Devils Ring of Honor

[DevsMan84]

2 minutes ago, thecoffeecake said:

 Do you not get the point of forums like this?

@CR,  Yea I was mostly referring to fans. I think it's pretty dumb for Devils fans to wear Rockies and Scouts stuff. Those teams are a part of the sports traditions of their respective cities, not ours. I understand fans in Carolina and Colorado and Dallas and everywhere else do it, but I don't get what that has to do with it being silly.

Imagine the Devils did go to Nashville, and the predators created a similar graphic with our logo. I'd guess more people would think it was in poor taste. I imagine more people would have a problem if the Hurricanes did this, too.

I just think it's unnecessary to use a piece of a different city's sports history to honor our team in Jersey.

Yet you reamed me out once and told me to mind my fvcking business over what other people wear over knockoff jerseys.

Edited January 4, 2017 by DevsMan84

[RunninWithTheDevil]

10 minutes ago, thecoffeecake said:

 Do you not get the point of forums like this?

@CR,  Yea I was mostly referring to fans. I think it's pretty dumb for Devils fans to wear Rockies and Scouts stuff. Those teams are a part of the sports traditions of their respective cities, not ours. I understand fans in Carolina and Colorado and Dallas and everywhere else do it, but I don't get what that has to do with it being silly.

Imagine the Devils did go to Nashville, and the predators created a similar graphic with our logo. I'd guess more people would think it was in poor taste. I imagine more people would have a problem if the Hurricanes did this, too.

I just think it's unnecessary to use a piece of a different city's sports history to honor our team in Jersey.

The whole point is that we are honoring a man who BROUGHT this team here from Colorado

[thecoffeecake]

14 minutes ago, DevsMan84 said:

Yet you reamed me out once and told me to mind my fvcking business over what other people wear over knockoff jerseys.

Man that really hurt your feelings. If someone wants to wear a jersey, wear it, I just think it's stupid. Your whole point was that no one should buy or wear anything that you think undermines your hobby.

[Satans Hockey]

It's a patch and pin for one game... It's not our new logo. Not a big deal here. 

Don't kid yourselves about there actually being patches to purchase, this is the same team that didn't even buy enough stuff for the Brodeur night to sell, I'd be shocked if they are selling these patches. 

[Weekes Head]

3 minutes ago, Satans Hockey said:

It's a patch and pin for one game... It's not our new logo. Not a big deal here. 

Don't kid yourselves about there actually being patches to purchase, this is the same team that didn't even buy enough stuff for the Brodeur night to sell, I'd be shocked if they are selling these patches. 

Yeah but the Den is stocked with Brodeur merch now!! So...6 months from now we'll be good to go 

I *could* go either way in terms of the Rockies/Scouts stuff. At the end of the day, these teams still hold a place in the time line of the New Jersey Devils, so that's where I stand. I like the pin/patch because like previously said - it honors the man who brought the team here, not the original team itself. Whatever. Some graphic designer got paid to make a neat logo and now you have a forum full of suckers who are ready and willing to drop a couple bucks because it's pretty. I don't mind that.

My brother has a Chico Rockies jersey. Granted, we're more in the direction of the name on the back rather than the logo on the front in this case but I don't think it's an awful thing either. But to each their own...

[MadDog2020]

It's a patch and pin for one game... It's not our new logo. Not a big deal here. 

Don't kid yourselves about there actually being patches to purchase, this is the same team that didn't even buy enough stuff for the Brodeur night to sell, I'd be shocked if they are selling these patches. 

Because who wants to make some easy money, right? Who needs the extra revenue. [emoji849]This team kills me with their continuing tone deafness to selling merchandise fans actually want to buy.

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[DevsMan84]

1 hour ago, thecoffeecake said:

Man that really hurt your feelings. If someone wants to wear a jersey, wear it, I just think it's stupid. Your whole point was that no one should buy or wear anything that you think undermines your hobby.

lol I never said that you dumb hypocrite snowflake.

[Satans Hockey]

53 minutes ago, MadDog2020 said:

Because who wants to make some easy money, right? Who needs the extra revenue. This team kills me with their continuing tone deafness to selling merchandise fans actually want to buy.

