New Kovy Update ("As the Kovy Turns")

[GoArmySports]

That's sheer gold right there.

[Devs3cups]

WHEN WILL THIS MADNESS FINISH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[mmajeski06]

I'm surprised in all of the jersey fouls you see on Puck Daddy, no one has ever included any BettmanSux, FukBettman jerseys. Then again, can you really consider them a foul?

[CADevilsFan]

I don't think a Devils fan would get this jersey... unless it's a Kovy hater.

So Manta will get this as his Kovy Jersey? Didn't he say that he would get one if Kovy resigned here?

[thegame346]

WHEN WILL THIS MADNESS FINISH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

When Lou has Bettmans head on his wall next to a copy of the CBA

[DevsMan84]

I really hope the arbitrator rules in favor of the contract. It will be the 3rd time Lou has publicly embarassed the league since he took over over 20 years ago.

[thegame346]

I really hope the arbitrator rules in favor of the contract. It will be the 3rd time Lou has publicly embarassed the league since he took over over 20 years ago.

I see a ton more reasons why they would rather then why they wouldn't. I mean this argument isn't even close. Its 80/20 in favor of the Devils.

[DevsMan84]

I see a ton more reasons why they would rather then why they wouldn't. I mean this argument isn't even close. Its 80/20 in favor of the Devils.

I'd give it 90/10 actually, but you never know what kind of shennanigans will happen behind the scenes.

[Legion15]

thing is though now even though kovy said "this is team", will other teams fans now want to pull the Devils apart for being a one-man, "secret weapon" star oriented team now that this big deal has been made about him? I mean we're supposed to be one of the few teams in the league that plays as a TEAM (the 'boring' hockey most devils haters say we play, synonymous with 'trap' references) now they're going to say we're changing our style and being more oriented toward Kovy and Parise, rather than a team of equals - like Crysby and the Pens, Ovi and the Caps, etc. I guess Kovy nixed the thought though when he declined the "face of the team" title and said if anyone, Brodeur should still hold that because it's earned, not given. That's apparently what other team's fans don't get, you don't get to be the man everyone thinks of when you mention a team just because you're there and score a lot of goals, or make big plays, you get it by being consistent, showing up every day and giving 100%. Kovy does that, which is why he's worth so much to any team. And what's the icing is that he doesn't expect instant gratification, he seems very humble.

[Pepperkorn]

I really hope the arbitrator rules in favor of the contract. It will be the 3rd time Lou has publicly embarassed the league since he took over over 20 years ago.

I don't think Lou would be proud of that fact. It's like tough love.

What if during the writing of the CBA Lou had said that people could sign ridiculously long contract lengths to circumvent the cap and everyone laughed it off. Now that he's done it they'll take his own words, set forth during CBA negotiations, and use them against him...

Edited July 23, 2010 by Pepperkorn

[DevsMan84]

thing is though now even though kovy said "this is team", will other teams fans now want to pull the Devils apart for being a one-man, "secret weapon" star oriented team now that this big deal has been made about him? I mean we're supposed to be one of the few teams in the league that plays as a TEAM (the 'boring' hockey most devils haters say we play, synonymous with 'trap' references) now they're going to say we're changing our style and being more oriented toward Kovy and Parise, rather than a team of equals - like Crysby and the Pens, Ovi and the Caps, etc. I guess Kovy nixed the thought though when he declined the "face of the team" title and said if anyone, Brodeur should still hold that because it's earned, not given. That's apparently what other team's fans don't get, you don't get to be the man everyone thinks of when you mention a team just because you're there and score a lot of goals, or make big plays, you get it by being consistent, showing up every day and giving 100%. Kovy does that, which is why he's worth so much to any team. And what's the icing is that he doesn't expect instant gratification, he seems very humble.

