Keep 'Em or Dump 'Em

[thelastonealive]

For those who don't read the NY Daily News...after each major team's final game, they run a reader poll called Keep 'Em or Dump 'Em. I doubt they'll care enough to do one for the Devils, so here's one for us.

The idea is simple, who do you want still on this team next year, and who do you not want on the team anymore? This does not take into account contract status, how a player would be retained or removed from the roster, salary cap...none of that.

Vote either keep 'em or dump 'em for each player. I'm sure I know who the unanimous keeps and dumps will be, but there's some that I'm interested to see the results for.

Edit: After a day and about 100 votes each, here's the results (percentage represents percentage of keep 'em votes):

Keep 'em

Mark Fraser - 69.2%

Andy Greene - 98.1%

Paul Martin - 82.7%

Dainius Zubrus - 83.5%

Zach Parise - 96.2%

Rod Pelley - 60.6%

Ilya Kovalchuk - 78.8%

Vladimir Zharkov - 89.2%

Travis Zajac - 95.2%

Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond - 66.0%

David Clarkson - 84.6%

Bryce Salvador - 68.3%

Patrik Elias - 85.6%

Anssi Salmela - 68.6%

Martin Brodeur - 92.2%

Yann Danis - 58.7%

Lou Lamoriello - 88.3%

Jeff Vanderbeek - 97.1%

Dump 'em

Colin White - 42.7%

Dean McAmmond - 35.0%

Brian Rolston - 8.7%

Jamie Langenbrunner - 26.9%

Jay Pandolfo - 1.9%

Rob Niedermayer - 1.0%

Andrew Peters - 4.0%

Mike Mottau - 20.6%

Martin Skoula - 28.4%

Jacques Lemaire - 16.0%

Mario Tremblay - 28.7%

Edited April 24, 2010 by thelastonealive

[cubanjd305]

Voted keep for Lou, Vanderbeek, Skoula, Martin, Zharkov, Fraser, Zubie, Parise, Kovie, Elias, Salvador, PL3, Salmela, Danis, Marty, Zajac....I think I wrote them all

I don't have a single thing against PL3, it's not like he had too much of a chance to even screw up.

Elias is Elias.....he better realize his fvcking backhanders always end up in the wrong sticks though

Edited April 23, 2010 by cubanjd305

[RSC]

Fraser-Keep, though send to Lowell.

White-Keep, solid 2nd pair dman.

Greene-Keep, he had an amazing season and I don't want to form a mob outside his house right now like most other Devils.

Martin-I said dump, just because the Gionta effect gonna happen to him...so team is going to give him more money than he's worth. Bye, Paul.

Zubrus-110% keep. He had a hell of a serious, he's the only player on this team that showed me he gave a sh!t.

Parise-Future captain.

Pelley-I like his physical play, I wouldn't mind him as the 3rd line center if Lou can get a legit 2nd line center for next year.

McAmmond-Gonzo.

Rolston- Sigh. I want Dorn gone, I really do, but that god damn NMC combined with his cap hit means he's probably staying. Fvck.

Langenbrunner-I'd say dump him, because he's become a spineless, whiney little bitch. At the very least, take away the C.

Kovalchuk- Doesn't fit here. Trade his negotiation rights for picks and/or a decent center.

Zharkov- I love this kid's hustle. Sure, he doesn't have an NHL goal, but he works his ass off. Sarge 2.0

Zajac- Keep him, but someone please teach him how to take a faceoff without getting tossed.

Pandolfo- Bye.

Niedermayer- Go fvck yourself, Rob Niedermayer. Seriously, Carol is ashamed of you.

PL3- Fantastic fighter, has shown the ability to at the very least generate a bit of 4th line offense. Keep.

Clarkson- Keep. Love him, even if he wasn't all that great down the stretch. He could become an emotional leader in the locker room.

Salvador- Solid D-man. Keep.

Andrew Peters-

Elias- Keep, because he's Patrik Elias. Let's be honest. Patty ain't going anywhere.

