GAME THREAD: Penguins @ DEVILS 7:30pm FSNY

[njdevils_info]

I went to the game tonight. It was awesome

I'll be back around here soon. Sorry I've been gone for so long. Did I miss anything new and exciting?

I hope everyone is well.

Did Brodeur just become amazing during the off-season or am I just not used to seeing him be great on a regular basis? Damn lockout made me feel like I've been without hockey for too long!

[Elias26]

Kozlov played well!!!???

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I though Kozlov played great.

Edited October 6, 2005 by Elias26

[El Diablo]

I found it funny that the refs gathered around center ice before the puck dropped and gave each other HI -5's and even slapped their butts...

[mddevsfan]

I found it funny that the refs gathered around center ice before the puck dropped and gave each other HI -5's and even slapped their butts...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[devils744]

not really sure why i'm asking this but why does section 217 hate section 218? all night long these people were going back and forth about stealing each others slogans etc.. people were getting really angry too.

[rbdf]

Wow, marty is "DA MAN"

Marty was stellar for those opening 4 penalty kills - snuffed the life out of Pitt - left you saying "Scott who? He went where?" If there was any doubt in anyones' mind who the top goalie in the league is, marty once again squashed it.

Paul Martin made about 4 saves during those kills also - he also had some great power play time - give this kid 2 more years of maturing and getting coached by all time montreal greats and we'll soon forget Scott Neidermayer

Gionta, who i've beaten up in the past, seems to be the biggest (pun intended) beneficiary of the new rules - keep it up little G and you'll make me a fan before christmas.

Parise - ok, the kid is the real deal - should score north of 20 goals this year - just seems to have a nose for the loose stuff around the net, always in the right spot - hockey sense, something you can't teach (jeff freisen)

Almo and Gomez will turn heads and drive teams nuts, but that's expected

Ralfi seemed a bit out of sorts last night, but he'll pick it back up

Yeah, I still don't think we need to keep all of rasmussen, rheaume, oliwa, langdon and marshal - but ras and pascal would be my two keepers from the lot

Maddog - awsome, as always.

Brylin - once again showing why he's an mvp to this team, even if he'll never get credited as such.

Pando - hands of stone, but i wouldn't trade him - he'll still be one of the best defensive forwards in the league, regardless of the new rules.

Langs - had better adjust to the new rules quickly - the frustration was pretty evident last night

Malakov - ok, i don't think he's worth the money he's paid, but so long as larry keeps the guy motivated, he's top 3 on the d-roster

Matvichuk - didn't impress, but didn't tick me off either - i'd keep him as a number 4 or 5 guy

McGillis was awful - too many people skate right past him, he couldn't take a pass or keep the puck in the zone on the power play - arrgghhh! drove me nuts - hopefully he picks his play up enough that he can be traded when elias is ready to return

Kozlov - will this f#$@er ever shoot the f@$#$ing puck - AARRGGHH!! - it was like he was single handedly out to destroy scoring opportunities - so much skill there, but please, pull it together and do something with it - another one I hope picks up enough to be trade-able when Patty is ready.

Overall, what a night, what a game - so happy to see them back.

As for the OLN telecasts - HD was incredible - their studio is awful - 1970's looking with poor lighting, and you would think that three guys who have been in broadcasting and hockey for years could combine for at least one personality - my god were they awful - no excitement, no personality, bad ad-libbing - oln would be better off with a news guy reading off a teleprompter. Hopefully the start to right that studio show soon, because it really was pretty unwatchable.

Doc and Chico rule

[SueNJ97]

The cats & I gathered in our old hockey-watching positions (it's funny that they seem to know hockey from other stuff because it's the only thing they watch with me) and settled in for the evening last night.

Stuff:

1. Love the interplay between Mario & Maddog. They are so FOND of one another, aren't they?

2. My reception also went nuts during the 3rd period, so whoever else was having that problem, you weren't alone.

3. I am so po'd that I didn't put Brylin in my fantasy line-up last night, but yahoo only has him as a center, and I couldn't play him before the other 2 centers on the roster. Damn.

4. Crosby DID play well for an 18-year-old, Derek is correct. His debut showed him to be a more complete player at that age than, say, Joe Thornton was (not surprising, Joe is a power forward, they are notoriously slower to fully develop). But they showed a close-up of him after Marty stoned him once and he's already developing Mario-itis - he whines. Must come from living with Lemieux.