Problem is, the Devils played the trap and a team concept from 94 to 05 was to be able to compete with other teams who were loaded with stars due to being more financially well off. This served them well in the clutch and grab era, but not so much in the post-lockout era. Looking at all the teams that won the cup in the 90's, I'd have to admit just going through the rosters the 95 Devils were the least talented team to win the cup. They won because of the trap and the trap worked because they worked as a team. Also having a young Brodeur, streaking Lemieux and steady Stevens also helped. In this day and age, a team has to have a couple of bona-fide stars to keep up and Kovy fits in that mold. If he at least buys into the concept of trying to do less since he has more support here than in Atlanta, then he should do at least fairly well here.

[thegame346]

thing is though now even though kovy said "this is team", will other teams fans now want to pull the Devils apart for being a one-man, "secret weapon" star oriented team now that this big deal has been made about him? I mean we're supposed to be one of the few teams in the league that plays as a TEAM (the 'boring' hockey most devils haters say we play, synonymous with 'trap' references) now they're going to say we're changing our style and being more oriented toward Kovy and Parise, rather than a team of equals - like Crysby and the Pens, Ovi and the Caps, etc. I guess Kovy nixed the thought though when he declined the "face of the team" title and said if anyone, Brodeur should still hold that because it's earned, not given. That's apparently what other team's fans don't get, you don't get to be the man everyone thinks of when you mention a team just because you're there and score a lot of goals, or make big plays, you get it by being consistent, showing up every day and giving 100%. Kovy does that, which is why he's worth so much to any team. And what's the icing is that he doesn't expect instant gratification, he seems very humble.

I feel as though this situation with Kovy is different. The Devils are a small team in a large market. We have to compete with Philly, the Rangers, Pittsburgh with Crosby, and Washington with Ovie. Our competitors are handing out these large contracts to free agents right and left. How can another teams fans make fun of the Devils when they are only trying to keep pace?

[jim777]

Kovy's career will likely be judged when its over by what he accomplishes as a Devil. I can't see him NOT buying into the team concept with the talent here - this simply isn't Atlanta.

[DaneykoIsGod]

Just posting this because out of all the cheesy PR photos they took after the presser, this one's my favorite.

[Chambers Scored Twice]

Kovy's career will likely be judged when its over by what he accomplishes as a Devil. I can't see him NOT buying into the team concept with the talent here - this simply isn't Atlanta.

Well said.

That's exactly what I told a Flyers fan earlier today when he was having a go at the Devils, saying how he hopes we do get the contract sorted so we can "self destruct after signing the biggest non-performer in the history of the game".

He's too young to remember Alex Daigle.

[Neb00rs]

I really wanted to post something about how I thought Lou was gonna go about fighting the rejection but I'll wait until this thread is less stupid.

So Manta will get this as his Kovy Jersey? Didn't he say that he would get one if Kovy resigned here?

As I said before: He promised to buy a Kovy jersey and change his avatar in honor of Kovy.

Who's gonna be the first to get a Devils No. 17 jersey with "CIRCUMVENTION" on the back?

[Joonas #6]

Does anyone know if there's any way to download videos from NJDTV? I'd really like to get that 'Kovalchuk returns' video.

[DaneykoIsGod]

This is a good one too.

I'm bored.

[sundstrom]

Just posting this because out of all the cheesy PR photos they took after the presser, this one's my favorite.

hey - he's standing on my brick!

[Daniel]

Problem is, the Devils played the trap and a team concept from 94 to 05 was to be able to compete with other teams who were loaded with stars due to being more financially well off. This served them well in the clutch and grab era, but not so much in the post-lockout era. Looking at all the teams that won the cup in the 90's, I'd have to admit just going through the rosters the 95 Devils were the least talented team to win the cup. They won because of the trap and the trap worked because they worked as a team. Also having a young Brodeur, streaking Lemieux and steady Stevens also helped. In this day and age, a team has to have a couple of bona-fide stars to keep up and Kovy fits in that mold. If he at least buys into the concept of trying to do less since he has more support here than in Atlanta, then he should do at least fairly well here.

