While it certainly won’t be the same and the stakes aren’t nearly as high, it still will generate a lot of excitement tonight at the Prudential Center in Newark when these teams square off. The electricity in the building will certainly be there and the fans will be loud and it will truly feel like one of those playoff-type regular season games everyone enjoys. It certainly won’t cure all the ill wills of the recent lockout, but it will ease the recovery process some for the fans.

Will it be a brawl at the beginning or a high scoring affair?  Most likely, somewhere in between, but sit back and enjoy it!!!

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The Devils, like many teams have struggled for consistency in the first eight games. A pleasant surprise continues to be the production generated from the CBGB line, carrying over from their success in last years playoffs. Ryan Carter, Stephen Gionta and Steve Bernier continue to not only hold their own against their competition but have been scoring pretty regularly as well. Look at Sunday’s 3-0 triumph over the Islanders and you will see the first two goals, including the PP game winner) were scored by Bernier. Gionta has been an integral part of the PK unit and Carter has chipped in there too. When you add it all up, it’s almost hard to fathom how well these guys have done considering one was a career minor leaguer (Gionta), one was a waiver claim (Carter) and the other was a training camp tryout last season (Bernier).  It’s hard to create these stories but it certainly isn’t hard to appreciate these players and their blue collar approach and work ethic and they are very easy to root for.

If the CBGB line can continue its success it gives the Devils an edge in depth as the teams that get production from all four lines seem to be the ones that have the most success come playoff time. It is no coincidence their performance in the 2012 playoffs helped lead the Devils to the Stanley Cup Finals.

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It is definitely a good thing Adam Larsson returned to the lineup both for the short and long-term benefits of the franchise. Simply put, the Devils don’t have anyone on the current roster that can match the vision and play-making potential of the young Swede. I see no reason for him to be out of the lineup going forward and expect growth to continue in the mold of Victor Hedman of the Tampa Bay Lightning.  Larsson should be a stalwart on the Devils blue line for many years to come.

On the other hand, I’m a little perplexed by the fact that Stefan Matteau has been kept around. If the plan was to let him play five games and have him hang around a little longer, wouldn’t he have been better served to play in three or four games, then practice and get a last chance to work on what he’s learned in a game before he goes back to juniors?  I see the benefit to an extent of him practicing with the team but the window of  that benefit seems to be closing in my opinion as the 18 year old simply needs to play. If the plan is to keep him long-term in the NHL, then he needs to get back in the lineup to experience things like tonight’s rivalry.  Overall, I think the best thing for both him and the team long-term is to send him back to the juniors, which may indeed be the plan after watching the intensity of tonght’s matchup.  Remember, in GM Lou Lamoriello I trust, so I have little doubt he has a plan for Matteau.

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That’s all for this installment, I’ve had a lot going on in my personal life, so it’s been tough to write much, but I threw together this one in anticipation of tonight’s matchup, looking for Ilya Kovalchuk to rise to the occasion and have a big game tonight.

Also, will try to send out some more random NJ Devils facts on the Twitter feed in the coming days/weeks, etc, so keep an eye on that and follow me for my Devils ramblings @LEVINAKL.

If you are a player, do you really feel like you “won”?  C’mon now, let’s be realistic for a minute, the players have lost 34/82ths of their paychecks, not to mention missing out on all the growth revenue that comes with the now non-existent Winter Classic and All-Star games that fell victim to the work stoppage. Add to that all of the casual fans that have spent their entertainment dollars elsewhere and it’s easy to see that players will likely “lose” further with escrow payments when revenues inevitably fall short of projections.

As for the owners, they don’t really fare all that much better, especially in the short-term, as they have lost all that revenue and garnered all the ill will that came with the lockout.  While you could make the argument they will better off with the financial terms of this CBA in the long run, I don’t see how anyone can argue they benefited from the lockout, even with the gain in share of HRR from 43% to 50%.  After all, 43% of a projected 3.3 billion in revenues is a lot more than 50% of say, $2 billion.

Let’s not overlook the real losers of the lockout and that’s the average people out there that have their income tied to the National Hockey League.  Whether it’s your ticket takers, vendors, suppliers, team employees or local bars/restaurants near NHL arenas etc, these are the people that truly lost the most from this madness.  Unfortunately, most of them will be unable to get back what was lost from the loss of 34 regular season games 3-5 preseason home dates as well.