5. I don't mind the penalty calling, I really don't. If they made the rule changes they have to call them. But they have to start calling diving as well and that means on both sides (because Madden took a beautiful swan dive once, and there were a few things that were obvious dives on the Pens side). I was confused as to why Parise wound up in the box for interference when he was shoved into the goalie. That isn't supposed to happen, and he was so close at that point he couldn't have stopped himself from going in. But that was a mistake that an official might have made in any year - it is just amplified in this season because there are so many penalty calls.

6. I was also confused by one call on Gionta when it literally looked like two players who weren't looking bumped into each other on the ice and they called interference on Gionta. That is odd. So if you don't look where you are going and you bump into a guy who doesn't have the puck you can be called for interference? And how do you decide which one of the players gets the penalty when neither one is looking? Because when they called it NJ had the puck. That one requires some explaination because it would penalize routine contact on a crowded rink. I thought they weren't trying to do that.

7. If anyone calls Marty overrated after this they should just crawl back into whatever cave they came out of and stay there. Damn, he was great. I did the "We are not worthy" bow and made each of the cats do it as well. They were not thrilled. Cats don't like to bow to anyone.

8. Larry did whine a bit about the penalty calling in his press conference and although some of it may have been a bit unfair - meaning they let some of the Pens stuff go, especially the stickwork& diving and called everything on NJ, including a few things that didn't make much sense, the vast majority of the things they called WERE penalties. NJ has to adjust.

9. Got a chance to see some of the Isles/Sabres game last night - LOTCB, the Sabres looked good.

[HellOnICE]

Well I disagree, i thought Matvichuk was great. Paired with Raf, played so well and so unnoticed. Which is good. Played solid defensively. Blocked a few shots. Great pick up.

Malakov scares me. I just hope he's motivated.

McGillis wasn't that bad. Wasn't that good. For a number 6 defenseman, he's ok. We'll see how it goes. I don't see him here so much long term, maybe that's me.

yea Kozlov was frustrating. At times he was good, at time he was blah. I mean come on. I don't want him traded. I think he could be beneficial to us. I hope the coaching staff can work with him and his linemates can push him too.

[SueNJ97]

Malakov scares me. I just hope he's motivated.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Isn't that always the problem?

[CRASHER]

not really sure why i'm asking this but why does section 217 hate section 218? all night long these people were going back and forth about stealing each others slogans etc.. people were getting really angry too.

that's really sad to hear.... they're one of the best sections of fans in the league and it would suck most royllay if they all stopped being what they were....

[LizDevil30]

McGillis was awful - too many people skate right past him, he couldn't take a pass or keep the puck in the zone on the power play - arrgghhh!  drove me nuts  - hopefully he picks his play up enough that he can be traded when elias is ready to return

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Agree, get rid of this guy ASAP!

[msweet]

Wow, marty is "DA MAN"

He had 2 saves in that game last night that other goalies wait their entire career for.

Marty was stellar for those opening 4 penalty kills - snuffed the life out of Pitt - left you saying "Scott who? He went where?" If there was any doubt in anyones' mind who the top goalie in the league is, marty once again squashed it.

I was feeling so good for Marty, since if he had a bad night the writers would have trashed his entire career saying he was the not that good an donly the benfactor of the 2 Scotts

Paul Martin made about 4 saves during those kills also - he also had some great power play time - give this kid 2 more years of maturing and getting coached by all time montreal greats and we'll soon forget Scott Neidermayer

I was thinking the same thing.... add a little strngth and a bit of speed and we have another superstar

Gionta, who i've beaten up in the past, seems to be the biggest (pun intended) beneficiary of the new rules - keep it up little G and you'll make me a fan before christmas.

I said the samething ot my wife last night... and add Brylin to that statement too... that can't whack him anymore.

Parise - ok, the kid is the real deal - should score north of 20 goals this year - just seems to have a nose for the loose stuff around the net, always in the right spot - hockey sense, something you can't teach (jeff freisen)

It's called grit and brains... the last of which Friesen didn;t have.

Almo and Gomez will turn heads and drive teams nuts, but that's expected

IMHO Gomex will be our next superstar... he should be our Captain.

