Around the NHL [Jets re-sign Little/Wheeler/Bogosian]

[JohnC]

I guess this whole summer Devils fans are dealing with is just a testament to how pessimistic Rangers fans are

 

[MartyOwns]

Right. Forgot about those guys. The cup is theirs!

would that i could multiquote on mobile. ill try to drop off this discussion before im ridiculed for being on the rangers board.

youd be hard pressed to find a devils fan who thinks we are a cup bound team. its not impossible, but i think we all are counting on getting to the playoffs and maybe winning a round. anything else is just gravy

 

[Unknown Caller]

I always believe the Devils can be good. I like what they did this offseason.

I just don't understand how Devils fans can NEVER admit there may be some question marks. Some concerns. A chance they might be horrible.

I always admit when there are question marks. Last season when Lou replaced Parise with Bobby Butler I felt awful going into the season. I was surprised that they played as well as they did (at least for the first few months) given that roster. Then again, I think I'm a pretty fair talent/team evaluator.

 

[broadwayblue]

would that i could multiquote on mobile. ill try to drop off this discussion before im ridiculed for being on the rangers board.

youd be hard pressed to find a devils fan who thinks we are a cup bound team. its not impossible, but i think we all are counting on getting to the playoffs and maybe winning a round. anything else is just gravy

Nobody said you said Devils fans were winning the cup. We were discussing the fact that MANY Devils fans actually think the team is better off THIS SEASON without Kovalchuk. I'm not sure I've heard anything as stupid in at least a week.

 

[aufheben]

you have to overpay these days if you want to land people. had we signed clarkson to that TML contract, im sure we'd be dragged over the coals more so than with the clowe contract. both are overpayments, yet both are necessary.

agreed on the 'scoring by committee.' should be interesting

Like another poster said here, I could see you guys having a nice PP, with Ryder, Jagr, Zidlicky, and possibly Larsson.

 

[aufheben]

I guess this whole summer Devils fans are dealing with is just a testament to how pessimistic Rangers fans are

The difference between a winning culture, and a...not...winning culture, I suppose.

 

[Boruto]

I haven't looked at the thread yet, but I saw a "MAF to see shrink" thread just now. I'm checking it out now...

 

[darko]

no question that losing the 1st hurts. i know rangers fans wont believe this, but it hurts more than losing kovy (long term at least, short term is questionable)..

Off course it does. Not ripping on Devils here but for a cash strapped franchise to get out of 70+ mill is somewhat of a blessing in disguise. That 1st round pick could be a top-5 if things turn sour. Expecting Devils to finish 9-10 in East however.

 

[eco's bones]

The Devils prospect stable is not very deep at forward. They have really only two worthwhile guys in their whole system--Reid Boucher and Stefan Matteau--neither of them looks like 1st line material at this point. Boucher looks to me to be more like a 2nd line sniper if he continues to develop well. Matteau--a physical 3rd line guy. Tedenby looks to be a bust. Josefson hasn't developed much as an offensive player. Loktionov may or may not work out to be a good player. Some of these guys are going to need good linemates to play with if they are going to develop the more creative sides of their games and those guys are in short supply.

Defense is their strongest area in terms of prospects but offense is what they're going to need to move forward.

Anyway I've been in what I consider an absurd argument at the trade board over Zajac's value which IMO is relative to his contract--8 years--5.75 mil per to the total of $46 mil. Some people arguing that he's a 1st line player when his stats over the past 3 seasons average out to a little under 40 points a season. We went through some of the same nonsense here making excuses for Drury and now somewhat for Richards--guys basically living off some past success and not carrying their weight. IMO Zajac would hardly bring anything of value back. Zajac's numbers this year no doubt will improve because he'll get tons of ice time but he's more of a passenger in terms of offense than a catalyst and that contract takes him to age 36. Why LL decided he needed to be locked up is beyond me.

 

[Riverdale]

I'm not scared of the Devils doing well, I'm confident in my prediction that they are gonna **** the bed again, for the 3rd time in 4 years. Too many people want to not jinx it or whatever but it's as Ann on the nose of plain's face. In terms of the Atlantic division they are without a doubt the 5th best team.