Whom do you ask “won” the lockout of 2013?  The answer is easy and can be summed up in one word…. Lawyers.  Lots of billable hours.  Sure, you may find some things that help a few owners and/or players, but at the end of the day, too much money and time was “wasted” on lawyers.  You can even add Gary Bettman and Donald Fehr to the mix, as they are both attorneys as well.   Beyond that, I don’t see anyone having won.  What do you guys think?

Who are the real losers in all this?  The non-millionaires and non-billionaires, such as the face behind Stanley C. Panther, who was laid off by the Florida Panthers last month, and countless others that count on NHL games being played in order to earn a living, such as all of the front office staff, vendors and arena personnel that need the hockey-related income to pay their rent and/or mortgages based on that income will now need to find another alternative, if they even can in a down economy.

And why?  Because owners and players can’t decide on how best to share a league record $3-plus BILLION (yes, BILLION with a B) revenue pool.  But, in reality, the joke may end up ultimately on the players and owners, as all of the time they have wasted by alienating the paying customer (i.e. THE FAN), has given fans time to figure out where else they can spend their hard earned money.  It has allowed big cash-spending corporations that whine and dine clients to find an alternate avenue for those entertainment dollars.  Last lockout, there was some sympathy for a system that found itself flawed and needed fixing.  This time, it seems more apparent that the owners can’t control themselves and that the NHLPA is too busy trying to take the high moral ground. Not only have the sides solved the problems, both are giving the impression they are too concerned with trying to show their resolve to the public and try to “win” the negotiation, rather than concerning themselves with the bigger picture.

I had a US history professor back when I was taking a “Development of the United States” history class when I was at Rutgers University.  He would always talk about Henry Clay, the Kentucky senator and former Secretary of State from the 1800′s.  The professor would always refer to Clay as “the man who would rather be right, than be President,” implying how Clay would get too caught up in the details and his ego, rather than perhaps taking a step back and looking at the big picture, costing him the chance at the Presidency.  Compare the case of Henry Clay to that of Commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA head Donald Fehr and you begin to see both now may be a little too caught up in trying to “win” the negotiation, rather than focusing on what it might take to get the league back playing again.  Beyond that, the more they fight, the pool of money continues to most likely decline, meaning they are probably biting their nose to spite their face so to speak.  And despite the potential impact of the lockout, neither side has been making offers or even seemingly having any real negotiations on the most important issues.

When you add it all up, the fans continue to being taken for granted here.  I’d love to say there’s a way for the fans to “strike back” and protest to remind both the owners and NHLPA where their revenue dollars come from.  I just don’t see a chance this could actually be pulled off, as much as I’d love to be proven wrong.  Anyhow, this past weekend should have been all about Opening Night festivities and thinking about what might transpire in the season ahead.  Maybe Donald Fehr and the NHLPA and Gary Bettman and the NHL will get it together, leave their egos out of the mix, sit down and get a deal done for the good of the owners, players, workers, and paying customers.  If the league is dumb enough to have its third lockout in 17 years, it isn’t dumb enough to cancel it’s second season in seven years, is it?  After seeing what we’ve seen thus far, I’m not sure if they are or aren’t that dumb, unfortunately time will ultimately tell.

Sadly, this September, the hockey talk has been mostly limited to the likely lockout we are headed for about at the end of this week. Fans never really want nor should have to worry about labor disputes within the very sport their disposable incomes and fandom help fund. After all, the old adage of millionaires versus billionaires fighting over their share of billions of dollars of revenue doesn’t carry a lot of weight or garner a whole lot of sympathy with the average hockey fan, and nor should it.  Let’s not overlook the fact the world economy hasn’t exactly been flying high the last few years.

If you think you’ve seen this script play out before, you would be correct. Flash back to 1994 and the NHL was on the verge of exploding into the mainstream of the sports landscape. The New York Rangers and New Jersey Devils had played one of the most exciting conference finals the league had ever seen, with the Rangers prevailing in a double overtime of Game 7, only to be followed by a seven game Stanley Cup championship win over the Vancouver Canucks.  While it wasn’t fun to see for this New Jersey Devil fan, it was good for the growth of the sport, and it appeared hockey might finally gain traction and gain fans across the board in the United States. How did Commissioner Gary Bettman and his band of owners follow up the potential springboard of 1994? A lockout, postponing the season until January, and crippling any momentum generated from the year before.