Ralfi seemed a bit out of sorts last night, but he'll pick it back up

Good to see 2 blazing wrist shots from the point from him... something he didn;t have last campaign... and it was great to see him go to the net on the rush.

Yeah, I still don't think we need to keep all of rasmussen, rheaume, oliwa, langdon and marshal - but ras and pascal would be my two keepers from the lot

I agree... but I'm not sur eof Marshall's use... and for G-d's sake does he have to play the pp?

Maddog - awsome, as always.

I thought he was off a bit. as was Langenbruner... who looked every bit like he hasn't played in 2 years.

Brylin - once again showing why he's an mvp to this team, even if he'll never get credited as such.

He'll get noticed this year if Almo stays healthy... look for him ot net 30 goals.

Pando - hands of stone, but i wouldn't trade him - he'll still be one of the best defensive forwards in the league, regardless of the new rules.

He's cheap and all heart... a lifer.

Langs - had better adjust to the new rules quickly - the frustration was pretty evident last night

He was griping a lot to the officials

Malakov - ok, i don't think he's worth the money he's paid, but so long as larry keeps the guy motivated, he's top 3 on the d-roster

Another guy loving the new rules... he was smiling out there... and he's a Russian. He looked like he belonged out there!

Matvichuk - didn't impress, but didn't tick me off either - i'd keep him as a number 4 or 5 guy

I watched him carefully.... he was terrific.... give him some time.. this guy is a real #2.

McGillis was awful - too many people skate right past him, he couldn't take a pass or keep the puck in the zone on the power play - arrgghhh! drove me nuts - hopefully he picks his play up enough that he can be traded when elias is ready to return

See my previous Matador post... he was awful at all times and should not be on the pp. The return of Richard Shmelick.

Kozlov - will this f#$@er ever shoot the f@$#$ing puck - AARRGGHH!! - it was like he was single handedly out to destroy scoring opportunities - so much skill there, but please, pull it together and do something with it - another one I hope picks up enough to be trade-able when Patty is ready.

I'm not done with Kozlov yet... he does control the puck.... let's give him some time to get his legs and senses. He may be a winner yet. He uses his size to keep players off the puck, but doesn;t engage in contact... he plays a lot like Mario except he doesn't score

Overall, what a night, what a game - so happy to see them back.

I've been to playoff games with less excitement... kudos to the Devils for making the experience there even better.

[CRASHER]

effing double post

Edited October 6, 2005 by CRASHER

[BlueSkirt]

6. I was also confused by one call on Gionta when it literally looked like two players who weren't looking bumped into each other on the ice and they called interference on Gionta. That is odd. So if you don't look where you are going and you bump into a guy who doesn't have the puck you can be called for interference? And how do you decide which one of the players gets the penalty when neither one is looking? Because when they called it NJ had the puck. That one requires some explaination because it would penalize routine contact on a crowded rink. I thought they weren't trying to do that.

Sue,

if that was the one early in the game, then the replay clearly showed Gionta made a conscious decision to pick the Pens player by using his shoulder to obstruct the non-puck-carrying player. I think that was the one called by McCreary from nearly center ice. It was definitely a penalty in my eyes. Sublte yes, and allowed in the former NHL, yes. But by the rule book, it was interference.

that's my .02

[SueNJ97]

6. I was also confused by one call on Gionta when it literally looked like two players who weren't looking bumped into each other on the ice and they called interference on Gionta. That is odd. So if you don't look where you are going and you bump into a guy who doesn't have the puck you can be called for interference? And how do you decide which one of the players gets the penalty when neither one is looking? Because when they called it NJ had the puck. That one requires some explaination because it would penalize routine contact on a crowded rink. I thought they weren't trying to do that.

Sue,

if that was the one early in the game, then the replay clearly showed Gionta made a conscious decision to pick the Pens player by using his shoulder to obstruct the non-puck-carrying player. I think that was the one called by McCreary from nearly center ice. It was definitely a penalty in my eyes. Sublte yes, and allowed in the former NHL, yes. But by the rule book, it was interference.

that's my .02

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I didn't see the shoulder movement on the replay, but since it was the only penalty he took, we have to be talking about the same one. It wasn't really early in the game, though, it was early in the second period, they were already up by two goals at the time. I must not have been looking at the shoulder movement, thanks for the explaination. I looked to see if he appeared to be looking at the player when it happened, and it didn't seem like either player was looking at the other. But that could be a false impression.

