Holik & Rolston?

[Don]

Im with you -- why couldnt Lou pull any of those deals ?

"Deals" is plural. Which other one are you referring to? I assume the first is Zherdev who is a major headache and not the kind of player that Lou typically brings in. This guy is fairly stable compared only to Mike Danton.

to bring in has-beens?

Including a has-been that scored 30 goals last year.

I hate the coach

You are very much in the minority there.

I hated the players for having no balls and little talent last year

Disagree on the former. There is no easy fix for the latter. You can't keep winning forever, no matter how much Lou tries.

I thought they wanted fans to go to the Rock ..

I've seen Triumphs off-season plan. Where is yours? What are your suggestions?

[msweet]

Great Action Guys and Gals... let's just avoid name calling. This argument is easy enough to crush without that.

[El Diablo]

"Deals" is plural. Which other one are you referring to?

Many deals made by teams for better players then we got. I respect your opinion because of what it is, just an opinion ... just like mine, an opinion its not wrong just a point of view and in my point of view I dont like where the Devs are heading now for the last several years - again my opinion - I think Lou has not delivered and when he's had the chance, he's made the wrong move. As far as your other comments.. meh ...sorry I dont conform to your view but I like being in the minority as a matter of fact I am one . .I still stick to my guns - the players last year showed no guts .

Im pretty much out of kool-aid ..

[Devils731]

There were not many players out there better than Rolston. Maybe it's a being in the other conference thing but I think even some people who like the signing will be surprised at how much he brings.

[ice dog]

rangers suck

[RangerBill]

From a quote on a Yahoo! NJ Devils Board.....................

"Thats the real issue here. You want to bring back 1995, but with a 37y/o Holik and a 35 y/o Rolston? And Holik CANNOT keep up with Zajac & Gionta. You would think he was a defenseman he would be so far behind the play.

I hate to say it, but the NYR pulled off a better trade giving up Fedor Tyutin for Zherdev and Fritsche. And don't say the salary cap had something to do with it. NJ had almost $12mil to spend. Zherdev has a tremendus upside and future. He will average better than a point per game as a hated Blueshirt."

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I kinda agree. They could have given up (maybe) Odyua and Zajac for the Zherdav and Fritsche. That is some really good young talent. Add in Naslund, and we will see.....................

Just my .02

Hey Tallahassee, I am not in favor of that deal. Tyutin is a solid #3. He and Giradi made a great pairing. Now if Rosival was in the deal, O.K. But with Redden in camp, we have a #1 for the first time since Leetch was moved. I know this will stir the pot, since I am a Rangers fan, but lets look at the numbers. Detroit is the team to beat again. Watch for Hossa to have a MONSTER year being on the second line with the pressure being removed by Datsyuk and Zetterberg. The only question mark I can see for them not repeating is not having the goaltendig tandem they had last year. As for the East, neither the Rangers or Devils will go far in the playoffs. Pittsburg is a year older and wiser, watch out. Can you say Stanley Cup Rematch!

[Richer's Ghost]

From a quote on a Yahoo! NJ Devils Board.....................

"Thats the real issue here. You want to bring back 1995, but with a 37y/o Holik and a 35 y/o Rolston? And Holik CANNOT keep up with Zajac & Gionta. You would think he was a defenseman he would be so far behind the play.

I hate to say it, but the NYR pulled off a better trade giving up Fedor Tyutin for Zherdev and Fritsche. And don't say the salary cap had something to do with it. NJ had almost $12mil to spend. Zherdev has a tremendus upside and future. He will average better than a point per game as a hated Blueshirt."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I kinda agree. They could have given up (maybe) Odyua and Zajac for the Zherdav and Fritsche. That is some really good young talent. Add in Naslund, and we will see.....................

Just my .02

you will eat those words like they were slow smoked ribs by the end of the season.

grab a cold beer - you're gonna have plenty of bbq to eat... and part of it is crow.