Fast forward to 2004, when the Tampa Bay Lightning won their first Stanley Cup, playing to packed houses in the postseason in Florida, a warm climate many thought would never embrace an ice hockey team. Others like Carolina, Dallas and Anaheim were also top contenders then. Not only did Bettman and the team owners shoot themselves in the foot by locking out the players, they proceeded to lose the entire 2004-05 season as a result of it, and the Stanley Cup wasn’t awarded for 2005, a definite black eye for a sport that really couldn’t afford a lost season.

The league cried poverty and the need for “cost certainty.”. After losing an entire season, the NHLPA all but caved in, accepting a 24% rollback to its salaries, and tied the salary cap to a percentage of hockey related revenue. After all, playing at a reduced salary is better than not playing at all, right? So, it seemed things were in a much better place, and it seems as if hockey revenue has exploded the last few years, thanks in part to a large television contract from Comcast/NBC, as well as high ticket sales and merchandise sales from its dedicated fan base.  So, the cost certainty the league practically pleaded for seven years ago is now causing the owners to once again demand givebacks from the players once again.

Gary Bettman has been forced to fall on the NHL’s sword for his owners that pay him an $8 million salary to basically be the “bad guy” for public perception.  Sure, he’s offered to decline his salary if there is a lockout, but let’s face it, that’s little more than a PR move.  The fans can hate Gary Bettman all they want, but in the end, let’s keep thing in perspective.  He works for the ownership group, and does what they want him to do.  It’s not like Gary Bettman is unilaterally creating this lockout, it’s come down from his bosses, both the Board of Governors and the ownership group as a whole. 

The real conflict seems to be within the ownership group, more specifically, the haves and the have nots.  In some cases, the big market teams like Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago, NY Rangers, Toronto, Vancouver and others are thriving, but do not want to share revenues with the teams that aren’t doing as well financially, whether its Florida, Nashville, NY Islanders, etc.  Make no mistakes, it’s all about G-R-E-E-D.  If you look at the other professional sports, the National Football League model seems to be the most just and fair, allowing all 32 teams to thrive and succeed by sharing revenues more so than other sports.  Yes, some team make more than others thanks to stadium ownership and/or local sponsorship deals, but the disparity is not as great as it is in the NHL.

So, rather than share record setting revenues across the board with some of the teams that need it, the owners are going back to the players to essentially try and take away salaries from the player base.  Let’s remember, no player has a salary that wasn’t offered to them by an owner.  I’m not typically a pro-union guy for the most part (not trying to turn this into a political discussion), but this seems to be such a no-brainier, it’s painfully obvious at least to me.  When you look at everything collectively, its hard not to feel for us die hard hockey fans. Sure, we could say we will try to spend our entertainment dollars elsewhere, but there lies the biggest problem, because as much as I would like to say I will not come back to spend my money on hockey, I’m smart enough to realize it isn’t going to happen, I’d be punishing myself if I stopped watching. So, the league and players basically has us die hard fans by the horns and will be the people who clearly suffer the most from any labor disputes.

Should the NHL care about its fans and do right by them?  Yes, of course they should. After all, the fans are the paying customer. There will be a lot of lip service once the new labor peace is achieved, but I don’t expect anything beyond words, and it will be a last cruel reminder of the NHL pecking order.  The owners make the money, share a large chunk with the players, but it’s all squeezed out of the pockets of the fans who support their teams.

There is no possible chance the fan base will grow from the result of a lockout.  The National Hockey League must be smart enough to realize this.  It’s the only real saving grace one might have in regards to the possibility of there not being a significant work stoppage.  It’s easy to talk tough before you get to a real deadline and unfortunately, in most situations of this type, the real meaningful and meaty discussions don’t take place until the last minute.

However, when you see events being cancelled/postponed, such as the annual New Jersey Devils alumni charity golf outing, it makes you wonder if the owners do get it.  There’s been plenty of talk about the fans trying to “rally” around the issues to remind the league of where it’s money comes from, but I wonder as to how successful it might be or what impact it could have.  Let’s hope the owners and NHLPA can come to a resolution in the very near future so we as fans can talk about what really matters, and that’s what takes place on the ice.

There is no doubt money was an obvious factor in the process.  Parise didn’t try to hide that fact, but let’s get a little perspective here for a minute.  While the Philadelphia Flyers were rumored to have offered the most money, I think it is at least a fair guess the Devils’ offer was not as high as Minnesota’s, so while money certainly was a factor, it wasn’t the primiary factor.  I truly do believe it wasn’t about the money.  There was definitely a lot more at work here.  First, GM Lou Lamoriello claimed Parise’s agent never came back to the Devils inquiring about more money for his client.  In fact, it was pretty clear that Parise had a difficult time choosing between the Devils and Wild.  It seems obvious to me that Ryan Suter and Zach Parise shared the idea of playing together in the NHL for quite some time, but probably figured it was a fantasy that never would happen.  However, the offers came fast and furious from all sides.  It’s said Parise had interest from 20 teams and received 16 or 17 offers.

