T-Devs on Thin Ice

[Devils1985]

I am in the same boat too. Take the fandom out of yourself and look at the situation objectively and you can see either the Devils were clueless or just plain negligent in how they ran the T-Devs. This just leaves a sour taste in every Titans/T-Devs fan and reflects very poorly on the Devils organization in general. It is one thing to have a sinking ship, but to not even do anything and just sit idlely by while the goes underwater is plain horrible.

This.

Plus all you have to do is slap on the Titan's logo back on the jersey and basically announce that you are not the Devils and will not run it how they did and you will already get plenty of interest.

Amen to that. Basically look at what the Devils did and do the opposite. I do hope, and have told them as much, that they consider retaining the folks in the Trenton front office. Give them some tools and see what they can do. That had been given the equivalent of dull blades and a broken stick and told to go get it done; they had no chance.

That would be the same person indeed.

Sad.

[Devil Dan 56]

You're a freakin' hour away, why do you care so much? Just accept that the Devils have ZERO clue how to run a minor league hockey club and move on. I wish they would. They've no business owning a minor league team of any sort and they've proven that many times over.

I live here.

I'm a hockey fan first and foremost.

I wouldn't care if they were called the Flying Hippos and had lavender uniforms.

Well...maybe not that far...but I'd still go! Clearly you're a Devils fan first and a hockey fan second. I'm the other way around and frankly after what they did down here that's even more the case. This was MY TEAM that came in here and totally screwed the whole thing up; clearly they don't get that. By sticking the NJ logo on the jersey they sullied the Devils reputation down here in a big way. It wasn't just a stylized letter like Albany or Lowell...this was the NJ logo they stuck on everything. They would've benefited greatly had they done things right. They didn't...and they actually hurt the brand instead of growing it. Quite frankly they sh!t on their own logo. And they sh!t on their die hard fans down here who actually supported the team while watching everything fall apart around us.

The huge Trenton Devils banner is gone from the side of the arena. And as much as it pains me so say it, good fvcking riddance.

What he said. It's about hockey. It feels like some people are satisfied with any piece of crap that has a Devils logo on it, no matter how poorly it's run and how it doesn't fit into the area. Like the Lowell Devils deep in Bruins territory. Ugh. And calling Albany the Devils when fans were begging it to be the River Rats. And while I've never been to a Trenton game (I live in NY, about an hour and a 1/2 north of the Rock) I've been reading from day 1 that they were incredibly mis-managed by the Devils. There were no real prospects there, unless you call Bradley Mills a prospect. Sure, Frazee was there, until they realized he could play and moved him to Lowell when Marty went down and Clemmer went to Jersey.

I really wonder if this is all Lou's baby, and if it is, I hope they drop this way of running minor league teams when he decides to retire.

Edited July 28, 2011 by Devil Dan 56

[DevsMan84]

What he said. It's about hockey. It feels like some people are satisfied with any piece of crap that has a Devils logo on it, no matter how poorly it's run and how it doesn't fit into the area. Like the Lowell Devils deep in Bruins territory. Ugh. And calling Albany the Devils when fans were begging it to be the River Rats. And while I've never been to a Trenton game (I live in NY, about an hour and a 1/2 north of the Rock) I've been reading from day 1 that they were incredibly mis-managed by the Devils. There were no real prospects there, unless you call Bradley Mills a prospect. Sure, Frazee was there, until they realized he could play and moved him to Lowell when Marty went down and Clemmer went to Jersey.

I really wonder if this is all Lou's baby, and if it is, I hope they drop this way of running minor league teams when he decides to retire.

Does the league or Charlotte Checkers (former River Rats) own the River Rats name? That could be the reason why they did not use the same name. But I would not be surprised one bit if the name is available and Lou and Chris just want to slap the Devils name on everything.

I swear the reason for why in recent years the Devils marketing has gone from non-existent to bush-league is because of JVB. He is the one who got the marketing department together only a few years ago and it still seems they only have a slight clue as to what to do (at least with the big club only). With Lou in charge of the minor league teams (I do not believe JVB has much interest in actually taking part in running them) you can see how their marketing is.