[DevilinLA]

Hey Tallahassee, I am not in favor of that deal. Tyutin is a solid #3. He and Giradi made a great pairing. Now if Rosival was in the deal, O.K. But with Redden in camp, we have a #1 for the first time since Leetch was moved. I know this will stir the pot, since I am a Rangers fan, but lets look at the numbers. Detroit is the team to beat again. Watch for Hossa to have a MONSTER year being on the second line with the pressure being removed by Datsyuk and Zetterberg. The only question mark I can see for them not repeating is not having the goaltendig tandem they had last year. As for the East, neither the Rangers or Devils will go far in the playoffs. Pittsburg is a year older and wiser, watch out. Can you say Stanley Cup Rematch!

WHAT????

As of right now....

PITT lost SO many key impact players.

First just the key forwards that were lost.

Second, who's going to protect the younglings w/o Rutuu or Laroque?

Third, Magic Ty Conklin - is gone. Who's backing them up now?

...Ask the Isles how much they loved Satan and Fedo, granted they will do much better with the magic centers in PITT, but they are less-motivated players near the end stages of their career, not young guys looking for the next big contract like Malone.

With all due respect:

You want to sink your "Ranger Ship" before the season starts - fine...but don't troll in with your "broken Jagr dreams" and drag us with you like we're one happy fleet - we're looking forward to a good and very competitive year!!!!

This board loves blood...especially any blood that has anything to do with the Rangers, unfortunately, you're not going to find any symapathy here, probably more like animosity. My advice would be to be more descrete with invoking paralells between the two teams.

[SatansDevils]

Hey Tallahassee, I am not in favor of that deal. Tyutin is a solid #3. He and Giradi made a great pairing. Now if Rosival was in the deal, O.K. But with Redden in camp, we have a #1 for the first time since Leetch was moved. I know this will stir the pot, since I am a Rangers fan, but lets look at the numbers. Detroit is the team to beat again. Watch for Hossa to have a MONSTER year being on the second line with the pressure being removed by Datsyuk and Zetterberg. The only question mark I can see for them not repeating is not having the goaltendig tandem they had last year. As for the East, neither the Rangers or Devils will go far in the playoffs. Pittsburg is a year older and wiser, watch out. Can you say Stanley Cup Rematch!

So with that being said...

Prediction for this years Atlantic Division.

Devils

Flyers

Penguins

Rangers

Islanders

Penguins did lose some key UFA but they will still be a good team but not as good as the SCF team of this past season. They will struggle but contend for the divison along with the Flyers and the Devils. IMO it will be out of the Devils and the Flyers once again for the Atlantic Division. If is wasn't for a bad week in March last season the Devils would have won the division again. They are a better team than last season so I think the Devils win the division this season.

Edited July 6, 2008 by SatansDevils

[RangerBill]

WHAT????

As of right now....

PITT lost SO many key impact players.

First just the key forwards that were lost.

Second, who's going to protect the younglings w/o Rutuu or Laroque?

Third, Magic Ty Conklin - is gone. Who's backing them up now?

...Ask the Isles how much they loved Satan and Fedo, granted they will do much better with the magic centers in PITT, but they are less-motivated players near the end stages of their career, not young guys looking for the next big contract like Malone.

With all due respect:

You want to sink your "Ranger Ship" before the season starts - fine...but don't troll in with your "broken Jagr dreams" and drag us with you like we're one happy fleet - we're looking forward to a good and very competitive year!!!!

This board loves blood...especially any blood that has anything to do with the Rangers, unfortunately, you're not going to find any symapathy here, probably more like animosity. My advice would be to be more descrete with invoking paralells between the two teams.

Not looking for sympathy at all. I, for one, am glad that Jagr is gone. Having a Captain, who is the all-time leading European scorer, who doesn't want to participate in shoot-outs, see ya. Shanahan should have been Captain. I hope the Rangers are smart enough to re-sign him. About sinking the ship, lets be realistic on both sides. Either Lundquist or Brodeur go down with an injury, season done. Weekes and Valiquitte can't carry a team to the playoffs.

