Chuck the Duck

Good deal. He can play the middle six and is versatile on the wing and at C. When he plays with Jack, he can take the FO's since Jack can win any of them. Good veteran leadership that was well liked in the room. I am happy they brought him back.

Bratt had a terrible playoffs, regardless of what the fancy stats may say. Its bad enough that he didn't put up points, but he was invisible for large stretches, got pushed off the puck constantly, and refused to get in shot lanes to block point shots a number of times in both series. That doesn't make him a bad player, it just means he had a bad month. But for a guy who wants to get paid more than Hughes, he just played himself out of anything close to that deal IMO. I don't think it will come to this, but if we have to choose between him and Meier for cap reasons, I take Meier 10 out of 10 times and trade Bratt.

Have to go back to Schmid for game 5. VV is cooked and is exactly what I was afraid of when we got him from Washington ... a descent regular season goalie the won't make the big stop or put the team on his back for a playoff run. Schmid is young and talented, so I'm hoping he is the answer in the future. It's a major question mark and could be something that is an achilles heel for this franchise the next few years. This team, like all other teams, will only go as far as it's goaltending will take it. You don't need Brodeur, Roy or Hasek in net to win a cup, but you need better than what we have seen in this series. We were spoiled with the consistency Marty largely provided during his time here. He was the cornerstone of those championship teams. Hopefully Schmid can become that for this version of the squad.

It is so much fun being at these games in a (relatively) full building. The energy from the crowd has been great from November on this season.

Stevens had 18 and 17, but never reached 20 with the Devils. He had 21 for the Caps in 1984-85. I thought Kurvers might have had 20, but his high was 16

Shows how much we took for granted when Marty was on this team. Not only was he a top netminder, but the guy almost never got injured and played 70 games a season. Blackwood has the tools to be a top 10 goalie in this league, but he can't stay healthy. Hopefully this injury is minor and he's out only a month.

Send Bernier to Utica for a conditioning assignment and try to showcase him for a trade at 50% retained down there. If no takers, put Bernier through waivers. If he's claimed, then good for him and it gets his salary off the books. If he is not claimed (which he won't be with that cap hit), then he's a really good insurance policy in Utica for the rest of the season. Owners will not like paying him $4.6 million to be an AHL G, and he will take time away from Daws and Schmid which is not ideal, but you really don't have much other choice. No point in releasing him and having a dead cap hit for the next 2 seasons from doing it IMO.

Totally makes sense to have Holtz on the 4th line playing 6 mins a game rather than in Utica where he is on the first line, getting PP1 time, and getting 18 minutes a night. If he isn't playing top 6, he should not be playing in the NHL. Let him develop in the minors and have Zetterlund play RW on that line.

Score more than the other team - for once Let's Go Devils!!!

I don't boo the team/players, and don't participate in chants for anyone to be fired. I get why some fans do it, but I don't believe in it personally. But we all are just sick of the losing and the play with no sense of urgency whatsoever. You can't win a Stanley Cup in October/November, but you surely can play you way out of contention for it in those months. Through 2 games, this team looks like an extension of the past few seasons which is bitterly disappointing. Hopefully they can turn it around with a good performance tonight.

I used the word might in a half-joking post meant to be overly dramatic. So you should relax yourself and not taking everything at face value. And honestly, I can't remember a start to a season where this much negativity ran throughout the fanbase right from the jump, where the head coach was booed during intros on opening night, and had chants to fire him ring out throughout the game. That is usually reserved for 5 games in. The loss to Winnipeg a few years ago was worse in that it was simply soul crushing, but to come out the way the Devils have these first 2 games, looking utterly listless in losing to a Flyers team (without Couturier) that is supposed to be in the Bedard sweepstakes, then a mediocre Red Wings team on a 2nd half of a back to back while we are playing in front of a full, energetic crowd in our home opener is pathetic. Can't wait to see how they play tonight in front of 32 of their closest family and friends. Maybe our goalies can come out and give up less goals than the other teams tender for once.

Reason 1087 why advanced stats are meaningless. Apparently the Red Wings and Flyers are getting caved in while starting the season undefeated and kicking our asses in the process while we are showing 2-way dominance and demanding that the coach be fired in what might be the worst start in franchise history. Makes tons of sense.

With Nico out, he likely will be as Mercer will probably shift to C on one of the lines. At least that is what I would do.

It wouldn't be as bad if they forced the broadcasters of the games to keep the ads static until there was a stoppage in play. For an ad to change as players are skating up ice is going to be incredibly annoying. The number 1 ad purchasers along the digitals board will be sports betting companies. They will have live odds and different prop bets constantly updating on that thing, kind of like they currently do with the boards around the fields in European soccer.

I've always been of the opinion that the franchise should stay in that city and just become defunct or dormant, regardless of where it is moved to. For example, the Scouts and their history should stay in KC, the Rockies should stay in Colorado, and none of that history should be transferred to NJ when the team was moved here. 99% of fans here in NJ do not care (or even know) about the teams fielded when the club played in KC and Denver. In the case of teams like Winnipeg or the Cleveland Browns where the team returns years later, the history and records attaches to that new team. Just my 2 cents