[Devil Dan 56]

Does the league or Charlotte Checkers (former River Rats) own the River Rats name? That could be the reason why they did not use the same name. But I would not be surprised one bit if the name is available and Lou and Chris just want to slap the Devils name on everything.

I swear the reason for why in recent years the Devils marketing has gone from non-existent to bush-league is because of JVB. He is the one who got the marketing department together only a few years ago and it still seems they only have a slight clue as to what to do (at least with the big club only). With Lou in charge of the minor league teams (I do not believe JVB has much interest in actually taking part in running them) you can see how their marketing is.

I thought (assumed) the name was owned by the city of Albany, since they named the team when the Devils were there in the 90's, and just transferred it to Carolina's farm team when they came in.

See, I think there was an article when the move was happening about the name being offered to the Devils, but since they owned the team this time around, they were going with "Devils". And they had those depressing 'Rowdy's got nowhere to go now' videos.

EDIT... This article says the team was owned by Capital District Sports the first time around, so I'd guess they still own the name.

Linky

Edited July 28, 2011 by Devil Dan 56

[DaneykoIsGod]

Yuck at this situation. Never going to catch a game in Trenton again.

Your loss.

Titans games were a blast. Their return is excellent news.

[Devils Pride 26]

Your loss.

Titans games were a blast. Their return is excellent news.

Simple and to the point. I agree.

[Pepperkorn]

I'm so glad they're back! I've been to a pub just down the block from the arena but never to a game. Go figure huh?

hockey is hockey - if the Devils organization failed (and they DID) they deserve any crap they get. If it's not Lou's priority then he should find someone who can RUN the show. What is he afraid of -- i just don't get it... how he can shrug stuff like this off. Drives me nuts. But he runs the NHL team well -- I'll give him that. Just stop mucking about with minor league teams if you're not committed or even INTERESTED!

and Rowdy gave his life for this kind of management

Edited July 28, 2011 by Pepperkorn

[MantaRay]

It has been well-documented countless times in this thread why nobody else liked it. It wasn't that people disliked it being called the Devils, it was what happened to the franchise as a result of the way the Devils managed the team. It would have been cool for it to work out but the Devils either just didn't care enough or were just that inept. Off the top of my head I can not think of one business decision that was anywhere near as bad as renaming the Titans to the Devils. At least 2/3 of the fanbase were Rangers and Flyers fans. Did they really think they would keep showing up to support the Devils?? For that to work would take a colossal marketing and promotion effort, which they had no interest in doing.

You don't seem to realize the Titans had a history and a fanbase that the Devils completely alienated. You seem to be thinking of it as Trenton hockey being nonexistent until the Devils came along and failed a few years later, and then the Flyers coming in and taking over.

Also your price comparison is ridiculous. The $10 seats in Newark are sold only on gameday, not everyone can get to games early enough to take advantage of that, and for certain games you would need to get there sometime in the afternoon and wait for those tickets to go on sale. The $14 Trenton tickets can be purchased through normal methods. I remember the year the Titans won the Kelly Cup I paid $20 for my ticket to one of the conference finals games against Alaska, second row on the goal line. That is a conference final game for roughly 1/10th the price of the same seat at a regular season game in Newark.

Dead on. I could not have said this better myself.

Every time I traveled for business to Philly I would take in a Titans game. The Team had a great following and a good fan base, regardless of ownership or affiliation. The Devils essentially took over a viable and liked entity and tried to force feed the fan base something else. After the Devils took this over, the lack of interest in the area was noticeable and a terrible experience, which eventually lead to the franchise demise.

Glad to see the Titans back, I will start going to games again.

Your loss.

Titans games were a blast. Their return is excellent news.

+1

Edited July 28, 2011 by MantaRay

[RowdyFan42]

Does the league or Charlotte Checkers (former River Rats) own the River Rats name? That could be the reason why they did not use the same name. But I would not be surprised one bit if the name is available and Lou and Chris just want to slap the Devils name on everything.

The name continues to be owned by the former owner of the River Rats when they were in Albany. It was not included in the sale to the Charlotte group. He did offer it to the Devils when they moved back but they were clearly not interested.