[rbdf]

speaking of mcreary, anyone else think he looks like ben stillers character in "dodge ball"???

gotta love the 70's porn 'stache

[El Diablo]

Was anyone else saying to themselves " Please dont let Crosby's first be againt Marty" ?

[Rock]

Was anyone else saying to themselves " Please dont let Crosby's first be againt Marty" ?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Towards the end I was yelling don't let him score.

[Nieuwy25]

Wow! 20 pages!?!?!?! I don't have time to read it through right now, but I just want to say YAY DEVS!!!! Must've been a great game!

I don't know how I'm gonna get through this season without Center Ice , but I'm afraid hubby would divorce me.

FYI - the Stars' opener was incredible. Such a fast pace, still a lot of hitting, but no clutching/grabbing. It was great!

[Joe B]

6. I was also confused by one call on Gionta when it literally looked like two players who weren't looking bumped into each other on the ice and they called interference on Gionta. That is odd. So if you don't look where you are going and you bump into a guy who doesn't have the puck you can be called for interference? And how do you decide which one of the players gets the penalty when neither one is looking? Because when they called it NJ had the puck. That one requires some explaination because it would penalize routine contact on a crowded rink. I thought they weren't trying to do that.

Sue,

if that was the one early in the game, then the replay clearly showed Gionta made a conscious decision to pick the Pens player by using his shoulder to obstruct the non-puck-carrying player. I think that was the one called by McCreary from nearly center ice. It was definitely a penalty in my eyes. Sublte yes, and allowed in the former NHL, yes. But by the rule book, it was interference.

that's my .02

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

while I agree that Gio's may have beena penalty, he just got obstructed going towards the net and ended up on the ice, thats why he stood up and wasn't moving, kinda shifted his shoulder into the path of the pen. If there is no tolarence, there is no tolerence and the pen should have been called prior to gio's pick.

As a whole, the pens tended to dive also and didn't get called.

First real game, I won't go nuts, yet.

[Devils731]

The Pens did seem to have looser restrictions than the Devils last night, although the Refs did miss one or two obvious calls on the Devils also. I'll chalk it up to subconscious Crosby/Mario hysterics. I'd still rather the refs be too tight than too loose at this juncture.

[Darwindog]

Langs had it tough because he couldn't see what the refs were seeing. It seemed totally weird to him. and I understand that... but the calls against him I understood... when calls weren't made when he felt like the tables were turned... it just wasn't quite so... I dont know how I saw it the same way as the refs but I did although at the begining of the thrid i erally felt like they just wantd to give teh Pens a chance to catch up. Mario was a freaking RIOT on the 5 on 3! Even I had to say "How the hell did that happen?" when they lost the puck and Mario was frozen just shaking his head -- raising his arms.. "WTF?" i think that's how the Devils just make him feel... just WTF? what*the*feck --- I feel for him but at least he sees - that's just the way it is dude

[Darwindog]

I had heart failure when Whitey shoved that guy down... then with no call I just sat quietly...

i think Langs needed the show of support from Larry, Sue... he's got to find himself out there and you knwo, few people operate well on negative feedback during those times. I dont know... I dont know....

[SueNJ97]

I had heart failure when Whitey shoved that guy down... then with no call I just sat quietly... 

i think Langs needed the show of support from Larry, Sue...  he's got to find himself out there and you knwo, few people operate well on negative feedback during those times.  I dont know... I dont know....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Maybe Jaime did need Larry to say that, although I didn't think it was just about his penalties, PK. I thought it was a general statement by Larry that he was displeased by the enforcement guidelines. But...if he felt that Jaime needed some support, then he did what he had to do. HOWEVER, if the refs are going to keep to this standard of enforcement all season then Jaine better find himself quickly. Larry needs to work with him and be as supportive as possible but get it straight with Jaime, because he's of NO USE in the box.

[langsgirl]

I dont feel like reading all this right now but i had a blast last night... and i loved the article in the daily record today..something old, new, borrowed and blue..\

and i love our team and hockey and Parise...