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FLASHBACK: Mogilny a Devil Again


oofrostonoo

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Almo never took cliche lessons from Crash Davis, did he?

"I'm just happy to be here, hope I can help the ballclub."

"You have to play them one at a time."

I don't think Almo knows how to say those things. Not that I mind. :evil:

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I've got to stop reading because it's coming back to me.. my early debates with ESB at the Devils News board

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

That seems like soooooo long ago. The only thing I remember specifically is that occasionally I felt like you do about Alex's energy re: debates.

It was great to drag out all those old quotes, I'm looking forward to adding a lot more on to them in the next two years!

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BRODEUR ON AL-MO: Star goalie Martin Brodeur was thrilled to hear that free-agent winger Alexander Mogilny was back in New Jersey for a second tour of duty.

"I'm excited that Al-Mo and Vladdy Malakhov (signed earlier this month) are back - two guys that really helped us win the Stanley Cup in 2000, under Larry Robinson, who's back as our coach.," said Brodeur.

"Al-Mo's a great guy, he loves New York and always wanted to be there."

Brodeur asked reporters how much Mogilny signed for and found it interesting when told it was a $7-million US, two-year deal.

"It's funny how it works, eh? Lou (Lamoriello) wouldn't give him that after we won the Stanley Cup (in 2000)," laughed Brodeur. "And now we have the new system and he gives him that."

http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/shownews.jsp?content=h081745A

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But it IS ironic that Lou's had more FA activity NOW post-cap than he ever did pre-cap :lol:

It is, but consider a few things. First, with the cap it puts teams like New Jersey, Edmonton, Atlanta, etc. on the same playing field as the Rangers, Leafs, Wings, and the other free-spending teams. Money doesn't rule the day as much as it used to. As a result, Lou has a better chance of landing his targets than he did in the past. It's possible that the Devils' usual reticence in participating in the UFA frenzy was due not to Lou's team-building philosophy but his financial philosophy.

Second, the Devils' less-than-stellar drafting in recent years combined with Lou's tendency to trade prospects for Cup runs has finally caught up to them, not to mention the caliber of players we lost. Niedermayer wasn't going to be replaced by a Rat. Elias wasn't going to be replaced by a Rat, not even Parise. Yes, their roster spots may have been filled from within, but the Devils would have been much worse than they were in 2003-04. They just don't have the "interchangeable parts" kind of guys coming up from the farm like they did in the '90s. Lou had to make some moves in the free agent market this year or else the Devils would have been sunk (and NJDevs would have been a grim place to be).

(Yes, I know, it wasn't intended to be a disparaging remark, it just sparked something in my brain, that's all. :))

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I don't find it ironic at all - just as I don't find Carolina, Calgary, etc. getting involved in the free agent market. You can't get involved with free agents unless you know you can sign all your other guys down the road. Signing free agents is the least efficient way to build a team, just look at Malakhov and Mogilny - those guys are not worth that money in a truly free market (not that such things exist but that's for the Politics forum, I suppose). But with salaries so inflationary under the old CBA you had to be worried about several things, including:

A- If I pay this guy, can I pay my RFAs without breaking the budget in the next two or three years?

B- If I sign this guy long-term, what will he be like in the last year of that deal; will he be worth it then?

C- Will he fit in with the team, or am I going to be stuck holding an overpriced malcontent for three years?

D- Is he even worth it to begin with, knowing that in order to get him, I have to pay 25%-50% more than he's worth? Will he get us into the playoffs or be the difference in the playoffs?

Under the salary cap, and with the guys Lou has signed, A and D are the only things that should concern him. But A is a concern regardless, and Lou's confident enough in his own abilities that D probably didn't cross his mind.

Edited by Triumph
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But it IS ironic that Lou's had more FA activity NOW post-cap than he ever did pre-cap :lol:

It is, but consider a few things. First, with the cap it puts teams like New Jersey, Edmonton, Atlanta, etc. on the same playing field as the Rangers, Leafs, Wings, and the other free-spending teams. Money doesn't rule the day as much as it used to.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I understand that, but Lou OVERpaid for Mogilny and Malakhov (and honestly if Nieds had stayed, he would have overpaid him), I always figured that was part of the reticence to go into FA, Lou didn't want to pay guys more than they were worth. Maybe like I alluded to in the other thread though, Lou didn't mind overpaying those two because he knows they'd give Larry 110% and Lou wants to make Larry's transition back to being the head guy easier so he brought back two of Larry's pets.