[DevsMan84]

The name continues to be owned by the former owner of the River Rats when they were in Albany. It was not included in the sale to the Charlotte group. He did offer it to the Devils when they moved back but they were clearly not interested.

Wow the Devils then clearly know how to guage the market

[Devil Dan 56]

Wow the Devils then clearly know how to guage the market

Are you suggesting that the plan should not include step 1: "Alienate fans of previous team."

[DaneykoIsGod]

Simple and to the point. I agree.

I have a long-winded version too ...

I just don't get the anti-Titans sentiment. It's not like they're the Trenton Flyers. It's not like any of these players will be the next Eric Lindros. It's a team made up of a bunch of players-to-be-named-later representing the state's capitol. If someone is a Devils fan because they represent New Jersey proudly, then they should be able to get behind the Titans because they represent Trenton proudly (and those jerseys with the Trenton Makes bridge shoulder yokes were friggin sweet).

It's the minor leagues. Unless the team management severely screws up and gives the team a polarizing name (::ahem::T-Devils::ahem), then affiliation doesn't really matter, especially at the ECHL level. It's basically the equivalent of Single-A baseball. Check out a Lakewood BlueClaws game. You'll see Yankees and Mets fans happily cheering on a Phillies affiliate. Titans games were like that too. Devils, Flyers and Rangers fans could all root for the same team. It was a welcomed and downright fun change of pace from the cut-throat environment the NHL barns can turn into these the same fanbases mix.

Anyone opposed to the change should at least give it a try first. Grab a burger and a beer at Rossi's pre-game, head over to the arena and keep the goal song going for another couple rounds after the music stops playing over the PA system. If you don't have a great time without breaking the bank, no one could blame you if you don't return.

[DevsMan84]

Are you suggesting that the plan should not include step 1: "Alienate fans of previous team."

Haha of course not. Why would I even suggest such a thing?

[titans04]

Lots of great posts here, great reading them. Looks like most of you feel exactly the way the few of us that continued to go game in and game out feel. I'm not a Devils fan at all but our commitment didn't waver one bit, in fact at the pc when the Devils came to town we were excited by what was promised us. None of it happened and over the next few seasons the place truly became a morgue. Most years the team was out of it at the midway mark. The last 2 years they couldn't even be bothered shaking up the roster when it was clear things weren't working. ECHL rosters turnover tremendously throughout the year.

Anyway as it's been said many times before the track record in the minors is terrible and Albany didn't exactly go well last year either. Technically Chris Lamoriello runs the show at the minor league level, the guy doesn't have one shread of success in close to a decade.

Can the market rebound, I'm not sure but the new setup gives it the best odds of doing so and for those of us that are Trenton fans that's all we can ask for at this point.

Yay Adam... why not run with T-Devils/Utica Devils/ Lowell Devils/ Albany Rd 1 Devils Forever??

[adam85491]

Anyone that says "good riddance" to the Devils is NOT a devils fan. Plain and simple. I am a Devils fan (new jersey, trenton, albany, utica, it has never mattered). I thought there was more people like me.

Enjoy rooting for the flyers and their growing fanbase in jersey. I won't.

Plain. And. Simple.

[Devils1985]

Frankly, you won’t be missed.

Oh wait – you were never there, were you?

[adam85491]

For the Titans? No. Why would I?

Like I said before, Devils fan.

See you guys in Newark this year, Oh wait, you Trenton people don't go? I forgot, not Devils fans.

[DevilMinder]

Anyone that says "good riddance" to the Devils is NOT a devils fan. Plain and simple. I am a Devils fan (new jersey, trenton, albany, utica, it has never mattered). I thought there was more people like me.

Enjoy rooting for the flyers and their growing fanbase in jersey. I won't.

Plain. And. Simple.

So you would rather there was no hockey for the people in Trenton to enjoy? Pretty narrow minded there.

[Devilsfan118]

I have a long-winded version too ...