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Agreed, I would purchase a patch if they have one as well. My biggest complaint about the merch is that there hoodies are so expensive, most are $90+ and I can never find a single one I like that is a zip up plus a hood. It's usually one or the other and I hate pullovers. I don't know why they charge so much for some of this stuff. Hoodies should be more around the 40 to 50 buck range. I'd spend so much more money if the prices were more reasonable. The only thing I've even been buying lately are the player t shirts. 

[MadDog2020]

Agreed, I would purchase a patch if they have one as well. My biggest complaint about the merch is that there hoodies are so expensive, most are $90+ and I can never find a single one I like that is a zip up plus a hood. It's usually one or the other and I hate pullovers. I don't know why they charge so much for some of this stuff. Hoodies should be more around the 40 to 50 buck range. I'd spend so much more money if the prices were more reasonable. The only thing I've even been buying lately are the player t shirts. 

The jerseys suck too because they're that heat-pressed garbage. You need your head examined if you spend almost $300 on a jersey there.


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[Weekes Head]

8 minutes ago, MadDog2020 said:

The jerseys suck too because they're that heat-pressed garbage. You need your head examined if you spend almost $300 on a jersey there.


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When they first offered same day customization , I went with the best of intentions and was told they had no 1s or 3s in stock...which wiped out like half of the team.   I ended up walking away with an Arnott white (they also were out of red mediums...) The name plate still managed to come off in the corner after all of two times wearing the jersey. Sheer quality right there.

Edited January 5, 2017 by Weekes Head

[mfitz804]

36 minutes ago, Satans Hockey said:

Agreed, I would purchase a patch if they have one as well. My biggest complaint about the merch is that there hoodies are so expensive, most are $90+ and I can never find a single one I like that is a zip up plus a hood. It's usually one or the other and I hate pullovers. I don't know why they charge so much for some of this stuff. Hoodies should be more around the 40 to 50 buck range. I'd spend so much more money if the prices were more reasonable. The only thing I've even been buying lately are the player t shirts. 

$40-50 for a hoodie, at the arena??? Not likely. 

[Satans Hockey]

Just now, mfitz804 said:

$40-50 for a hoodie, at the arena??? Not likely. 

Their hoodies aren't even that nice / the designs are usually terrible. Plenty of places sell hoodies for that price. I don't even spend 90+ on a jacket but that's cause I generally wear hoodies all year. 

[mfitz804]

Plenty of places, yes. But not at the event, where you pay event pricing. 

For what it's worth, I do agree...I haven't seen a thing at the arena to purchase since the first season or two at The Rock. 

[DevsMan84]

I would never recommend buying anything at the Devils Den unless it was something exclusive to them.

[mfitz804]

8 minutes ago, DevsMan84 said:

I would never recommend buying anything at the Devils Den unless it was something exclusive to them.

Agreed.

I do regret not buying some of that Skating Devil logo merch back in the day. I really liked that logo. 

[Devil Dan 56]

7 hours ago, DevsMan84 said:

Eh.  I always saw that statement as a little bit of an exaggeration.  Imperatore tried to purchase the Rockies and move them to BBA back in 78 but was blocked by the NHL because the arena was still being built.

Yeah McMullen moved them in, but he was also this close to moving them out.

McMullen was definitely a penny pinching scrooge but the theme of the night is him bringing the team to jersey. That's why the logo makes sense. These guys all have good and bad to them, but I think this night is about celebrating the good 

[thecoffeecake]

3 hours ago, DevsMan84 said:

lol I never said that you dumb hypocrite snowflake.

Oh calm down. We're winning a little, save it for next week.

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

15 hours ago, DevsMan84 said:

Yeah there were rumors and ideas floated, but how many were realistic?  How many had a 19,000 seat arena well under construction and a state begging to take them in?  It basically was inevitable.

Yeah I do still have a bit of a beef with McMullen.  I see him as a miser Scrooge-like person who found a perfect match in Lou when he hired him in 87.  I find this Ring of Honor for him funny and ironic as he would have never allowed this type of thing to happen under his watch.