I have been a hockey fan long before the Devils were the Kansas City Scouts. And unlike most Ranger fans, I will watch the Devils games. I also played the game for 20 years, as my worn out knees will attest. Hockey is the toughest game there is and I admire the best playing for ANY team. I just want to have some thoughtful conversation about the game. So I post on rival team boards and hope for the best. Bash me all you want, but I will still be here willing to joust with the best! And hopefully the Devils and Rangers meet for the Eastern conference finals!

[$$BigTime$$]

Detroit is the exception, not the rule. Their team is a one-of-a-kind, all the pieces fell in place at the same time. A resurgence in goal, several higher draft picks that panned out better than most team's #1 pick. If you want the Devils to compete with Detroit roster-wise, you'll be disappointed for several years.

Look more at the gain/loss.

Brylin is gone, Holik is in.

Asham is gone, Rolston is in.

That's an upgrade. Problems are being addressed. What's the concern?

I agree. People have to stop looking at "age". I think it is totally ridculous. Look at the gain/loss as you stated HUGE upgarde. Both guys we lost were 4th liners. We gained a TOP six forward in Rolston and a 3rd/4th line player in Holik has more intagibles than the team lacked last year(size, face off man, agitator, leadership, etc)

As far as i'm concerend LOU has done a great job this offseason and i feel he will add 1 more D guy.

Also the signing of Salvador is overlooked. He only played with us for 8 regular season games and wasn't 100% in the playoffs. Now I would like to see him here a full year which I think will be a big improvement + he brings leadership as well.

So look at the loss/gain on D.

Rachunek is gone, Salvador is in

That's an upgrade as well.

[parise dangles]

I agree. People have to stop looking at "age". I think it is totally ridculous. Look at the gain/loss as you stated HUGE upgarde. Both guys we lost were 4th liners. We gained a TOP six forward in Rolston and a 3rd/4th line player in Holik has more intagibles than the team lacked last year(size, face off man, agitator, leadership, etc)

As far as i'm concerend LOU has done a great job this offseason and i feel he will add 1 more D guy.

Also the signing of Salvador is overlooked. He only played with us for 8 regular season games and wasn't 100% in the playoffs. Now I would like to see him here a full year which I think will be a big improvement + he brings leadership as well.

So look at the loss/gain on D.

Rachunek is gone, Salvador is in

That's an upgrade as well.

yea i totally agree roston/holik were a good upgrade for the team

[Satans Hockey]

About sinking the ship, lets be realistic on both sides. Either Lundquist or Brodeur go down with an injury, season done. Weekes and Valiquitte can't carry a team to the playoffs.

Same could be said for basically every team in the league.

[Sharifijanov2099]

I for one am excited to see what this team can do next year. Did we get that puck-moving defenseman that I wanted? No. But we did make some other changes that I think will help, and there's still the possibility that more will happen before all is said and done (Jason Smith is out there as a defensive defenseman, just a thought).

But I absolutely believe Rolston has another few good years in him, so I completely disagree with the nay-sayers on this board calling him a has-been. He is a 30 goal/60 point scorer, and I think if NJ intends to use him as a first line pivot, as I read in one post, he could do more than that.

Elias-Rolston-Gionta

Parisa-Zajac-Langenbrunner

Pando-Madden-Zubrus

Rookie-Holik-Clarkson

That's a pretty solid forward lineup. The first line will do some damage, as well as the 2nd (with Parise's continued development, and a rebound year from Zajac).

In terms of 3rd lines, you don't get much better than Madden/Pando, taking into account Madden's newfound interest in goalscoring, and again, with a potential rebound year fro Zubrus, he could add a new element to this club.

Holik is great at faceoffs, and maybe centering a youthful line will actually give us a 4th line that we can play regularly and not worry about, seeing how Holik is a responsible defensive pivot.

I'm excited about the forward lines, and remember, we had a pretty good regular season this past year, except for our sputter in the stretch run. I think the new lineup gives us more stability, and I do think we'll have a decent season.