Mottau-Keep for the league minimum. He's a quality 3rd pair defenseman, despite the hate for him here. The man was playing minutes above his skill level.

Skoula- Later brah.

Salmela-Keep him, maybe send him to Lowell?

Brodeur-

Danis- He isn't gonna stay. Let the annual "Marty's backup" speculation begin.

Lemaire- Fvck you, Jacques. Fvck you.

Tremblay- Lemaire's right hand man goes, too.

Lou- The greatest GM of all time? Yeah, I think he stays.

JVB- Good owner.

[SS-SS]

My keep list:

Defense:White,Greene,Salvador,Salmela

Offense::Parise,Clarkson,Elias,Zajac,Zharkov,PL3,Pelley

My between the two list:

Kovy:If you keep Kovy well good,huge asset but you need to adapt him and fast cuz he don't fit as far as now.

Martin:If you keep him well good to its our best D-men.

My dump list:

Defense:Mottau,Skoula,Fraser,

Offense:Langs,Mcammond,Niedermayer,Pando,Peters,,Zubrus and the first star........Brian-Rambo-CapTerminator Roooooooooolston

Maybe I am mistaking about Zubrus but other than these series he did not really do something else since he is there. (Good effort in these series,really looked like a real Devil)

Edited April 23, 2010 by SS-SS

[Elias26]

Time for a major youth movement in this team.

[cubanjd305]

Is good to dream, but there's no youth movement to be seen.

I posted the NTCs of this team in the Daniel's offseason thread. Whiner, Winky, One-eyed and company have NTCs

[iamtheprodigy]

Time for a major youth movement in this team.

I agree. Who's got Pikkarainen's cell number?

[thelastonealive]

If somehow this team does go through a youth movement (as mentioned, pretty unlikely considering NTCs and everything), do you (general you, not aimed at a specific person) still want Lemaire out? Lemaire is clearly better at teaching a molding young players than he is dealing with veterans.

[Elias26]

Is good to dream, but there's no youth movement to be seen.

I posted the NTCs of this team in the Daniel's offseason thread. Whiner, Winky, One-eyed and company have NTCs

Whiner, Winky & One Eye that's going in my sig.

[DaneykoIsGod]

I'll tell ya something I'm ready to dump ... division titles. I'm sick of seeing this team go into the playoffs already feeling like they've accomplished something. I want to see them enter the postseason with everything left to prove. No more being the favorites. It's time to be an underdog again.

I know. It's a stupid thing to say. But I'm just tired of seeing banners get added to the wrong side of the arena.

[cubanjd305]

If somehow this team does go through a youth movement (as mentioned, pretty unlikely considering NTCs and everything), do you (general you, not aimed at a specific person) still want Lemaire out? Lemaire is clearly better at teaching a molding young players than he is dealing with veterans.

Yeah.....Bergfors is prime example of what he can do to young players

Whiner, Winky & One Eye that's going in my sig.

I wish I didn't have a reason to say such horrible things.

I feel humbled to be in the same paragraph as luminaries such as Cam Janssen and Bobby Holik

Edited April 23, 2010 by cubanjd305

[Weekes Head]

lol @ zero votes for peters

[ilzz89]

Only guys to keep are

Greene

Zubie

Zach

Ilya

Travis (He has to get better in playoffs (lets hope it was an injury))

Martin

Patty

Langs (w/o JL)

Zharkov

Pelley

JLx3

Marty

Plus Rookies (Eckford,Fraser, Corrente)

[NJDevs26]

I'll tell ya something I'm ready to dump ... division titles. I'm sick of seeing this team go into the playoffs already feeling like they've accomplished something. I want to see them enter the postseason with everything left to prove. No more being the favorites. It's time to be an underdog again.

I know. It's a stupid thing to say. But I'm just tired of seeing banners get added to the wrong side of the arena.

Especially when you start the playoffs in a building we're 3-7 in during the last three years.