During the season, Suter and Parise had thought about it and thought about it, but Suter limited the field by not wanting to come East.  His wife is from Minnesota and Suter had no interest to join the Eastern Conference, preferring to stay in the West, and had strong interest from Minnesota and Detroit.  For Parise, it seems the only real interest was either to remain in New Jersey or to go “back home” to Minnesota.   See the overlap?  It seems Parise valued playing with his friendship and returning home, more so than the enjoyment and comfort he had from playing in New Jersey.  I don’t think it comes down to much more than that.

However, one thing to remember is the New Jersey Devils never should have let a player of Zach Parise’s caliber come anywhere close to reaching unrestricted free agency, and it backfired big time, as Zach Parise now leaves the only NHL organization he’s been a part of since he was drafted 17th overall back in 2003.  It wasn’t hard to see it coming, in fact, I documented it two years ago back in June 2010, that the Devils should have taken care of Zach when they had the chance.  When you have a player of Parise’s caliber, you don’t give him a chance to leave.

While the Devils bent over backwards to sig Ilya Kovalchuk TWICE to long-term deals in 2010, they passed on offering an extension to Parise. They passed on extending Parise’s contract, while other teams like the Flyers gave long-term extensions to Jeff Carter and Mike Richards (ironic, huh?) and the Carolina Hurricanes with Eric Staal.  There are a host of other 2003 draftees that have been locked up long before they hit free agency, such as Brent Seabrook, Marc-Andre Fleury, Dustin Brown and Dion Phaneuf, amongst others.  The Devils had their chance last off-season once again, when Parise hit restricted free agency.  Once again, the Devils and Parise only could came to terms on a one-year deal.  Well kids, when you play with fire, sometimes you get burnt, and that’s what happened to the Devils, when Parise hit unrestricted free agency and decided to go home, signing a 13-year, $98 million contract to play with the Minnesota Wild, alongside his childhood friend Ryan Suter.   I can’t imagine Parise wouldn’t have been willing to sign a long-term deal alongside Ilya Kovalchuk back in the summer of 2010, or even last off-season when he signed a one-year deal.  And now, the Devils will be hardpressed to try and replace his skill and leadership.

Now the question for Devils GM Lou Lamoriello to answer and address is how are the Devils going to replace Zach Parise?  The free agent market is pretty thin, with the likes of Alexander Semin and Peter Mueller leading the way as possible forwards to sign.  With the re-signing of Bryce Salvador, its possible the Devils could look to move a defenseman as part of a package to bring in a potential top-9 forward.  Or, they can bank on Mattias Tedenby or Steve Bernier grabbing a hold of the opportunity available to them and helping to fill the top-9 spot.

As it stands now, the top 9 forwards will be filled with the likes of Ilya Kovalchuk, Travis Zajac, Adam Henrique, David Clarkson, Patrik Elias, Jacob Josefson, and Dainius Zubrus, leaving two spots open.  One could potentially go to Petr Sykora if he is brought back as a free agent, after scoring 21 goals for the Devils this season.  It’s that 9th spot that likely needs to be filled.  My guess?  At this point, I expect a trade of a D-man (whether it’s Mark Fayne, Andy Greene, Anton Volchenkov, Henrik Tallinder I will leave to Lamoriello to decide) for a forward.  There might need to be a prospect and/or pick included depending on what forward is acquired, but that’s my guess.

My hope would be the Devils to give Alexander Semin a 1-year deal for maybe $6.5 million to play alongside Ilya Kovalchuk and add his scoring punch to help replace Zach Parise’s offense.  I’d say its unlikely to happen, but then again, Lamoriello sometimes does the type of move you least expect.

It’s been a dark week for the New Jersey Devils, but as long as Lou Lamoriello is in charge, you still have confidence that he will do what needs to be done to field a competitive team that is put into a position to be successful on an annual basis and there’s no reason to think he won’t do what needs to get done to ensure the Devils remain in the hunt next season and beyond.

WHAT DO YOU GUYS THINK? COMMENT BELOW AND/OR FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER @ LEVINAKL.