The defense is much the same, and Salvador is signed. All we can hope is that Martin/Oduya continue to impress and develop, and continue to attempt to bring an offensive game while White, Salvador, Vishnevsky, and Greene hold up through the season and can hold the fort in front of Marty. I wouldn't mind Jason Smith in place of Greene, which could be a real possibility, and of course, I'd love to see a Bouwmeester trade, but I think that's a pipe dream. You never know though.

I don't think Lou is delusional, I just think he sees what happened last year - we had a pretty decent year for what we had, and we really picked a bad time to falter. Now, we have a few new/used parts that can help, and hopefully some players take a step forward. It's very easy to imagine a highly successful NJ team if Zajac scores 50 pts, Parise scores 80, Zubrus scores 50, Martin scores 45, etc, which are not completely unrealistic goals or anything.

Let's see what happens.

The Rangers have made some interesting moves, yes, but they also got rid of Shanny, Jagr, and Avery - 3 big puzzle pieces and 3 big chemistry pieces. Redden isn't worth 6.5 and may no longer be a first pair d-man. Naslund I think can pot 60 pts, but he's hot and cold and may not be their answer. Zherdev I think was their best move, in terms of what he may have the potential to do if put in the right situation. But here you see the difference in organizational philosophies in these teams--NY brings in people in droves, seeing what happens, and NJ is more calculated in their approach. The Rags beat us last year, so take it for what it's worth, but NJ is always a long-term experiment in winning the cup every single season, and I don't think it's fair to say that Lou doesn't "get it" anymore. We've made the playoffs every year since the new-era NHL, meaning, every year a chance to compete for Lord Stanley's Cup.

Let's give it some time before we call him a bad GM, the man who got us 3 stanley cup teams over 9 years, and 1 stanley cup final. I still believe NJ will make at least one more cup run (win or lose I can't say) while Brodeur is under contract, and I do believe we have the talent to do it this year if things fall together just right--just as it is with any team in this league--in large part due to chemistry and gelling at the right time of the season.

Go Devils!

[DevilinLA]

I for one am excited to see what this team can do next year. Did we get that puck-moving defenseman that I wanted? No. But we did make some other changes that I think will help, and there's still the possibility that more will happen before all is said and done (Jason Smith is out there as a defensive defenseman, just a thought).

But I absolutely believe Rolston has another few good years in him, so I completely disagree with the nay-sayers on this board calling him a has-been. He is a 30 goal/60 point scorer, and I think if NJ intends to use him as a first line pivot, as I read in one post, he could do more than that.

Elias-Rolston-Gionta

Parisa-Zajac-Langenbrunner

Pando-Madden-Zubrus

Rookie-Holik-Clarkson

That's a pretty solid forward lineup. The first line will do some damage, as well as the 2nd (with Parise's continued development, and a rebound year from Zajac).

In terms of 3rd lines, you don't get much better than Madden/Pando, taking into account Madden's newfound interest in goalscoring, and again, with a potential rebound year fro Zubrus, he could add a new element to this club.

Holik is great at faceoffs, and maybe centering a youthful line will actually give us a 4th line that we can play regularly and not worry about, seeing how Holik is a responsible defensive pivot.

I'm excited about the forward lines, and remember, we had a pretty good regular season this past year, except for our sputter in the stretch run. I think the new lineup gives us more stability, and I do think we'll have a decent season.

The defense is much the same, and Salvador is signed. All we can hope is that Martin/Oduya continue to impress and develop, and continue to attempt to bring an offensive game while White, Salvador, Vishnevsky, and Greene hold up through the season and can hold the fort in front of Marty. I wouldn't mind Jason Smith in place of Greene, which could be a real possibility, and of course, I'd love to see a Bouwmeester trade, but I think that's a pipe dream. You never know though.

I don't think Lou is delusional, I just think he sees what happened last year - we had a pretty decent year for what we had, and we really picked a bad time to falter. Now, we have a few new/used parts that can help, and hopefully some players take a step forward. It's very easy to imagine a highly successful NJ team if Zajac scores 50 pts, Parise scores 80, Zubrus scores 50, Martin scores 45, etc, which are not completely unrealistic goals or anything.