[Chimaira_Devil_#9]

The most telling thing about this poll is that afte hundreds of votes , and even a keep'em vote for Adrew F**king Peters, Rob Niedermayer hasn't got a single Keep'em vote.

[nyrsuck26]

Here's a question...

How exactly would one dump Vanderbeek (who owns the team)??

[Motorcity Devil]

By dump, I am assuming you mean trade or get some other (equal) value for players that have time left on their contract.

For the record, I mis-typed two votes - Brodeur should stay, unless he wants to go (and we get fair value for him); dump MacAmmond as well... For some reason, neither vote showed up for me.

[Lateralous]

Only guys to keep are

Greene

Zubie

Zach

Ilya

Travis (He has to get better in playoffs (lets hope it was an injury))

Martin

Patty

Langs (w/o JL)

Zharkov

Pelley

JLx3

Marty

Plus Rookies (Eckford,Fraser, Corrente)

So bascially you want to see the exact same core again next year?

Depending on what Martin wants $$$, I wouldn't mind replacing him with another D-man out of free agency as part of a total rebuild of the defense. We can't go another year with the redundancy of having both White and Salvador in the back when they make as much as they do but we'll probably need at least one of them back (presumably White because of his NTC).

Also, depending on what Langenbrunners issue is, he might waive his NTC for the right deal. I would ship his ass out because he's still got some trade value.

[Scott O]

I wouldn't be upset if Kovalchuk wasn't in a Devils uniform next year. Great player - just doesn't fit here.

[redruM]

I'm shocked so many people give Elias a pass... IMHO he has outlived his stay in NJ, time to chacnge the core that remain from '03

Elias, Pando, White & Marty.. time for all to go

[njdevil26]

Here's my take:

#2 Mark Fraser- Keep Him- He could replace White (See #5, White). He is young and has some talent. He seems to be able to chip in a goal here and there which is a big thing. He's also a guy who hasn't won anything and should have the drive. Give him a whole season back there to mature. There's also the option to put him back in Lowell which isn't a bad idea.

#5 Colin White- DUMP Him- Never really liked the guy. Obviously he played better before his eye injury and that's not something I can personally fault him for. But he lacks the mobility that I'd like to see in a defenseman. He has absolutely no offensive skill and any goal he ever scores is pure luck. 3 million would also come off the books if he is traded. I think some team would take him.

#6 Andy Greene- Keep Him- How could anyone honestly say dump him after the year he has had?

#7 Paul Martin- Keep Him- I'm never happy when someone gets injured, but I think it would be a good thing if his injury and absence from the Olympics hurts his value. There's also not a good list of UFA for defenseman out there this year. He is also a great puck moving defenseman; something right now the Devils can't afford to get rid of.

#8 Dainius Zubrus- Keep Him- I'm glad he stepped up and stopped everyone from the constant sh!t he gets on a regular basis from some fans. He's a very good player. Everyone wanted him to put up 60-70 points as Gomez's replacement but he is not that type of player. If he plays the whole season next year like he played the second half/playoffs, we'll be happy to have him again. He should be the right winger on Zach and Travis' line.

#9 Zach Parise- Keep Him- Of course you keep our future captain. He's going to have to learn how to battle big defenseman. He does a decent job, but he is going to be targeted every game. I don't blame his point total drop on Lemarie, I blame it on the fact that everyone in this league knows to keep him in check now that he is very dangerous.

#10 Rod Pelley- DUMP Him- He does nothing for me. Will really almost never put points up on the board. He is pretty much not a center anymore and admitted he likes playing wing better. I don't see a place for him.

#11 Dean McAmmond- DUMP Him- He was good for us at times. But he has hands of stone and is not much of a physical player besides when he had his mid-life crisis moment and beat down the Blue Jacket player.