Keep in mind that one of the rumored future tenants of BBA was, of all teams, the Rangers (who were very opposed to a new team moving in what they considered their territory).  I don't remember all of the details, but supposedly they and the Garden were having issues at the time.  And if McMullen had wound up moving the Devils to Nashville following the '95 season, there were rumors that the Whalers would've moved into CAA to fill the sudden void (they left Hartford after the '96-'97 season).  I don't know if I would've supported that team or not...obviously there's way too much to speculate on, in such an extreme alternate timeline...but what a kick in the balls that would've been...losing a SC winner after supporting them through the lean and building years, seeing them finally break through, then trying to do it again with a Whalers team (obviously would've been re-named) that had won just one playoff series in its NHL history, with all new guys to try to grow attached to as a fan.  I don't think the fact that they would've been a NJ team would've been enough to get me on board...not right away, anyway. 

I know that the sale of the Rockies to McMullen was anything but smooth...even looked like it might fall apart a couple of times, but as we know, in the end it all came together. 

Re:  McMullen as Scrooge...part of the reason he's remembered fondly in a lot of circles here is that along with giving NJ an NHL team, the Devils did eventually win a championship under his ownership.  That never happened in Houston, where the more Ebenezer parts of McMullen's personality were often on display (though like here, to be fair, he did some good things there as well). 

Though this article in the link below is actually written to defend McMullen (the author thought the fact that McMullen finished a distant last behind the three other Astros owners in a "Best Astros Owner" poll was unfair), he was never beloved there during his ownership run (1979-93)...the article explains why:

http://www.houstonpress.com/news/the-best-owner-in-astros-history-is-7578557

And if most fans remember McMullen, it’s for the epic screw-ups, of which he made plenty. He let Nolan Ryan go to the Rangers. He fired Tal Smith. He dumped Gene Elston and foisted Milo Hamilton upon Houstonians. He junked the beloved rainbow jerseys. He once threatened to move the team if renovations weren’t made to the Dome. He didn’t court the press, and he was a Yankee (who’d actually once been a minority owner of the Yankees) who never made much of an attempt to fit in with Texas or with Houston.

...

So John McMullen purchased the team in 1979. He bought a team on the verge of making the playoffs, and he ignored Tal Smith and signed Nolan Ryan to what was then the biggest contract in sports. He also signed Joe Morgan, and brought him back to the Astros. The Astros made the playoffs in 1980, and again in 1981. But McMullen earned the public’s wrath by firing Smith after the 1980 season. And when he refused to play nice with the media, he soon began to rival Oilers owner Bud Adams as the most hated man in Houston.

The above sounds about, well, what you'd expect.  Good and bad, and not what you'd call embraceable or lovable. 

Edited January 5, 2017 by Colorado Rockies 1976

[DevsMan84]

41 minutes ago, Colorado Rockies 1976 said:

Keep in mind that one of the rumored future tenants of BBA was, of all teams, the Rangers (who were very opposed to a new team moving in what they considered their territory).  I don't remember all of the details, but supposedly they and the Garden were having issues at the time.  And if McMullen had wound up moving the Devils to Nashville following the '95 season, there were rumors that the Whalers would've moved into CAA to fill the sudden void (they left Hartford after the '96-'97 season).  I don't know if I would've supported that team or not...obviously there's way too much to speculate on, in such an extreme alternate timeline...but what a kick in the balls that would've been...losing a SC winner after supporting them through the lean and building years, seeing them finally break through, then trying to do it again with a Whalers team (obviously would've been re-named) that had won just one playoff series in its NHL history, with all new guys to try to grow attached to as a fan.  I don't think the fact that they would've been a NJ team would've been enough to get me on board...not right away, anyway. 

I know that the sale of the Rockies to McMullen was anything but smooth...even looked like it might fall apart a couple of times, but as we know, in the end it all came together. 