The first question originally appeared to be the easiest of the three to address and that is the goaltending position. That is, until yesterday morning when it was tweeted by Darren Dreger that Martin Brodeur had hired Pat Brisson to become his agent. This is significant only because Brodeur until now had worked without an agent (with his last couple contracts) and it seemed but a formality he and GM Lou Lamoriello would agree on a new extension at terms reasonable to both sides. At a minimum, Brodeur‘s contract will likely be more costly to the Devils, since Brodeur will now have to pay an agent. The worst case scenario is almost unthinkable and that is if Martin Brodeur truly explores unrestricted free agency and signs elsewhere.

Let’s not jump the gun here and assume Brodeur will leave, but it certainly at least raises some level of doubt as to Brodeur‘s return to New Jersey. There are a lot of different reasons why Brodeur may have chosen to hire an agent, ranging from Brodeur not wanting to be distracted by the free agency process (something he’s never had to encounter before) to having some kind of dispute with GM Lou Lamoriello and/or ownership and anywhere in between.

My guess is realiy lies more towards the side of Brodeur not wanting to physically field calls from other teams and wanting to hire someone to handle “the process.”. Ultimately, I don’t foresee Brodeur leaving, but it does leave the door to swoop in and offer him the moon if he doesn’t have a deal in place by Sunday, which seems likely at this point. Fifteen years ago, everyone assume Mark Messier was a sure bet to re-sign with the New York Rangers and the Vancouver Canucks swooped in with a three-year offer. You can’t rule out the possibility of it happening, but I still can see teams trying to “test” his loyalty to New Jersey by making substantial one or even two-year deals in upwards of 5 to 6 million per. Would Brodeur be willing to hold the Devils over the coals so to speak to get a higher contract? Its certainly possible.  In the end, you have to figure Brodeur will give the Devils an opportunity to match any contract offer a team might offer to him, and it may not even require an outright match, I think Brodeur will try and give the Devils every chance he can to be signed for a reasonable contract.

Which brings us to question number two about how the ownership situation has and will impact the Devils’ off-season. Unfortunately, it has become painfully obvious it already has had a huge impact, which is certainly more than I expected. Rumors of a Canadian partner have yet to be finalized if it hasn’t died all together. Owner Jeff Vanderbeek is on the hook to repay apparently $77 million in debt on an incredibly highly leveraged asset. Unfortunately, these days and in the current world economy, there aren’t any easy answers here.  Even with the potential new equity, these things do not happen very quickly in today’s marketplace, with banks requiring extra due diligence and questions requiring answers.

Reports of the Devils being unable to make loan payments have created an ugly cloud of uncertainty hovering over the team. There has even been talk of bankruptcy as well as an infusion of more than $30 million of additional income earned from the recent playoff run. Basically without access to their financial information, the current situation of the Devils is hard to determine.  While I still think ultimately the team and owner Jeff Vanderbeek will work through their problems, whether it is by refinancing debt, bringing in new equity or a combination of the two, or a third option, I do expect a happy ending.  However, the process will take time to work its way through and because of it, the Devils are forced to work off of a very firm budget.  It has made it more difficult to sign free agents, bringing us to the number one question of the offseason and that has to do with where both Zach Parise and Martin Brodeur will play next season.

As far as Parise‘s situation seems, it appears clear all else being equal, Parise would prefer to remain a New Jersey Devil, which makes sense for a variety of reasons. He’s happy in New Jersey, they play a system designed to maximize Parise‘s skill set and he’s team captain in a locker room that gets along great.  With Ilya Kovalchuk set to earn $11 million next season (and ten plus the next six seasons), it is the budget, and not the salary cap that is impacting the Devils’ ability to sign Parise.  I think Parise will listen to all the offers available to him on July 1st and will come back to GM Lou Lamoriello with a number he would find acceptable to him.  He is known for his loyalty and I think he’d ideally like to finish his career as a Devil, with his #9 eventually being lifted to the rafters alongside the numbers of other Devils legends.  That’s the way both Zach and the Devils faithful would like it to play out, with hopefully multiple Stanley Cup titles along the way.  The ball is in the hands of Devils’ ownership and management to make it happen to avoid what might become the worst day in team history.  Call me naive if you like, but I still think that will ultimately happen, and both Zach Parise and Martin Brodeur will play for the New Jersey Devils next year. 

