they are all UFA's

 

[SpeakingOfTheDevils]

I wouldn't be opposed to Roy. But I'd certainly prefer Weiss.

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

do not want Roy really.

 

[Marshal Rochambeau]

I would be all for signing Weiss. I'd love to see his play-making vision centering either Kovalchuk or Clarkson. He has nice hands too, and, like our own Zajac, he has a terribly-underrated, terribly-underused shot. The fact that he has had success under DeBoer is obviously a plus, too.

Honestly though, I have no idea what his contract will look like come July 5th. Half of me thinks he'll cash in on a ridiculous deal since he's one of the few legit top-6 centers available, but then half of me thinks he'll sign a short-term, fairly cheap "prove it" contract due to his very recent injury history. If he opts for the latter, I hope Lou takes a flyer on him. But if he opts for the former, I'd prefer Lou look elsewhere.

Regardless, center depth of Weiss/Loktionov-Zajac-Loktionov/Weiss (with Henrique always available to pop back to center) would be damn good.

He had 4 points in 17 games. I do not think anyone will give him more than $5 million.

Anyway, if Lou signs him, this is how I envision the lines:

Henrique - Weiss - Kovalchuk
Elias - Loktionov - Clarkson
Josefson - Zajac - Zubrus
Carter - Gionta - Bernier

Pretty solid.

 

[apice3*]

I think familiarity with DeBoer helps, but I don't think we need to sign every player he has ever coached.

 

[apice3*]

Weiss is not playing two lines up on Zajac.

 

[CerebralGenesis]

I was targeting good players that we could have an edge in signing. Don't really want Roy.

 

[Bologna 1]

please no roy

 

[SpeakingOfTheDevils]

He had 4 points in 17 games. I do not think anyone will give him more than $5 million.

Anyway, if Lou signs him, this is how I envision the lines:

Henrique - Weiss - Kovalchuk
Elias - Loktionov - Clarkson
Josefson - Zajac - Zubrus
Carter - Gionta - Bernier

Pretty solid.

I'd rather keep Zajac with Elias, and I'd prefer Zubrus on the second line before Clarkson.

Regardless, our depth with Weiss' addition would be rock solid.

 

[tsipka]

Zubrus on the second line is a nono. We need skill players who can score in the top 6. Zubrus can beast on the third line.

 

[Bleedred]

Zubrus on the second line is a nono. We need skill players who can score in the top 6. Zubrus can beast on the third line.

I agree with this completely. He's okay as a fill in on the top lines, but he's more fit as a 3rd liner.

 

[apice3*]

You don't need to be a 60 point player to play in the top 6. One of our best lines in recent memory was the ZZZ line. Zubrus was dominant in a 1st line role. You just need the right players.

 

[SpeakingOfTheDevils]

Zubrus on the second line is a nono. We need skill players who can score in the top 6. Zubrus can beast on the third line.

I agree with this completely. He's okay as a fill in on the top lines, but he's more fit as a 3rd liner.

These descriptions of Zubrus sound a lot like descriptions of Clarkson.

In a perfect world, we make the acquisitions necessary to drop both Zubrus and Clarkson to the third line.

Not saying it would be cemented, but I'd rather try Zubrus out on the second line before Clarkson. And then adjust as needed.

 

[BrodeursCups]

Why is everyone so obsessed with placing numbers on lines? Put them together with guys you know who play well together in mind and let Deboer handle the TOI from there...

 

[billingtons ghost]

I think he's a little injury prone, but for cheap yeah, sure I'd take him.

Gomez was not lazy this year for the Sharks after finally getting out of a place where he was vilified. He's no top 6 player anymore, but I watched him all season with the Sharks and he looked fantastic on their 3rd line. Volchenkov is overpaid, and he takes a spot that someone else should have. Not gonna defend guys like Guerin or Langenbrunner, but sorry I can't say Volchenkov is not a little bit lazy.

When you get coned by the likes of Nate Thompson, and Sean Bergenheim then he kinda deserves it. Maybe you don't like my names for him or others, and that's fine. Volchenkov is pretty much worthy of most of the criticism he gets though. Can you honestly say he gives it his all on every shift? Stupid turnovers, and dumb hockey sense have nothing to do with slowing down. These mistakes are not occasional either. He almost single handedly cost us the Florida series last year by making stupid plays every game.

LOL. Gomez and his 2 goals were AMAZING for the Sharks. Come on now. He played 39 games and contributed 15 total points while getting power play time.

Maybe his increased production was due to not scoring for a whole calendar year and letting his conditioning and play drop so low that his salary was the laughingstock of the league.

Sean Bergenheim was the fastest player in the league at the time. I can honestly say that Volchenkov gave it his all every shift. He just lost a step, got dinged up, and was playing with Salvador which didn't help his chances. He was miraculously a -1.

You WAY overstate his negative impact on the Florida series. He got torched twice and exposed as slow. Lord knows what injury the guy was playing with.

He has made some stupid plays in front of the net, has become a liability around any skater with speed, and blows tires on occasion. He also blocks shots, takes passes away and hits people and you are selling him very very short.

 

[tsipka]

You don't need to be a 60 point player to play in the top 6. One of our best lines in recent memory was the ZZZ line. Zubrus was dominant in a 1st line role. You just need the right players.

Zubrus was only dominant for a very short period of time. He did not have top line numbers regardless.

 

[billingtons ghost]

Zubrus on the second line is a nono. We need skill players who can score in the top 6. Zubrus can beast on the third line.

Zubrus on the top lines goes into the corner, digs out the puck and gets it to skilled guys. He can also play D so that others don't have to. The guy didn't hurt Ovechkin's production. I don't have a problem with him being on a top line.