Re:  McMullen as Scrooge...part of the reason he's remembered fondly in a lot of circles here is that along with giving NJ an NHL team, the Devils did eventually win a championship under his ownership.  That never happened in Houston, where the more Ebenezer parts of McMullen's personality were often on display (though like here, to be fair, he did some good things there as well). 

Though this article in the link below is actually written to defend McMullen (the author thought the fact that McMullen finished a distant last behind the three other Astros owners in a "Best Astros Owner" poll was unfair), he was never beloved there during his ownership run (1979-93)...the article explains why:

http://www.houstonpress.com/news/the-best-owner-in-astros-history-is-7578557

And if most fans remember McMullen, it’s for the epic screw-ups, of which he made plenty. He let Nolan Ryan go to the Rangers. He fired Tal Smith. He dumped Gene Elston and foisted Milo Hamilton upon Houstonians. He junked the beloved rainbow jerseys. He once threatened to move the team if renovations weren’t made to the Dome. He didn’t court the press, and he was a Yankee (who’d actually once been a minority owner of the Yankees) who never made much of an attempt to fit in with Texas or with Houston.

...

So John McMullen purchased the team in 1979. He bought a team on the verge of making the playoffs, and he ignored Tal Smith and signed Nolan Ryan to what was then the biggest contract in sports. He also signed Joe Morgan, and brought him back to the Astros. The Astros made the playoffs in 1980, and again in 1981. But McMullen earned the public’s wrath by firing Smith after the 1980 season. And when he refused to play nice with the media, he soon began to rival Oilers owner Bud Adams as the most hated man in Houston.

The above sounds about, well, what you'd expect.  Good and bad, and not what you'd call embraceable or lovable. 

Re: BBA: The Rangers were never fully serious about moving to NJ.  It was a bargaining tactic they used when they were in a legal tussle with the City of New York over their taxes.  It worked in NY's favor, but there was little chance the Rangers would have moved out of NYC.  I know the Nashville move is often seen by fans as just posturing during his negotiations with the NJSEA over the lease in 1995, but in this article it looks like there was more to it:

https://books.google.com/books?id=TnkuSogCVyIC&pg=PA290&lpg=PA290&dq=McMullen+NJSEA+1995&source=bl&ots=MwcdSkN6g7&sig=sQDoW0rAg8O1wAZgsRF6h7Yhk7k&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiup--P-ozQAhUKsFQKHZZXApgQ6AEIITAB#v=onepage&q=McMullen NJSEA 1995&f=false

"Also, Devil's owner McMullen reportedly felt that New Jerseans were never fully appreciative of his efforts to bring the team to New Jersey back in 1982 and had not supported the team in sufficient numbers of the years"

While McMullen is probably correct in his statement, can you imagine the fan uproar if the current owner publicly said or felt the same way?

Fact is that like the current owners McMullen was out here trying to make money like the current owners but was for miserly than the current ones are.  However, he gets a night devoted to him while the new owners get blasted for everything under the sun after investing serious $ into the arena and team.

[Satans Hockey]

35 minutes ago, DevsMan84 said:

Re: BBA: The Rangers were never fully serious about moving to NJ.  It was a bargaining tactic they used when they were in a legal tussle with the City of New York over their taxes.  It worked in NY's favor, but there was little chance the Rangers would have moved out of NYC.  I know the Nashville move is often seen by fans as just posturing during his negotiations with the NJSEA over the lease in 1995, but in this article it looks like there was more to it:

https://books.google.com/books?id=TnkuSogCVyIC&pg=PA290&lpg=PA290&dq=McMullen+NJSEA+1995&source=bl&ots=MwcdSkN6g7&sig=sQDoW0rAg8O1wAZgsRF6h7Yhk7k&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiup--P-ozQAhUKsFQKHZZXApgQ6AEIITAB#v=onepage&q=McMullen NJSEA 1995&f=false

"Also, Devil's owner McMullen reportedly felt that New Jerseans were never fully appreciative of his efforts to bring the team to New Jersey back in 1982 and had not supported the team in sufficient numbers of the years"

While McMullen is probably correct in his statement, can you imagine the fan uproar if the current owner publicly said or felt the same way?

