Colorado Rockies 1976

Funny, I associate Iafrate with the Leafs more than any other team that he played for. In ways to me he'll always be a "could have been"...he had tremendous skills, but never seemed to put up numbers worthy of those skills. In the year he was dealt from the Leafs to the Caps (the 1990-91 season), he put up an insane amount of penalty minutes...237 of them in just 72 GP. Can't help but wonder how much of that was due to that very sticky off-ice situation (Leafs teammate Gary Leeman dating his estranged wife, which is said to have torn that already far-from-harmonic team completely apart)...almost like he was taking his anger out on just about everyone during games. He never came close to having that many penalty minutes in any of his other seasons.

Feels like typical Mets penny-pinching. Oh well. At least if he fails, BVW should go with him.

Oh I'm just as cranky as you are...I understand why they're in limbo right now (canning the coach and then canning the GM who canned the coach will do that), but that doesn't mean I like it. That being said, I'm enjoying this Devils "vacation" way too much...as much as I like certain players on this team (Nico, Palms, Coleman, and Blackwood...also Hughes, who's got the goods, just needs time), the team as a whole is beyond maddening. I know I'll be going to more games because it's something that me and my daughter have very much made our own. I'll be enjoying daddy time with HER. Who the hell knows about the games themselves...

All the more reason not to make any rash decisions intended to placate the masses. The season is over. Yeah, things feel a little chaotic right now and like I said, I'm not championing Nas by any means, but I'd rather the Devils take a step back for the moment.

We don't even know if Fitz has the backing to make that kind of a call. He's interim only. Devils could have a new GM this summer, and if that's the case, does it make sense to saddle that GM with a coach that he may not really want? GMs usually take the job with the understanding that they're going to get to pick their guys. I can't say status-quo (Nas is absolutely that in my eyes) thrills me either, and the next few months are pretty much going to suck, but I'd rather this gets done correctly...go get your GM, then let that GM hire his coach...no guarantees of course, but I don't want anything done back-asswards. There's obviously well-known names out there that no one is jumping on at the moment...I 100% don't believe that Nas is the answer in the slightest and I'm definitely on board with him being replaced, but unless the Devils are prepared to commit to a GM in-season (be it Fitz or someone else), there probably isn't much of a point in hiring a HC at the moment....especially since there's no miracle run coming, and chances are the Devils will be finishing last in the Metro no matter who's coaching them from here on out.

I agree that it's complicated as hell. Especially with proof from player to player being very hard to find...that's why I think if people really want something with more teeth, it's probably going to have to be lifetime bans...the only exception being if a GM and/or manager discover something like this is going and immediately reports it to MLB. But then of course you're relying on some kind of "honor code", where someone could pretend not to know anything for a while before he finally says something to MLB (though there's probably people that could come forward and say "Bullsh!t, this guy knew well before he reported it, here's proof!). And yeah, you do wonder how much less would've been found out without the immunity. You also wonder how many people share Jessica Mendoza's take on Fiers...I'm guessing more than just a few people are thinking "What a little narc, how come he wasn't saying anything while it was going on?" Of course those who feel that way aren't going to dumb enough to put themselves out there (especially after Mendoza's been shredded), and to be clear, that is a pretty poor take on this whole thing.

He did have that nice run to close out last year, but yeah, whatever currency he might have earned from that, it's all spent. He really is that guy who once threw strikes with ease and now can't find the plate to save his life. Just leave him in Bingo.

So I had to look this up...the Devils have now lost nine straight to the BJs (they did manage to notch a point, in a SO loss), and have been outscored 33-9 in those nine games...only six goals scored total in the last eight games. Unreal.

You still aren't answering my question. What more do you want to see from MLB, as far as penalties go? Player fines/suspensions for those proven to have been involved? Lifetime bans for managers, GM, and team presidents who not only see this happen on their watch, but are proven to have known about it? I saw a poll that shows that 72% of the participants do indeed think that MLB needed to go further in punishing the Astros, so at this point I'm not really disputing that more couldn't have been done. I'm simply wondering what more COULD be done. I guess if MLB really wanted to go full scorched-Earth (and see not just the Astros but the teams that employ former Astros also pay a price), they could try to suspend the entire 2019 team for one full season...but that would become so complicated that I doubt such a penalty could ever actually be doled out...not to mention the players would file grievances galore I'm sure (especially the pitchers...the entire Houston staff combined for 21 plate appearances in 2019 and managed one base hit...not like THEY really benefitted from knowing what pitches were coming). What will be interesting will be how long it will be before anyone who lost their job due to the fallout is given another chance within the game. Will these guys effectively be blackballed?