#12 Brian Rolston- What Can You Do?- If Rolston was getting paid 2.5-3 million, this would be easier to say keep him. But he's not. He gets over 5 mil. He chipped in with 20 goals this year but his lack of effort and inability to score big time goals and get to loose pucks, play physical on the boards, and a list of other things make me not want to see him next year. But there are little to no options. Trading would be the best. He's got a No Movement Clause and his contract is very unattractive. Sending him down to the minors wouldn't get off the books. I think TG said that. If he retires, he stays on the books because of the older player contract rules. Buying him out can be a last resort and would save some cap room if you absolutely can't trade him.

#15 Jamie Langenbrunner- Keep Him Maybe- No more captaincy. He became a whiny little girl at the end of the season and he completely stopped playing and contributing. Maybe it had something to do with his problems with the coach? Or maybe he's on the decline after his career year LAST year. Remember the Langs that scored 6 goals in 3 games for us down the stretch in the 08-09 season? He's gone. I wouldn't mind him as a third line right winger for a checking line that could score some goals. He can be made to disappear if all else fails.

#17 Ilya Kovalchuk- Keep Him- If the price is right. People have to understand that the Kovalchuk of Atlanta is not going to be the same player on a winning team. He has to spend a lot of time learning to play with teammates and meshing with a system. I think he was great for us. But if he tries to win it all himself and skate through five defenders like he did with Atlanta, that's not going to cut it on any contenders team let alone us. I say Keep him. Definitely. Giving him a summer of working out and training camp with the Devils will do him good.

#18 Vladimir Zharkov- Keep Him- He's a good young player. It's a mystery why he hasn't scored yet. He has had the opportunities but gets no puck luck. He skates hard and he's a very fast player. Put him with a capable center and we'll see what he's made of.

#19 Travis Zajac- Keep Him- He still has some things to learn. He's not the best in the faceoff circle (when he's lucky enough not to get kicked out of it) but has the tools to remain our number one center. He HAS to be Zach's center. Both of their production was less after they were split up. He's fast, starting to become physical, and is developing a great shot.

#20 Jay Pandolfo- DUMP Him- Just no reason for him to be here anymore.

#21 Rob Niedermayer- DUMP Him- Please get the HELL out of here. Shows no emotion, no physical play, not enough offensive ability, very slow, USELESS. I don't care if he wins faceoffs because he will give the puck up right after that.

#22 Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond- Keep Him- He can be our Peters. Once in a while playing a tough opponent stick him in he lineup. He's a decent enforcer that can actually skate.

#23 David Clarkson- Keep Him- Hopefully he finds his game again. He really fell off the map after his injury and into the playoffs. Hopefully the new season will help him get on track. He can score 15-20 goals and be a physical player... But for the love of god, SEND HIM TO A SKATE COACH.

#24 Bryce Salvador- Keep Him- Keep him, lose White. Salvador has been pretty good for us and can provide veteran leadership to what will probably be a younger team next year.

#25 Andrew Peters- DUMP Him- He can't get away with what he used to in the new NHL. He has scored 5 goals in 6 years in the league and provides nothing to any roster. He wasn't finishing his checks, wasn't fighting much, is a slow skater, and can't score.

#26 Patrik Elias- Keep Him- He doesn't get a free pass. He's a sourpuss at all of the team events and that's annoying. His play on the ice needs to get tweaked. He is in his own little world where people know when and where his little drop passes and dump ins are going to be. SHOOT THE PUCK Patty. Every time he shot the puck as a last resort it ended up in the net. He should be scoring 30 goals for us.

#27 Mike Mottau- DUMP Him- He's a nice guy and could be a decent #5 or 6 guy, but this is the time to bring the young guys up. He is not going to contribute too much to the score sheet and has boneheaded mistakes that lead to a lot of opposing goals.

#28 Martin Skoula- DUMP Him- He was decent when he was first traded for, but started falling off the grid afterwards. He is slow and does not provide any offense.

#29 Anssi Salmela- Keep Him- Give him the whole summer working with Scott Stevens and Larry Robinson and this kid could be big for us next year. He can move the puck and has a rocket of a shot. He just has to learn how to play a team game and use his skills in a positive way.