And yeah obviously this year's a little different, the talent drain with Nieds leaving, Stevens being on his last legs if he comes back, Elias being hurt, no recent prospects other than hopefully Parise (and Martin/Hale last year), plus Philly and Pittsburgh improving to the extent that they have all probably compelled Lou to go the FA route more.

Edited by Hasan4978
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But it IS ironic that Lou's had more FA activity NOW post-cap than he ever did pre-cap :lol:

It is, but consider a few things. First, with the cap it puts teams like New Jersey, Edmonton, Atlanta, etc. on the same playing field as the Rangers, Leafs, Wings, and the other free-spending teams. Money doesn't rule the day as much as it used to.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I understand that, but Lou OVERpaid for Mogilny and Malakhov (and honestly if Nieds had stayed, he would have overpaid him), I always figured that was part of the reticence to go into FA, Lou didn't want to pay guys more than they were worth. Maybe like I alluded to in the other thread though, Lou didn't mind overpaying those two because he knows they'd give Larry 110% and Lou wants to make Larry's transition back to being the head guy easier so he brought back two of Larry's pets.

And yeah obviously this year's a little different, the talent drain with Nieds leaving, Stevens being on his last legs if he comes back, Elias being hurt, no recent prospects other than hopefully Parise (and Martin/Hale last year), plus Philly and Pittsburgh improving to the extent that they have all probably compelled Lou to go the FA route more.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Don't forget also that under the previous CBA, overpaying a free agent meant probably overpaying everyone else. Lou was concerned about breaking his budget because he knew if he gave someone who'd never played for the team millions of dollars, players A, B, and C would demand raises and point to the new player as the new standard. With the salary cap, Lou can say "Tough sh!t", and not only that, he can claim to be adding winning players to the roster, making it a more attractive place to play.

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  • 4 months later...

Hmeh... I feel about the waive the same as I did about the signing...

Maybe Lou really was out of touch - maybe he really did slack off and not make the hard decisions. Personally I felt it was all too fast and easy for him during the summer. I mean I just didn't see the old Lou logic at work. Nothing made sense to me in terms of fitting in with

oh who cares... I'm tired :P

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My thoughts exactly.  This is one of those times when Lou feels like God, but in a bad way; you know, like "I don't understand what you're doing, but I know you have a plan... and would you just give us a freakin' sign already?!?!?"

Double damn.

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/a...evils_mogilny_1

AP / yahoo news

"New Jersey has always been a front-runner for me and I always wanted to come back," he said Tuesday night from California.

"We're 100 percent comfortable that he is 100 percent healthy," Lamoriello said.

:D

Oops.

Second, the Devils' less-than-stellar drafting in recent years combined with Lou's tendency to trade prospects for Cup runs has finally caught up to them, not to mention the caliber of players we lost.  Niedermayer wasn't going to be replaced by a Rat.  Elias wasn't going to be replaced by a Rat, not even Parise.  Yes, their roster spots may have been filled from within, but the Devils would have been much worse than they were in 2003-04.  They just don't have the "interchangeable parts" kind of guys coming up from the farm like they did in the '90s.  Lou had to make some moves in the free agent market this year or else the Devils would have been sunk (and NJDevs would have been a grim place to be).

Triple damn.

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Thought it might be interesting to compare initial reactions to now.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I like my original post in this thread. Come to think of it, as I look back through this 8-pager, I like a lot of what I said. :D At least someone does, eh?

Another scorer up front? Check -- although not quite what was hoped for

Wonky hip/health? Check

Overpaid? Check

Trade winds? Check

At least 25 goals and 60 points? Well he was on pace for it.

Oh well. Lou thought he had a straight flush when, really, he misread his cards and ended up with "all reds," noticing only after the bet was placed.

(I'm so tired I don't know if that makes any sense or if I'm botching things, but I'm beyond caring right now :))

Edited by insanity_gallops
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