And yes, I agree with 3rdlineglory, Devils built there team around old free agent pickups and haven't drafted well in recent years. A story were all too familiar with.

And people will still overrate them.

 

[16 To Stanley*]

Like another poster said here, I could see you guys having a nice PP, with Ryder, Jagr, Zidlicky, and possibly Larsson.

Larsson can roll around the wheel chairs.

 

[Fitzy]

I think the metro division stacks up this way...

1. Pittsburgh
2. NYR
3. Philadelphia

4. Islanders
5. Capitals

6. Devils
7. Hurricanes
8. Blue Jackets

But we will see. The Hurricanes have a lot of offensive firepower and a goaltender in Ward who has shown int he past to be capable of great things. The Blue Jackets will only be improving. Philly doesn't have a confident goaltender situation.

I'm not anti-Devils, but I don't think they have a playoff team this year. If Schneider takes over and goes on a .930 tear, then maybe, but I think we only send 3 teams from our division.

 

[Tawnos]

Flyers goaltending isn't the biggest issue on that team, it's their defense.

 

[Fitzy]

There aren't many teams with a top 6 like Carolina, the question is can they put it together. If so, they could be a dark horse team. They just didn't change a ton from what was a very disappointing season last year.

 

[Tawnos]

About the Hurricanes, last seasons disappointment mostly stemmed from injuries. Ward got hurt for almost the whole year, then their backup got hurt and was rushed back. They had below mediocre goaltending for half of the season.

Also, there was a bit on an imbalance on their D. Too many PMD types, not enough defensive ones. They've addressed that some by bringing in Sekera for McBain and also Komisarek on a reasonable deal. They could easily surprise some people.

 

[aufheben]

I think the Canes will be ahead of the Devils, possibly even Washington. Don't think the Jackets will be last, either.

 

[The Lunatic Fridge]

CBJ nearly made the playoffs with a crippled roster, Simular to us *cough NYR West*

Just imagine if they devils can't even finish ahead of CBJ?

 

[JESSEWENEEDTOCOOK]

I see it as:

1. Pittsburgh
2. NYR
3. Columbus/Philadelphia
4. Columbus/Philadelphia
5. NYI
6. Carolina
7. Washington
8. New Jersey

Columbus' roster is underrated. They have a solid top-9 and an excellent defense. If Bobrovsky can continue to provide excellent goaltending, I could easily see them making the playoffs, and even pushing for 2nd/3rd.

 

[Jim Ramsay]

1. Pittsburgh
2. Rangers
3. Islanders
4. Columbus
5. Philly
6. Washington
7. New Jersey
8. Carolina


It pains me to say it, but I have a feeling that the Islanders could push ahead of the Rangers when all is said and done

 

[Boruto]

It's amazing how 1 good year (48 games) of real hard performance can take a team like NYI from basement expectations suddenly to contender status.

 

[Tawnos]

Who is putting the Isles in contender status? 3rd in the division is 6-8 in the conference.

Plus, the Islanders have been doing the basement rebuild. Those kinds of teams generally coalesce very quickly when they do.

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

Who is putting the Isles in contender status? 3rd in the division is 6-8 in the conference.

Plus, the Islanders have been doing the basement rebuild. Those kinds of teams generally coalesce very quickly when they do.

That's true. Chicago went from 14th in the conference in 2006, to 13th in 2007, 10th in 2008, 4th in 2009 all the way to winning the Cup in 2010.

 

[Tawnos]

That's true. Chicago went from 14th in the conference in 2006, to 13th in 2007, 10th in 2008, 4th in 2009 all the way to winning the Cup in 2010.

Penguins too. 15th, (lockout), 15th, 5th, Cup final.

 

[eco's bones]

Isles are on the rise and one main reason is Tavares is for real and proving he can lead his team. They are a young team as well and as long as their goaltending doesn't fall apart on them I think they'll definitely be a playoff team.

 

[gary laser eyes]

Please don't lump the Islanders with the Blackhawks/Penguins. The Islanders are a cap floor team. Their big FA signing was P.M. Bouchard and Matt Moulson is their top winger. They may squeak into the playoffs solely on the back of Tavares, but they're not anywhere near contenders.