#30 Martin Brodeur- Keep Him- The usual; reduce his work load so he doesn't get tired. This playoff loss was not his fault. But he is going to need to be replaced soon.

#35 Yann Danis- Half and Half- If the Devils think they have a young goalie that might be the next starter, then so long Danis. But if it's another year where Marty is going to run the show, then keep him.

On defense: Tyler Eckford, Matt Corrente, Matt Taormina, and ALEXANDER URBOM should get legitimate shots to crack the lineup next year.

On offense: Mattias Tedenby should be given a shot along with Matt Halischuk, Alexander Vasyunov, and Nick Palmieri.

Still, a #2 center needs to be signed. We won't see Josefson for another year. Matt Lombardi is a free agent. He will command between 1.5 and 3.5 on the market and he should be looked at. He is ridiculously fast and could be a good center between Elias and Kovalchuk.

I'm shocked so many people give Elias a pass... IMHO he has outlived his stay in NJ, time to chacnge the core that remain from '03

I'm not ready to say this. But you might be right. I still want to give him a shot at an injury free year. He did under Brent Sutter and was pretty good.

[Jerrydevil]

Kovalchuk was not "great" for us. Your standards are too low.

[Pepperkorn]

Dump anyone you can upgrade. Im not a fan of dumping on principal. But I do think it's possible to upgrade nearly everyone on this roster, Parise and Brodeur excluded -- it would be nice to keep Kovaluchuk. I wasn't quite that harsh - but really, realistically, there's just not a hell of a lot to lose on this team.

Edited April 23, 2010 by Pepperkorn

[njskaguy33]

Dump List

Langs : It's not that I don't like the guy, but he should be traded for a 2/3 defenseman or a number 2 center, whichever you can get. While his playoff stock is low, a young team looking to add Captain America would be well served in in moving some assets for him. A package for Rolston would be lovely, but I doubt there's a team out there that would do that swap. Still, Langs should hit the pavement and let Parise get the C already.

Rolston : Another one who has to hit the road. I was the biggest supporter of Rolston going into this season, but he just doesn't have the wheels for the new NHL and his shot has fallen off the wagon. Not sure what you could get for him, but I would take picks and strong prospects at this point. However, this is all contingant on resigning Kovy...if Kovy goes, Rolly may have to stay by default.

Lemaire : This is a tough one for me, as I really think the guy did all he could within his rigid system, but that's the problem. This team has no flexability and that's all on the coaching. The Devs lost not due to a lack of talent or even a lack of drive; they lost because they couldn't adapt to the way the Flyers play. The team needs a paradigm shift and that all starts with the coaching. While I do agree the team needs to maintain an identity, Lemaire's identity is not the right one...Sutter was the right identity, wrong guy. Still, I don't think this shift is going to happen anytime soon, so this is all hot air.

Pando : No reason other than it's just time.

Peters : Because he's my least favorite Devil of all time.

Disposable but who cares either way:

McAmmond, Pelly, Neidermayer.

Everybody else should stick around, maybe so we can actually play in the regular season like we do in the playoffs. This team is built like a 6/7 seed and if we actually play that way, maybe we could get a draft pick higher than, say, 25th. All those yelling for a youth movement has to realize you need quality youth to make a difference. Sucking for a while and drafting high is the only way you can initiate this youth movement and that's not going to happen until the aforementioned paradigm shift occurs.

Edited April 23, 2010 by Bulletproof

[MantaRay]

For those who don't read the NY Daily News...after each major team's final game, they run a reader poll called Keep 'Em or Dump 'Em. I doubt they'll care enough to do one for the Devils, so here's one for us.

The idea is simple, who do you want still on this team next year, and who do you not want on the team anymore? This does not take into account contract status, how a player would be retained or removed from the roster, salary cap...none of that.

Vote either keep 'em or dump 'em for each player. I'm sure I know who the unanimous keeps and dumps will be, but there's some that I'm interested to see the results for.

Great poll Last!