Let's see what happens.

Good Points.

But again my pet peeve, people always dump or forget about Mike Mottau.

A hard-worker who put in a great first season.

Greene won't be coming back to this team...his best hopes are Lowell.

No, we don't need Jason Smith.

Either a trade goes through for a Jay Bou or middle teir puck-mover or Lou thinks we have someone coming up who might fill that skill set along w/Martin/Oduya.

Otherwise - great post!

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

Third, Magic Ty Conklin - is gone. Who's backing them up now?

A lot of people are forgetting about how well Conklin played for them. He really was a regular season unsung hero for that team.

As for where the Devils finish, I think they'll be right around 100 points again, but with a much better goal differential. That's a good thing...this season's points won't be as tough and tiring to earn as they were last year, and with an older team the Devils will need opportunities to cruise here and there and to rest players.

[Sharifijanov2099]

A lot of people are forgetting about how well Conklin played for them. He really was a regular season unsung hero for that team.

As for where the Devils finish, I think they'll be right around 100 points again, but with a much better goal differential. That's a good thing...this season's points won't be as tough and tiring to earn as they were last year, and with an older team the Devils will need opportunities to cruise here and there and to rest players.

Yes... mistake, sorry. Mike Mottau played great for our team this past year and above his head. He's probably best suited as a 3rd pairing guy, but a very talented third pairing guy. I did omit him. It has been a long off-season! So that makes me feel even better :-), so let's keep our fingers crossed.

Thanks.

[ClutchDevil30]

Im with you -- why couldnt Lou pull any of those deals ? to bring in has-beens? bah .. Im beginning to really hate this team -- I hate the coach and I hated the players for having no balls and little talent last year and now the premise of another year with this bunch is totally un-inspiring .. I dont get it -- I thought they wanted fans to go to the Rock ..

I hope you're kidding. And Rolston is NOT a "has-been".

[yort44]

Yes... mistake, sorry. Mike Mottau played great for our team this past year and above his head. He's probably best suited as a 3rd pairing guy, but a very talented third pairing guy. I did omit him. It has been a long off-season! So that makes me feel even better :-), so let's keep our fingers crossed.

Thanks.

I thought Mottau played well in the first half of the year and really wore down as the season went on. First year being a solid regular takes some adjustments and I'm sure he's using this summer to prepare to play the entire season next year. Guys like John Madden hit the weights hard all summer long because they lose muscle as the season goes on (and about 10 pounds each).

[El Diablo]

I hope you're kidding. And Rolston is NOT a "has-been".

I will gladly eat my words Clutch -- lets play the season out ..

[Devils731]

I will gladly eat my words Clutch -- lets play the season out ..

What would lead you to believe it's more reasonable to expect Rolston being washed up then to expect him to be relatively similar to last season?

[El Diablo]

What would lead you to believe it's more reasonable to expect Rolston being washed up then to expect him to be relatively similar to last season?

Last years team left me reeeeeeally sour.. rolston is not the type of player to carry a team on his back.. just another piece in the arsenal of interchangable parts which arent very good .. this was a comfortable decision for Lou to make - another reason why Im down on the team.

[DevilinLA]

Last years team left me reeeeeeally sour.. rolston is not the type of player to carry a team on his back.. just another piece in the arsenal of interchangable parts which arent very good .. this was a comfortable decision for Lou to make - another reason why Im down on the team.

Without any sarcasm...I'm open to hearing some thoughts...

What would have been the better move on July 1st, in your opinion?

[Triumph]

Without any sarcasm...I'm open to hearing some thoughts...

What would have been the better move on July 1st, in your opinion?

I'm not open to hearing these thoughts. All the other 30 goal scorers on the market who signed better deals were obviously the better move.

The Devils are one piece away from serious contention - whether they get it from inside the organization or outside, Lou recognizes that this is the year to go for it, and going for it he is.

[Scott Stevens #4]

I love the addition of Holik......with him all that un welcomed traffic around brodeur will evaporate ...Holik will clear them out..and will stop any double teaming when scrums start after play