First, Steve Bernier had been brought in for a training camp tryout but did not make the Opening Day roster before spending time and getting injured in Albany. While recovering from injury, the Devils claimed Ryan Carter off waivers from the Florida Panthers on October 26th.  When Bernier was finally recalled from Albany and signed to an NHL contract on January 30th, two pieces of the puzzle were in place.  However, it was not until a fateful injury to Jacob Josefson’s wrist by former Devil Jay Pandolfo’s stick that the final spot was ultimately filled. Stephen Gionta was called up to fill the fourth line role for the final regular season game on April 7th, and right from the start, Gionta worked magic with his teammates, scoring his first career NHL goal in his first NHL game of the season.

As good as the fourth line started to get down the stretch of the regular season, it was in the playoffs that it became magical.  Right off the bat, Ryan Carter scored the game winning goal in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against Florida.  The three would combine for five of the Devils’ 18 goals in the series helping the Devils get past the first round.  In 24 games over the course of four series, they would combine for 10 goals, 11 assists and played at a plus-11, with 142 hits and 16 blocks.  Quite simply, the Devils wouldn’t have won a round, let alone make the Stanley Cup Final without the contributions of the “CBGB – (Carter, Bernier, Gionta’s Brother) Line.”

News came out on Friday that all three have re-signed with the Devils, so the three will return.  The question is, can the three players come close to sustaining their success from last year’s playoffs over the grind of an 82-game season?  Keep in mind, Gionta has only played in 13 regular season games, scoring his first point this year with the goal in his only game.  Bernier has scored 77 goals and added 88 assists in 417 career games, while Carter has 18 goals and 25 assists in 254 games.  Then again, the Devils won’t be counting on the three for a lot of offensive production, but they will need to play the hard forechecking game they displayed in the playoffs.  It won’t be as easy to do in the regular season, but with two-year one-way (at least for 2012-13 in Gionta’s case) deals, they definitely will be expected to maintain production.

You have to be happy for Stephen Gionta, who will now get his first full year of NHL salary after laboring in the minors for the better part of the last six years.  he is a reminder that hard work can pay off.  Steve Bernier will have a lot to prove too, coming off a Game 6 against the Kings when he committed the penalty that left the team trailing by 3 goals.  I’m not going to reopen the debate of the penalty, what’s done is done, but it’s nice to see him rewarded for his body of work over the course of the season rather than having one terrible moment held against him (I wouldn’t expect any less from the classy Lou Lamoriello).  Ryan Carter was on waivers this past October and probably wondered what his NHL future might be like.  Eight months later, he was playing in the Stanley Cup Final.

They’ve all overcome their share of adversity, but the CBGB line  will need to continue and persevere with hard work, and while it will be hard to duplicate the magic they displayed in the playoffs, they should be able to make solid contributions for the Devils, helping to gain momentum, make big hits and chip in some occasional offense in the coming season.  They will have to continue to earn their playing time and take nothing for granted, or they could find themselves in the minors.  Knowing what they all endured to get to this point, I don’t expect that to be a problem.

First, Zharkov and Corrente are easy to deal with, as I don’t expect them to receive a contract for higher than their qualifying offer, leaving them both two choices.  Either sign the offer or do not, and while Zharkov may look to play in Russia next season, I don’t think either will have a problem with the qualifying offers per se, as much as they may not see the opportunity for playing time in New Jersey that they might want.  Beyond that, I don’t see anything really changing with the financial offer itself.

That brings us to Mark Fayne’s contract, which has recently gotten a little more complicated with recent news of wrist surgery that will keep him out 3-4 months.  There has been a lot of analysis out there about the kind of contract Fayne should expect to get, including this one at the website In Lou We Trust, which was prepared before the injury was announced.  Article aside, I think Fayne’s usefulness was often overlooked by Devils faithful, as he didn’t necessarily have gaudy numbers, but became a very good shutdown defenseman, alongside the underappreciated Andy Greene.

In the playoffs, the Greene/Fayne combo helped shut down the big lines of opponents in the first three rounds.  While they slipped up a bit in the finals, Fayne still posted a +5 rating in his 24 games, along with three assists.  Throughout the regular season, Fayne provides solid support around the net and utilizes his size against opponents.  He’s playing his best hockey when he goes unnoticed, which is unfortunately why his mistakes usually stand out more than his normally solid play.  His offensive game is also underrated as Fayne has shown the ability to get his shot through from the point and good passing skills as way.