Fact is that like the current owners McMullen was out here trying to make money like the current owners but was for miserly than the current ones are.  However, he gets a night devoted to him while the new owners get blasted for everything under the sun after investing serious $ into the arena and team.

I don't have issues with the owners, I do have issues with the things in the arena like the bathrooms not being kept as they should. Some missing stall doors in the mens bathrooms and from people I've talked to around me, some womens stalls locks don't work and this stuff has been like this for almost a full year now. Sometimes light bulbs are out for games at a time. I've sent a few emails about it and doesn't seem to really make much of a difference. To me this is stuff that should be taken care of the next day and it seems like nobody really gives a sh!t. 

[mfitz804]

1 hour ago, Colorado Rockies 1976 said:

 And if McMullen had wound up moving the Devils to Nashville following the '95 season, there were rumors that the Whalers would've moved into CAA to fill the sudden void (they left Hartford after the '96-'97 season).  I don't know if I would've supported that team or not...

I have wondered about this for years. Still remember the parade in the parking lot where Terreri was holding a sign saying that the team should not move. Kind of depressing to finally win a Cup and then wonder if your team was going to still be around. 

I can't imagine, in 1995 with the internet in its infancy, and me being 18-19 years old at the time and not being able to afford an NHL package if same was even available, that it would have been easy to continue following the team after they moved to Nashville. Plus, I hate going to road games. I've been to MSG and the Coliseum and I just don't find it enjoyable at all to be harassed by morons. I would have needed a local replacement. 

Had the Whalers (or literally ANY other team besides the Rangers and Islanders) moved into the vacancy at the CAA, I would guess I probably would have switched my alliances and gone with the local team. 

If no team moved in, I probably would have started following the Islanders (could not accept the Rangers, especially not in the mid 90's when the rivalry was 100 times what it is now). 

Also, after typing the above, I think "Harassed By Morons" would be a great emo-pop band name. 

[mfitz804]

Just now, Satans Hockey said:

I don't have issues with the owners, I do have issues with the things in the arena like the bathrooms not being kept as they should. Some missing stall doors in the mens bathrooms and from people I've talked to around me, some womens stalls locks don't work and this stuff has been like this for almost a full year now. Sometimes light bulbs are out for games at a time. I've sent a few emails about it and doesn't seem to really make much of a difference. To me this is stuff that should be taken care of the next day and it seems like nobody really gives a sh!t. 

You know what drives me crazy? People abusing the "family" bathrooms. That's not for you to just not wait on line. I go to games with my 9 year old, I can't take her into a men's room, and I can't send her into the ladies' alone. So instead I have to wait for the family bathroom, which is there for just that purpose, and inevitably, who comes out? Some lazy a$$hole who just didn't want to wait in line in the regular bathroom. Go f yourself!!

[DevsMan84]

22 minutes ago, Satans Hockey said:

I don't have issues with the owners, I do have issues with the things in the arena like the bathrooms not being kept as they should. Some missing stall doors in the mens bathrooms and from people I've talked to around me, some womens stalls locks don't work and this stuff has been like this for almost a full year now. Sometimes light bulbs are out for games at a time. I've sent a few emails about it and doesn't seem to really make much of a difference. To me this is stuff that should be taken care of the next day and it seems like nobody really gives a sh!t. 

I will give you this and have seen the issue with the missing stall doors.  There is no excuse for that.

[mfitz804]

23 minutes ago, DevsMan84 said:

I will give you this and have seen the issue with the missing stall doors.  There is no excuse for that.

Missing stall door = for pee pee only. Not really an issue, does anyone really sit down and unload at the arena?

[Satans Hockey]

13 minutes ago, mfitz804 said:

Missing stall door = for pee pee only. Not really an issue, does anyone really sit down and unload at the arena?

There are not many stalls in the mens rooms as it is. You have people coming straight from work and sometimes you gotta go when you gotta go, guys use the stalls lol Plus it just looks terrible and I've never seen this at any other arena I've been to. It's embarrassing that it's been like that for almost a year now. We have a world class arena and it should be treated as such. 

Edited January 5, 2017 by Satans Hockey