smelly Posted March 12, 2003 Share Posted March 12, 2003 feel that Lou basically conceded that this team ain't good enough, how do you think the players feel? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
'7' Posted March 12, 2003 Share Posted March 12, 2003 they feel deflated, probably a little ticked off that Lou gave up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueSkirt Posted March 12, 2003 Share Posted March 12, 2003 Conceded? First, I don't know, but I would guess that word may not even be in the man's vocabulary. Second, the players know that their success is a direct result of their & the coaches actions. Last time I looked the Devs were in first place & on pace for a 100-point season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rock Posted March 12, 2003 Share Posted March 12, 2003 Then the players should feel screw him! We're in this by ourselves we'll prove everybody wrong. Then go do it!! B) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drew Posted March 12, 2003 Share Posted March 12, 2003 Woah.. what do you mean? Lou probably didn't want to make a trade because everybody was calling for it.. and we will win without one, that is Lou's style. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smelly Posted March 12, 2003 Author Share Posted March 12, 2003 Conceded?First, I don't know, but I would guess that word may not even be in the man's vocabulary. Second, the players know that their success is a direct result of their & the coaches actions. Last time I looked the Devs were in first place & on pace for a 100-point season. Yeah, but so were the teams in 1999 and 1998 and 1997. The playoffs those years proved that the Devils had been doing it with mirrors all season. And I've had that feeling about this team since October, notwithstanding its gaudy record. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueSkirt Posted March 12, 2003 Share Posted March 12, 2003 Smelly, that may be true. Only time will tell now. I'll never try to guess how the players feel, but assume they try their best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackjack Posted March 12, 2003 Share Posted March 12, 2003 I can't speak for anyone else, but if I was playing for a team, and there were rumors swirling for weeks that I would be traded for help, and the trade deadline passed, I would see that as a huge vote of confidence, and I would strive to live up to the responsabilities that come along with that vote. Just me though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devil Dog Posted March 12, 2003 Share Posted March 12, 2003 Maybe the players actually feel that Lou may have FAITH in them to get the job done. Maybe their happy not to have been traded. Maybe that so called professional pride will kick in and this will be a motivating factor for them. If i'm wrong then i'm wrong. But if this team moves far into the playoffs, we will know that we did it without gutting our talent. With the moves that Lou made in 97, 98 and 99 most thought that we were solid contenders. Crash and burn. The trades for Almo and Malahkov were thought by many to be bad. Vlad had a injury problem and a mental problem along with Almo. History proved most wrong on those moves. History may prove that the two moves that Lou did make were the right ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smelly Posted March 12, 2003 Author Share Posted March 12, 2003 Dog and Black: I agree that not making a move CAN be seen as an act of faith -- but only where it was a conscious decision. Unfortunately, there are many published reports that Lou was desperately seeking to add the scorer that we all (including Lou) knows the team needed. And Gomez's and Tvo's being scratched only confirm, at least to me, and almost certainly in the players' minds, that Lou was prepared to pull the trigger. That doesn't sound like a vote of confidence to me. And I am certain beyond a doubt that Lou's failure to make a trade does NOT mean he thinks that this team is a real contender to win it all. Dog: I may be forgetting something, but I'm reasonably certain that Lou did NOT make any splash at the trade deadline in 97, 99, or 99, even though the fans and the press were crying out for -- of course -- a sniper. Lou told us then that he couldn't make a move that would make what he had better, and that he was happy with his team heading into the playoffs, pointing out they were near the top of the conference (sound familiar?). In fact, after the debacle against Pitts in 99, in response to a letter that I wrote articulating my frustration with the team's failure to add a scorer at the deadline in any of those years, Lou invited my father and me into meet with him in his office that summer. Lou told us that he tried very hard to get Bure that year (that was the year he was traded to FLA, but the price was too high. And he told us that Palffy made too much money for what he was, and that he didn't see the sense of going for him (Ziggy had been traded from NYI to LA that summer). Unfortunately, I see history repeating itself. As I've said before, I hope I'm wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smelly Posted March 12, 2003 Author Share Posted March 12, 2003 One other thing: Lou told us in 1999 that he would NEVER adopt a third jersey unless the league mandated it. He said they were nothing more than a marketing/revenue generation gimmick, and that he thought it was only done to get the fans to buy more stuff. And he wouldn't be part of it. BTW -- he brought it up, not us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Z-Man Posted March 12, 2003 Share Posted March 12, 2003 Stevens quote in the papers this morning can be taken either way: "We know it's here," Devils' captain Scott Stevens said. "This is it. There's no one else. There's no magic man coming. ... I believe in what we have here. We've just got to get it together and play 60 minutes." Either he's sincere and he thinks they have what it takes to win, or deep down it was a disappointment to the team that no help was brought in. You can take it either way. I think there was so much talk about the trade deadline, the players couldn't help but think there was some outside help coming. