bombsquad2004

Haha, Triumph sarcastically trying to sound pessimistic just doesn't seem right...

Agreed. While Forsberg isn't coming here, it was a nice little daydream to have. But yeah, LL should definitely try to make a move for a quality D-man. If the price is too high then it might not be worth it, but even a solid, stay-at-home D-man could make our D look more formidable. I'd rather go into the playoffs with just 1 shaky pairing of the Mottau-White-Fraser-Salmela combo, than both of the combo pairings looking vulnerable. A Brad Lukowich/Richard Matvichuk type D-man could do us a lotta good as we move ahead...just hoping that Marty will play lights out the rest of the way is leaving way too much to chance.

Just wondering if anybody has any insight on what Peter Forsberg's status is these days? Is he playing actively, or is he a potential mercenary-for-hire? I know this is wishful thinking, but just the thought of Forsberg dishing the puck to Kovalchuk or Elias is pretty salivating... What's your opinion?

+1

How can we get Arnott back? Of course I think we've been saying that for the last 7 years!

I'm guessing this has already been discussed, but is there absolutely NO chance that we can bring Jason Arnott back? Parise-Zajac-Langs Elias-Arnott-Rolston Pando-Zubrus-Clarkson Rupp/Leblond-Pelley-Halishuck Bergfors, Vrana Or if we can get rid of either Zubrus, Rolston, or Pando --> insert Bergfors and tweak the lines. Maybe slot Bergfor's on Arnott's wing, and drop Rolston to Pando's spot (if Pando can be excised). I guess salary cap issues would make this difficult, but you never know, that Elias-Arnott reunion (minus Suckora) sounds prettee good.

Filppula is skilled and versatile, and I can totally envision him in a Devils uniform. Young, smart, plays well on and off the puck. But who on our roster would the Red Wings be interested in (that we consider trade-able)? Dumping Pandolfo is not happening, and neither is Zubrus going anywhere. Maybe a Dman or package of prospects? But do we really wanna part with prospects for a guy whose NOT a topnotch sniper or shutdown Dman? I'm guessing not. Nice suggestion though on Filppula - I'm on board for the right price.

Triumph: though I completely agree with your asessment that Pandolfo's salary is expendable, amongst the other 29 teams in the league would there be any legitimate takers for Jay Pandolfo at his current salary cost and playing abilities? I just don't see how Jay can be moved elsewhere unless he's packaged as part of a bigger deal, and even then that is highly doubtful...chances are LL will have to keep him here or if his fade continues, eat up his cap hit. With us, Jay still provided/provides value because of his 1-2 combo with Madden over the years and our insistense on a shutdown checking line which is part of our defense-oriented system. However, with another team, Jay's role will clearly be significantly less than what it is here with the Devils. So if we then assume that we are unable to ship him off and need to hold on to Jay, and with Madden possibly leaving town and Zubrus hopefully NOT just being a checker per se, Jay's already diminishing value is going to take a knockout blow. What value will Robin add to the team if Batman disappears into the night... Just a thought. Looking forward to the rest of your analysis and proposed plan...

Yeah, that is what I've been feeling. But I understand if ppl gotta let it out and vent, better now than never. Maybe it was that they didn't have enough heart, but then again, this team made it through this ridiculously difficult season because of 'heart' more than anything... I think its the team's 'ability' that we have overestimated over and over again: let's face it, we're a 1.5 line team. Parise-Zajac-Langenbrunner: that's our line, and I'm confident they're gonna be as filthy next year Elias-Zubrus-Gionta: if this line is on, it can do damage. But I don't think I wanna risk it on whether Zubrus can get it going Shanahan-Madden-Pandolfo: with all due respect to Shanny's 600+, do we really expect much here offensively? Clarkson-Rupp/Holik-Rolston: if Rolston can get his game going, then we've got options. If Holik played this whole series and I were Sutter, I'd say: "you only have 1 job: Keep runnin' at Staal, break him down, get him off his game."

If we don't show a sense of urgency in Game 7 Tuesday night, I'm not sure this team is all that its been made out to be. We gotta play hard and we gotta play smart = hopefully nothing like tonight's effort. Special mention #1 to Brian Gionta as someone mentioned in an earlier post, he's playing his heart out. I see him running all over the ice and taking advantage of his speed...if Elias were healthy, that'd be a sickk 1-2 combo. Special mention #2 to Brendan Shanahan. I know he has to bury his chances, but for whatever he lacks in youth, he makes up for his awesome hockey sense and instincts. He's been making that 3rd line look alive...creating something from almost nothing. Keep the faith.

http://njmg.typepad.com/devilsblog/ Not to harp on Game 4, but in the blog Jay Pandolfo has a quote which says "'It doesn't matter. I've got to block that. It doesn't matter how. I've got to find a way to block it." Now, the reason we lost the game was definitely not Jay Pandolfo's fault, but his statement just pisses me off. I don't see how we can get any closure from him admitting that he could've blocked the shot. And though he's been playing well lately, I think his words just agitate me even more. He sounds pretty dumb and I'm cringing at the thought of him being on the ice in a critical situation from here on out. Here's to hoping that Jay redeems himself...

Amen to that. Gotta find that balance to play smart, aggressive, disciplined Devils hockey...I sense Marty's gonna be Marty in our building.

Yeah boy, I was just thinking that. Whoever doesn't believe at this point needs to just get lost... Have some faith.

I know I'm speaking from hindsight... but if the man defending the point shot from Seidenberg had just gotten to the ice and blocked the shot, "Marty Party" could've been avoided. Regardless, the refs missed that one: they better cut us a break or two next game. And oh yeah, if the Devils showed as much heart to come back down from 3-0 and lackluster play as they did tonight, then lets just imagine how badly they will UNLEASH HELL Thursday night. Brodeur's gonna be pumped up and he's gonna be straight-up fire. I'm ready to watch them burn this bitch down...

I would suggest Joshua Tree in Brookline, right off the BU campus. They have a good 5-6 mega screens there and they play all sports. At 7:30 or so, I'm sure u can request them to play the Devils game if they have it on, which they should. Its an option as long as u don't mind the hordes of Red Sox/Celtics knucklehead fans...