101 replies to this topic

[Jerrydevil]

Look, did he cost us or not? He did. Was it stupid? Yes.

Forgive me for not reaching for the olive branch yet.

[Allthegoodnamesweretaken]

The entire 4th line should be brought back. They played well and I'm not gonna kill the guy for bad officiating.

[third man in]

I'm okay with that being 5...not okay with them ignoring Stoll's hit on Gio though.

The thing is..how do we let their garbage PP score 3 goals against us during that 5 min span!?

[nessus]

Surprised he didn't win the Conn Smythe after his effort tonight.

In all seriousness though, I don't think the play was as dumb as everyone made it seem. Bernier didn't mean for it to be dangerous. I can forgive the guy, I feel for him I guess. I wouldn't be opposed to seeing him back there. Who knows if the Devils would have been past the Florida series without him.

[SterioDesign]

mmm scuderi turned his back right before the hit... i don't get why people would sh!t on Bernier really

[msweet]

mmm scuderi turned his back right before the hit... i don't get why people would sh!t on Bernier really

[Zubie#8]

Feel bad for the guy, I really do.

[CarpathianForest]

Steve Smith scored in his own net and the Oilers didn't make it to the SCF. The next year Gretzky handed Smith the Stanley Cup first.
Steve Bernier made a mistake that cost three goals that cost us the Stanley Cup. Next year Parise will hand the Stanley Cup to Steve Bernier first.

[ThreeCups]

Steve Smith scored in his own net and the Oilers didn't make it to the SCF. The next year Gretzky handed Smith the Stanley Cup first.
Steve Bernier made a mistake that cost three goals that cost us the Stanley Cup. Next year Parise will hand the Stanley Cup to Steve Bernier first.

And the drunkest person on the board award goes to....Carpathian!!!

[StarDew]

How come no one is pissed at the PK? They didn't help either. I expected the Kings to get 1 on the major but 3? I give some fault to the PK failure.

[DaneykoIsGod]

Refs changed the course of the game by missing the call on Stoll. That said, one of the staples of this Devils postseason has been staying cool and not retaliating. Bernier looked like he was retaliating.

It cost us the game, and a chance at the Cup. Combined with his ridiculous dive on the non-highstick in the Rangers series, he's embarassed the crest on his chest twice in these playoffs.

Thanks for being part of the most memorable 4th line since the Crash Line, but don't let the door hit ya where the good Lord split ya.

[Devilsfan118]

The PK was a conundrum. The best PK in the regular season, to just awful in the playoffs.

As a coach, how do you fix that?

[Jerrydevil]

mmm scuderi turned his back right before the hit... i don't get why people would sh!t on Bernier really

Yeah, Scuderi really sold it ... just like Bernier sold that high stick in the Ranger series?

[NJDevs4978]

The PK was at fault on two, Marty was at fault on one. I'm annoyed at the PK for its bad play the whole playoffs but whatever.

As far as Bernier, at first I was of the mindset of well he can't come back, it's a Tom Glavine-type situation but really, if we're going to say it shouldn't have been a five, then we can't then rag on him for taking a five and say he cost us the series. Besides, he feels bad, this team got as far as it did by standing by each other so we might as well stand by all of them now. Not nineteen out of twenty, all twenty.

Let Bernier come back and have a chance to redeem himself. This is hockey, it's more forgiving than baseball.

Refs changed the course of the game by missing the call on Stoll. That said, one of the staples of this Devils postseason has been staying cool and not retaliating. Bernier looked like he was retaliating.

It cost us the game, and a chance at the Cup. Combined with his ridiculous dive on the non-highstick in the Rangers series, he's embarassed the crest on his chest twice in these playoffs.

Thanks for being part of the most memorable 4th line since the Crash Line, but don't let the door hit ya where the good Lord split ya.

Bernier claimed he didn't even see the Gionta hit so it wasn't a retaliation situation.

[CaptainRafalski]

mmm scuderi turned his back right before the hit... i don't get why people would sh!t on Bernier really

Yeah I don't get it either. If you watch the tape Bernier is already in his checking position when Scuderi starts to turn. Also, this "the puck wasn't there" is nonsense for two reasons.

1. The puck departs right before Scuderi is hit.

2. I have seen countless times when a player passes the puck and is checked long after and the response is "way to finish the check."

Quit the Bernier bashing already.

Had the first penalty been called on Gionta this whole sequence of events wouldn't have happened.

[NJDevs4978]

Yeah, Scuderi really sold it ... just like Bernier sold that high stick in the Ranger series?

I'm not going there, I'm really not. Bernier wasn't trying to sell a call, it was a natural reaction when the stick is inches from your eyes.

[StarDew]

The PK was at fault on two, Marty was at fault on one. I'm annoyed at the PK for its bad play the whole playoffs but whatever.

As far as Bernier, at first I was of the mindset of well he can't come back, it's a Tom Glavine-type situation but really, if we're going to say it shouldn't have been a five, then we can't then rag on him for taking a five and say he cost us the series. Besides, he feels bad, this team got as far as it did by standing by each other so we might as well stand by all of them now. Not nineteen out of twenty, all twenty.

Let Bernier come back and have a chance to redeem himself. This is hockey, it's more forgiving than baseball.

Bernier claimed he didn't even see the Gionta hit so it wasn't a retaliation situation.

^^^This^^^

[Beck27]

Refs changed the course of the game by missing the call on Stoll. That said, one of the staples of this Devils postseason has been staying cool and not retaliating. Bernier looked like he was retaliating.

It cost us the game, and a chance at the Cup. Combined with his ridiculous dive on the non-highstick in the Rangers series, he's embarassed the crest on his chest twice in these playoffs.

Thanks for being part of the most memorable 4th line since the Crash Line, but don't let the door hit ya where the good Lord split ya.

Again...that stick did clip him. It was a penalty. Correct call.

[CarpathianForest]

And the drunkest person on the board award goes to....Carpathian!!!

Um, I don't drink. I'm as sober as the day is long.

After Steve Smith scored in his own net in the Conference Final I'm sure fans were calling for his head. I advise you watch the footage because it is brutal. I believe it even happened on Oiler ice. Steve Smith is openely crying on the bench and to add to the pain it was his birthday.
However, the team didn't turn their backs on him and he wasn't traded or dumped off somewhere.
As a matter of fact, the next year when the Oilers won the cup, Gretzky handed the trophy off to Smith first which, imo, is not only a character move, but also a true sign of sportsmanship.

3Cups, did you see the Devils playoffs opening montage on the scoreboard with the Patton quote. Every man is a vital link in the chain, they eat, sleep and fight as a team. To purely blame this all on Steve Bernier is not only dumb, it's just not what true sportsmanship is about. The Devils could have weathered the 5 minutes better, but they fell apart during the 5 minutes. That is not on Steve Bernier.
If anything this season proved is that you win as a team and you lose as a team. I say re-sign Bernier and allow him to redeem himself.

['7']

Lou loves 1st round flameout reclamation projects. Bernier fits the bill, big, strong...decent skillset. Had some success at the NHL level. He could be like a mix of Rupp and McKay. We should keep him around

want Rod Pelley back on the 4th line? How about Tim Sestito?

Edited by '7', 11 June 2012 - 10:51 PM.