I just don't get the anti-Titans sentiment. It's not like they're the Trenton Flyers. It's not like any of these players will be the next Eric Lindros. It's a team made up of a bunch of players-to-be-named-later representing the state's capitol. If someone is a Devils fan because they represent New Jersey proudly, then they should be able to get behind the Titans because they represent Trenton proudly (and those jerseys with the Trenton Makes bridge shoulder yokes were friggin sweet).

It's the minor leagues. Unless the team management severely screws up and gives the team a polarizing name (::ahem::T-Devils::ahem), then affiliation doesn't really matter, especially at the ECHL level. It's basically the equivalent of Single-A baseball. Check out a Lakewood BlueClaws game. You'll see Yankees and Mets fans happily cheering on a Phillies affiliate. Titans games were like that too. Devils, Flyers and Rangers fans could all root for the same team. It was a welcomed and downright fun change of pace from the cut-throat environment the NHL barns can turn into these the same fanbases mix.

Anyone opposed to the change should at least give it a try first. Grab a burger and a beer at Rossi's pre-game, head over to the arena and keep the goal song going for another couple rounds after the music stops playing over the PA system. If you don't have a great time without breaking the bank, no one could blame you if you don't return.

Well said, I had never really thought of it like that

[hurricane1091]

I have no interest in these "Titans". They are a affiliated with a team I absolutely hate, and I just can't see having interest in them. I never just went and caught a phantoms game because it was 10 minutes away, why would I go see their other minor league team play?

[DevsMan84]

Anyone that says "good riddance" to the Devils is NOT a devils fan. Plain and simple. I am a Devils fan (new jersey, trenton, albany, utica, it has never mattered). I thought there was more people like me.

Enjoy rooting for the flyers and their growing fanbase in jersey. I won't.

Plain. And. Simple.

The Devils didn't put any effort or money into the T-Devs and the promises they made when they purchased the team never really happened. How else are the fans supposed to feel? Are they supposed to not feel any anger or disappointment that their once proud team was run into the ground all because they have a NJ logo on the jerseys?

[adam85491]

So you would rather there was no hockey for the people in Trenton to enjoy? Pretty narrow minded there.

I said it was not for me and it's fairly disgusting to see the selfishness the Trenton fans seem to have (all they have been doing is badmouthing Lou, Chris, and the organization.) Be glad the Titans are there instead of no one, that's one thing...to read all this crap about hating JVB and LL for "ruining" Trenton is just nauseating. It's well known that attendance was dying off and finances were limited before NJ ever got involved (and saved hockey in Trenton).

No?

[adam85491]

The Devils didn't put any effort or money into the T-Devs and the promises they made when they purchased the team never really happened. How else are the fans supposed to feel? Are they supposed to not feel any anger or disappointment that their once proud team was run into the ground all because they have a NJ logo on the jerseys?

Let me get this through your head.

Attendance was dropping significantly.

Money was a huge issue after the cup run.

NJ saved hockey in Trenton.

I almost wish they didn't, as then there would be no hatred for NJ like there is now. Let the Flyers take the credit for reviving the city (they are just slapping their name on the team to be an affiliate, there's no money coming from them). New Jersey should have just let them die, Philly had no problems doing it.

[hurricane1091]

It's an ECHL team, I just don't get what people expected. New Jersey is not the best fan base, so how the hell can you expect much from the AA affiliate? I think the flyers fans will come back to support there team for a little but I don't honestly expect much to change.

[DevsMan84]

I said it was not for me and it's fairly disgusting to see the selfishness the Trenton fans seem to have (all they have been doing is badmouthing Lou, Chris, and the organization.) Be glad the Titans are there instead of no one, that's one thing...to read all this crap about hating JVB and LL for "ruining" Trenton is just nauseating. It's well known that attendance was dying off and finances were limited before NJ ever got involved (and saved hockey in Trenton).

No?

But what part are people like myself and long-time Titans/T-Devs fans are saying that is not true? Have the T-Devs been run well? Did Chris L. put effort into marketing the team? Did they address the situation with attendance? Did they keep the promises they made when they first bought the team.

I love the Devils and they will always be my team but I can see when the front office and the people in charge really screw things up and this is one of the bigger ones.