So much this. I bought my daughter the entire Harry Potter film collection for Xmas (none of us have seen any of them yet), so we started watching them tonight. Checked the score and saw the Devils losing 1-0. Checked not too long later and saw 4-0 and Cory having been pulled. Sadly that was pretty much exactly what I expected. As much I get that the season couldn’t possibly be more over and it doesn’t matter how rotten Cory is in 2020...could the Devils just stop trying to make him happen please? PLEASE?!

4978 just made a couple of good points, but again, what more did you want to see from MLB beyond the punishments meted?

Manager and GM were suspended (then canned), franchise was docked first and second round picks for 2 straight years and fined $5 million (max allowed). What more could have been done? Even more picks taken away? WS victory vacated? Team forcibly broken up? (Obviously not much chance of the latter two happening.) I think it's a pretty big deal when your front office and your manager are exiled. And the new GM will be handcuffed a bit.

Assuming he stays healthy and doesn't get scratched, he'll also have played 279 games by the end of this season (technically his 4th full). Just don't think possibly having 111 career points at age 22 due to having played well over three seasons' worth of games is really some major deal. How many Devils forwards in their history have had a similarly heavy workload so early on? Elias had 166 GP and 92 points by the end of his age 22 season...but because this isn't an apples-to-apples comparison (he didn't play nearly as many games as Zacha had to that point in his career), he doesn't wind up on your "list". BTW Scott Gomez, just before his 23rd birthday, had put up 146 points in 192 GP. Why is he not even mentioned along with Nico on your "list"? Devils were obviously a much better TEAM when those two were playing, but the 111 points thing the way you're presenting it just doesn't work. It's fine if you're looking for ways to puff up Zacha; I just don't think "Points Before Age 22 On This Flawed List" is the best way to go about it. EDIT: to be fair, you did say CURRENT Devils, so that's fully on me that I missed that. But I still think you're making too big of a deal out of a stat mostly built up from a rather large sample of games played for a player Zacha's age.

I think they should try to re-sign him. Plenty of cap room to do it, and they have through the end of next season to get it done (though it would be nice to see him extended this off-season). Yeah, if he has no interest in staying, then deal him.

My post was more of a joke than anything else. I didn't post a single "roasting" word, really. You're looking at a guy who bought his McMullen Night GW this past offseason, as a leap of faith. Definitely wasn't done out of hatred. But yes, I'm just tired of waiting for him to show real signs of progress. Yeah, he's one of the guys I'm frustrated with. And yeah, I'm hoping that the Devils find a way to package him with something else this offseason, because there's some players I'd just like to see moved out of here. I agree in that he was drafted where he was drafted and I'm past pointing out all of the players the Devils could've had instead. But given that he's not making THAT much and will have one year left on his deal and is still relatively youth, I won't be surprised if he gets a "one last time" look to start next year. But I'm ready to move on.

https://www.nj.com/devils/2020/01/devils-odds-and-ends-does-pavel-zacha-prefer-center-or-left-wing-cory-schneider-on-new-prospects.html What Pavel said: “Still preference for me would be center, just because I’m played my whole life and I kind of know where to be a little bit. It just depends," Zacha told NJ Advance Media. "You get a little more chance to play, a little more ice time with the players you play with. At this point this year I’ve played half and half almost. But if I could choose, center is where I feel most comfortable.” What it looks like to me: "Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah ALMOST blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah"

Yeah very good point.

Perfect response, though based on how other PLAYERS are reacting in light of the Altuve "Oh man don't tell me he actually did THAT?!" mess, it sounds like they want to see their peers busted too. And with Altuve specifically, even if MLB claims that it couldn't find any satisfactory evidence to support his alleged use of an electronic buzzer, it sure sounds like he's going to be wearing the scarlet letter, as far as other teams and their players are concerned...quite possibly permanently. The message has effectively been sent to FRANCHISES too...docked picks, hefty fines. Not like Hinch and Luhnow were the only ones who had to pay. https://www.ocregister.com/2020/01/16/dodgers-cody-bellinger-alex-wood-speak-out-on-astros-cheating-scandal/ And other players have broken the supposed "gag order" to chime in as well.

Also remember that at the time Coleman was signed, he had all of 102 NHL games and 27 points under his belt...and was already 26 years old. Shero doesn’t deserve to get second-guessed over Coleman’s contract. It was extremely fair.

It was a 3-year deal. He goes UFA after next season. Also, Coleman signed his RFA deal coming off a season where he put up 13 goals and 12 assists. No one saw him becoming this productive. Major credit to him.

I didn’t say this loss was tough to swallow...I kinda expected it. Just that in a rough season that will likely go back to being rough, that run was a nice breath of fresh air.

That 8-4-2 “burst” was fun while it lasted. Back to reality.

Another loser.

Fixed for accuracy Yeah you’re right. Been a much different player since Elias the Goose Whisperer did his thing.