Colorado Rockies 1976

Def wasn’t pretty and a game the Devils could’ve easily lost, but some good moments in there too.

Yeah not Ty’s night.

Cangi’s kid! Or as Dano just called him...”Sweeney” (?!)

I get the “But it’s none of my business”, as far as Kovy’s latest issues go. But a frog drinking tea?! Yeah not making the connection there.

I had to look this sh!t up. Apparently, it indicates sarcasm and “But that’s none of my business” without having to make a meme. For real.

It’s either he makes the big club or goes to junior. He’s not eligible for Bingo. Ditto Boqvist...either he makes the Devils or goes back to Sweden. Not sure exactly why they can’t play for Bingo, but they can’t.

Sucks that Bingo isn’t an option for him. There’s nothing left for him to prove in the Junior Circuit.

Yeah, going in it felt like he was practically a lock to make the team. Still obviously plenty of time this preseason, but his immediate future feels a bit murkier right now (still think he’ll do enough though).

Ty Smith just had a pretty rough shift...

GOOSE!!!

That was only a matter of time. Devils’ PK is nonexistent this evening.

Ok, what does this mean?

I’ve never enjoyed watching hockey there...I feel grimy just being in that building. I feel like I need a harsh shower afterwards, Karen Silkwood-style. Never understood what is so special about that place (though it is nicer post-renovation).

Guy sometimes seems like he’s been playing for 15 years. Can’t say enough about him. Mets just refusing to die on their own (or like Bruce Willis in The Sixth Sense, admit to themselves that they’re already dead). Imagine if the Nats actually wind up falling out of the WC1 and WC2 slots. Ouch.

Maltsev...daaaaaaaaaamn Devils’ PK...ewwwwwwwwww God I can’t stand Nosen and Michelletti. Every word of their Ranger ass-kissing mouths makes my ears bleed just a little more.

I’m kinda done with Noah myself. He’s really turning more and more into Harvey every day, with the diva crap. 49 dingers for Alonso...god I hope he never turns into a d!ck.

Yeah I towered over him. What is he, 5' 7", maybe 5' 8"? Very cool guy, so down to Earth, loves the fans.

He's even better when he's hanging out with fans. VERY honest and forthcoming with his opinions. Always enjoyed that about him.

Stroman's Met run has been so odd...if we were told that the Mets were going to go 6-3 in his first nine starts, and that he'd be 3-2 with a 3.86 ERA, we probably would've been OK with it. But man it sure didn't FEEL like his body of work here was remotely that respectable. Meanwhile Vargas was completely due to suffer some serious regression, and that is EXACTLY what happened to him with the Phillies. Team went 3-6 in his starts (he went 0-3), and he put up a 5.48 ERA...lately, he's been even worse...in his last four starts, he's pitched a total of 15.1 IP and allowed 13 ER (Phils lost 3 of the 4). I gotta give the front office some credit on this one, for doing their homework...I think they actually had a hunch that they'd already gotten Vargas' best in 2019, and whatever team got him next would not get the same results.

I'll take that problem over others for sure (like being capped out or near capped out due to a bunch of bad UFA signings).

I'm not either, but right now the Devils have exactly one guy signed for 2022-23 (Severson). This could be a good thing or a bad thing, really (always nice NOT to have a bunch of high-priced fading talent on your payroll)...if Shero can get a nice homegrown development wheel going, with guys constantly being sprinkled in on ELC contracts (and then hopefully reasonable deals on their first forays into RFA), then sure, you can overpay some of your roster. But it also means that a lot of players (if all goes well, in that they're playing well and developing) will be due raises very soon (we'll see that this summer). As far as the immediate future goes, I REALLY hope Hischier's RFA situation doesn't turn into a complete clusterfvck. Will be very interesting to see how Blackwood plays too, because he'll also be a RFA after this year. Hischier, Bratt, and Blackwood all RFAs this offseason. Of course, Greene, Vatanen, and Simmonds all come off (Zajac comes off the following year, but so will Palms and Gusev). Money will be there to keep guys, but in time there will be less to divvy up among others...of course, that's where having the pipeline of young, cheap talent becomes so key.

Depends on what Hall would've been asking for. I'm not so sure that Shero is willing to just give Hall 8 years at $10.5 - 11 million per without knowing about how healthy Hall is first. This is a case where I think that it makes good sense for both sides to wait. Shero shouldn't just throw caution to the wind, and I can understand Hall wanting to show everyone (yes, perhaps even other teams) that he still can be a PPG+ producer, like he's been since the start of the 2017-18 season. Like I've said earlier, really does suck when a guy gets hurt and misses significant time heading into a walk year. Muddies everything up.

I think Vats won't get re-signed anyway, but you'd still have PK, Severson, and Butcher signed for at least two seasons each beyond this one (Smith would also have two seasons left on his ELC after this year). It just doesn't feel like Brodie is this "gotta have" guy, especially once he becomes overpriced. I'd be more interested if Brodie had three more years left at his current cap hit. Not sure why Hall gets the blame here...sounds like both sides are equally willing to wait, and I can understand that based on the circumstances. Been over this, but it's not like Shero's put an offer on the table that Hall has been hemming and hawing over signing. Also telling that neither side is bitching one bit about the other. Seen plenty of that in various negotiations throughout the years.

I think the only other #99 in NHL history was Wilf Paiement, as a Maple Leaf (early 80s)...there was even a commercial up in Canada that promised that #99 would be appearing, only to have Paiement come out and say "What, you were expecting some other #99?" But yeah, Gretzky was obviously fvcking legendary and then some. I have no issue with #99 being retired league-wide.

Except that in this case, the Devils would be acquiring a D-man who's set to go UFA after this year and is probably ripe to be overpaid. They already have one of those guys in Vatanen (though in his case, he needs to stay healthy and be more productive this season). The problem I see is that every time a decent offensive defenseman becomes available or is somehow linked to being a possibly acquisition by the Devils, they're not really taking stock of what's already in house...or how much it might cost down the line. Devils are going to have currently "cheap" players to pay very soon. I don't know if I would want to allocate a UFA overpayment to Brodie.