Although the ILWT feature suggests Fayne might receive a contract in the neighborhood of two years and $5 million, I think the Devils should give Fayne a three year $6 million contract.  The only thing potentially holding Fayne back come October will be his health, and while he is expected to be back in time for Opening Night, it could potentially decrease his contract slightly.  I think some of the Devils fans and media overlook the contributions Fayne makes for the team.  I’m not trying to make Fayne out to be a superstar by any means, but he should remain a valuable piece for the Devils for years to come.

COMING SOON:  A look at the Devils 4th line

After four rounds of playoffs this year, one thing was quite apparent throughout the postseason, and that was that the Devils were definately a tough team for opponents to play against. Players like Alexei Ponikarovsky used their size to win puck battles along the boards to help wear down opponents. In no series was this more clear than against the Philadelphia Flyers, where the Devils wore down and frustrated the Flyers by seemingly winning every battle and by taking advantage of created opportunities on a regular basis to generate goals. Alexei Ponikarovsky scored just one goal during the playoffs, but it was a big one, an overtime winner in Game 3 of the second round to help give the Devils a huge edge in the series.

While Ponikarovsky scored just nine points in the 24 playoff games, five of them were on game winning goals, including his OT goal and both of Adam Henrique’s OT winners. Basically, he didn’t get a point often, but when he did, it was usually a HUGE one. He is a player who plays a solid all around game, and at age 32, coming off a 1-year contract at $1.5 million, I’m sure Lamoriello would be happy to sign Ponikarovsky to a similar deal. However, my guess is he will expect a multi-year deal if he were to hit the open market.

With higher priority free agents needing to be sorted out, I can’t see the Devils signing Ponikarovsky before Sunday, which likely will lead to his departure, even if the team might have offered him something in the neighborhood of 2 years and $4 million ($2 mil per). My guess is he will get a 3-year deal for more than 2 mil per as a free agent, and even though I’d prefer his return to the Devils, I don’t expect it. Ultimately, sometimes a guy is a better player for a playoff run than to have for an entire season and I think Alexei Ponikarovsky may fall into that category. I don’t see the Devils overpaying for that.

As for Petr Sykora, he was the ultimate low risk, high reward signing by GM Lou Lamoriello before training camp. 21 goals and 23 assists later (in all 82 regular season games), Sykora was everything you could possibly ask for at the bargain price of $650,000. While he certainly isn’t the fastest skater, Sykora uses his experience to often make up for his lack of speed with good positioning and rarely gets caught defensively except when he sometimes gets outmuscled. He does not  get outworked too often. His best asset is clearly his ability to shoot and he still has amazing chemistry with Patrik Elias. Assuming his salary demands are not that far off last year, I think Sykora is likely to return to a second or third line role alongside Elias.

I don’t expect Sykora to sign well into the summer and it likely will come down to how much he’s willing to sign for. If his demands are too high, the Devils and Lamoriello will likely turn elsewhere. My guess at a reasonable deal is for one year and around a million dollars, perhaps slightly less, although there may be another team out there that might offer him more.

COMING SOON:  A look at the Devils’ restricted free agents

If you take a look at the Albany Devils roster at the AHL level from last season, the names that jump out having a chance to make the NHL roster are forwards Mattias Tedenby and Vladmir Zharkov as well as defenseman Matt Corrente, Eric Gelinas, Alexander Urbom and Matt Taormina.  If you want to go beyond just the minor leagues, the name Jon Merrill comes to the forefront.  Let’s take a look at these seven players and rate their chances of contributing with the Devils next season.

Matt Corrente:  The former 1st round pick in 2006 has almost become an afterthought to an extent, as injuries have derailed thus far what was once thought to be a promising future.  At this point, you wonder if a fresh start with a new organization might be best for Corrente, but that won’t happen through free agency, as the Devils gave him a qualifying offer.  His experience at the NHL level could leave a spot open for the 7th defenseman role potentially, or even as an injury fill-in.

Eric Gelinas:  Gelinas is a converted forward who turned into a defenseman, who was drafted in the 2nd round of the 2009 draft by the Devils (54th overall).  Listed at 6’4″ 205 lbs, the 21-year old Ontario native appears to have a bright future ahead of him.  Coming off a season that saw Gelinas score 16 goals and added 21 assists in his first professional season in 75 games, leaves you wondering what kind of offensive potential Gelinas might add to the team.  However, with just one professional season under his belt and at least six NHL defenseman under contract for next season (including the qualified Mark Fayne), there doesn’t appear to be a place for Gelinas next season as a regular.