So far as raw numbers, in the first two years of Lemaire's first stint ('93-94, 94-95), the Devils fared pretty well in goals scored. I'm not a nuts and bolts hockey guy, but it seems to me that when only one team on the ice is playing the trap, which is a system that is based just as much on counter-attack as it is on defense, it can do pretty well offensively. It's when both teams play the trap is when the goal total really starts to suffer. (There was a saying in the late 90s that "all teams play the trap.") That was the story from '97 to '99. Partly because Lemaire was gone, but also because of players like Niedermeyer, Arnott, Skora, Elias reaching their prime, and with the addition of Mogilny, the team did well offensively, in factleading the league in goals in 2000-2001.

And you don't necessarily need bona-fide stars to win the Cup, even today. (It certainly helps, but it's not the end all be all). Look at the Carolina/Edmonton finals series in 2006. Not too many superstars on those teams. At most maybe Pronger and Stahl count, but that's about all I can think of off the top of my head. Or you can look at Washington that has arguably the most superstar laden team in the league, yet playoff success, for the most part, has alluded them.

It's not a one-sized fits all approach that translates into success. The most you can say is that it's really more about balance than anything else. That's why the good GMs are the ones that can accurately assess where a team needs to improve from season to season and getting the right personnel for the job (add into the equation good cap management and drafting). Since the lockout, I think Lou has done fairly well on the first part, but has been at best below average on the second part (see, Rolston, Malakhov, Mogilny, Zubrus, Leamire). Whether it was Lou or Vanderbeek, or a combination of the two, I think the team will have righted the ship this year.

Edited July 23, 2010 by Daniel

[SatansDevils]

Does anyone know if there's any way to download videos from NJDTV? I'd really like to get that 'Kovalchuk returns' video.

If this helps here is the link and maybe download the link to a Youtube account.

Kovy Returns....

http://devils.nhl.tv/team/console.jsp?catid=745&id=74033

[3Rings4NJ]

Just posting this because out of all the cheesy PR photos they took after the presser, this one's my favorite.

I still get a total broner seeing this pic

[SatansDevils]

Not sure if this was posted already.

NHL may not have a leg to stand on.

http://www.nationalpost.com/todays-paper/have+stand/3311943/story.html#ixzz0uWyo7gTr

The collective bargaining agreement between the NHL and NHLPA is a 452-page document that covers off everything from the salary cap and standard player contracts to whether teams should pay moving expenses for traded players.

It is quite massive. And, at first glance, it seems to have ...thought of everything.

Well, almost everything.

On Tuesday, the league rejected a 17-year contract worth US$102-million between Ilya Kovalchuk and the New Jersey Devils on the grounds that it circumvented the CBA. The contract, which expires when Kovalchuk will be 44 years old, is reportedly contentious because the salary dramatically drops to US$550,000 in each of the final five years.

But several player agents said if the matter goes before an arbitrator, the league would soon find out that it "doesn't have much of a leg to stand on."

"I can tell you that during bargaining, that the league was not successful in negotiating rules to limit the length of contract a player can sign with a club," said player agent Ian Pulver, who was one of the authors of the CBA. "So the NHL is going to have to show evidence that the club and the player were trying to defeat rules in the collective agreement, because they can't certainly prove that a player will not play when he's 44 years old.

"You have to have the evidence to support that. Saying 'we think' is not strong enough."

Indeed, there is nothing in the language of the CBA that limits the number of years on a player contract. Neither is there any proof that Kovalchuk will not be playing in 2026-27.

I hope the NHLPA, Kovy and Jay Grossman nail the NHL and Bettman to a wall when they win this case. The NHL and Bettman made a big mistake to use Lou and the Devils as an example IMO.

[Neb00rs]

And you don't necessarily need bona-fide stars to win the Cup, even today. (It certainly helps, but it's not the end all be all). Look at the Carolina/Edmonton finals series in 2006. Not too many superstars on those teams. At most maybe Pronger and Stahl count, but that's about all I can think of off the top of my head.

Of course, pick any other finals in the last 7 years besides that one and your point doesn't work.

[TheMazz]

Any bets that this reaches Sept?