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sammyk Posted March 12, 2003 Share Posted March 12, 2003 One other thing: Lou told us in 1999 that he would NEVER adopt a third jersey unless the league mandated it. He said they were nothing more than a marketing/revenue generation gimmick, and that he thought it was only done to get the fans to buy more stuff. And he wouldn't be part of it.BTW -- he brought it up, not us. Not only that, but a share of the profits from 3rd's get divided among all 30 teams. Is this also the case with regular jerseys? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vadvlfan Posted March 12, 2003 Share Posted March 12, 2003 I think Gomer/Tvo will need a heart to heart talking too. They knew (had a strong feeling) they were toast. You cant help but feel a lil "unwanted. There has got to be some healing. especially on Gomer's part. Tvo hasnt been here long enough be attached to much of anything. I honestly believe Lou screwed up. He gets Marshall-Smehlik intending to trade Tvo, Turner, Gomer to SJ and it dies. Shame on Lou if that is how it unfolded. Vince Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NJayDevil Posted March 12, 2003 Share Posted March 12, 2003 Selanne vetoing the Devs will go down as one of the biggest backfires in not only Devs history but in the NHL. Lou had to be so certain he was getting Selanne only for it to backfire and severely damage Gomez and Tivo now. This is the 2nd time in a matter of 9 months that Lou has been one-upped. It really sucks too. This one is a bigger blow to the entire team than the other one-upping he received. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
devilsrule33 Posted March 12, 2003 Share Posted March 12, 2003 I would like to see peoples reactions if we win the Cup. For the record I am not saying one word to bad mouth Lou. Because in Lou I trust and in this team. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devils731 Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 If the Devils do well in the playoffs I don't want to see anyone thats is saying that the season is ruined now, and Lou screwed up, and we stink, and all this crap, to do one iota of celebrating. I've had to read too much doom and gloom in the last 2 days to see the whole board gushing over how well we're doing when the team starts winning again. Don't be a fickle fair weather fan. At least some of the negative people have been negative all year, I can deal with that, its consistent. -Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westcoastdevfan Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 I am not down on the team, I am just disappointed. I was hoping for some spark. This team has been really sloppy as of late and I was hoping a trade would jolt them back into focus. I really thought a deal could get done. This team is strong but has fallen out of the legit cup contender status. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MantaRay Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 NJay, You make a great point about Gomer & Tivo. That has to be tremendous blow to them both. Its gut check time for them both: they can prove Lou wrong about dealing them, or they can prove Lou was right about acquiring someone else. I only hope that Burns hasn't crushed Gomers game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sammyk Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 They're friggin professionals, they should just get over it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarbingerOfSorrow Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 When did Lou concede that the Devils were not good enough? That doesn't sound like something Lou would ever say. Especially with the current standings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NJDevs4978 Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 He hasn't HOS it's just a$$ backwards logic by some of the board. Lou didn't make a trade in '94, didn't mean he didn't feel the team was good enough, they went pretty far that year. Just because he doesn't make a trade doesn't mean he's given up. If the players did give up (which they won't) then you know what Lou was right for not making a deal because that would show me that the team didn't have the heart to win anyway. But I do not think heart will be a problem for the team this year, at least for most of the team. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westcoastdevfan Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 But I do not think heart will be a problem for the team this year, at least for most of the team. I agree, This team has more heart than the more talented teams of a couple of years ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brylin18 Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 how do we even know that this whole selanne thing is true? it's total fabrication as far as i'm concerned. why would lou trade gomez and not get a center in return? the reason the devils would've gotten selanne would be so that he could play with gomez. it doesn't make sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
devilsrule33 Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 Who said we were going to give up Gomez for Selanne. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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