Jon Merrill:  I’ve covered the future of Jon Merrill earlier, and I don’t think even if he decides to turn pro (which isn’t expected), it would be an awful lot to ask of Merrill to jump right in at the NHL level for two major reasons.  The first is, similar to stated above, there doesn’t appear to be a roster spot in the regular lineup open for him.  More importantly, with the troubles he had this past year, you would think he needs some more playing time to hone his skills before making a real push to join the National Hockey League.

Matt Taormina:  Taormina has had his share of experience for the Devils thus far, playing in 47 games over the last two seasons.  Injuries cost Taormina a lot of time during the 2010-11 season, but his 5’9″ 190 lb size seems to be the biggest thing holding him back at this point, as he was moved off the puck a little at times this past season.  His future is probably of a NHL tweener, and it shows with him being named an AHL All-Star last season.  It will be curious to see what kind of interest he garners on the free agency market this summer, but if he returns to New Jersey, I expect him to be in the mix for that seventh defenseman spot and a possible injury fill-in as well.

Mattias Tedenby:  It is a story of two vastly different seasons for Tedenby, who showed such promise during the 2010-11 second half surge, but he could not carry that over to last season.  Part of the problem was opportunity this past year, but most of it was the fact Tedenby couldn’t finish the offensive chances he helped to generate, and also getting manhandled defensively, leading to a disastrous plus/minus of -15 in 43 NHL games.  It was overdue in my opinion for Tedenby to be given the opportunity to work out his problems in the AHL, but even that didn’t work out as well as one might have hoped, as Tedenby continued some struggles down there (although he did pick up his game a bit towards the end of the season).  This will be a key campaign for Tedenby, as he will need to take that next step, even if that is showing he can dominate the AHL level.  If the NHL opportunity is not there, the Devils should consider leaving him in Albany to get first-line minutes.  However, if the NHL opportunity is there, Tedenby needs to grab control of it and not allow himself to lose it by playing a strong offensive game and not being a defensive liability.

Alexander Urbom: Another player the Devils seem to be high on for the long-term, Urbom has 13 NHL games of experience and has scored two goals, giving a glimpse of his offensive skill.  It’s the overall game of the 6’4″ 215 lb Swedish native that gives the Devils such hope for the 21-year old Swedish native.  Urbom replaced Taormina as an AHL All-Star last season, and had a solid year, posting 2 goals and 21 assists in 72 AHL games, while posting a -9 plus/minus on a non-playoff team.  A lot of Urbom’s future will hinge on openings at the NHL level and as potential trade bait, but I think another year at the AHL level is in the cards for him, unless an injury creates a need for Urbom with the Devils.  I’d rather bring up a guy like him a little late than to bring him up too early, especially since he has a pretty high ceiling.

Vladmir Zharkov: Recently qualified with an offer by the Devils to keep his restricted free agency status, Zharkov has played in 82 games over the last three seasons for New Jersey, posting 2 goals and 12 assists, but showing a lot of promise in his all around game.  I had thought he should’ve been recalled when Jacob Josefson was injured last April.  However, the Devils chose to go with Stephen Gionta, and I’d say that worked out pretty well for the playoff run.  As per the Newark Star-Ledger‘s Rich Chere, there is a chance Zharkov could play in Russia next season, which could give Zharkov a great opportunity to help his offensive confidence, because it’s hard to find much fault with the rest of his game.  At worst, I would think he could play a defensive, fourth line type of role to help build momentum, with a third line ceiling if he’s able to pick up his scoring.  At 6’1″ 205 lbs, size isn’t really an issue, and his speed is certainly NHL-caliber.  If he stays in North America, this will be a key training camp for Zharkov as he tries to break through at the NHL level.

As you can see above, while the Devils have some good high end prospects, most of them aren’t really considered ready to step in at the NHL level next season, at least not right off the bat.  You never know what kind of timetable players will need, its certainly possible a player can force the Devils to create a spot, and if so, that would be a good problem to have.  However, as it stands now, the most likely players to be counted on for contributions with the NHL team next season are Mattias Tedenby and/or Vladmir Zharkov up front, and Matt Corrente or Matt Taormina on defense.  None of those guys will be counted on as core guys, with Tedenby likely to have the highest ceiling and level of talent.

Guys like Eric Gelinas, Alexander Urbom, Jon Merrill, Stefan Matteau, Scott Wedgewood, Keith Kinkaid and Damon Severson will get their opportunities in the NHL, it just isn’t likely to begin next season in my opinion.  Obviously, how these guys train over the summer and come into training camp could accelerate the development clock, but we can re-evaluate that come training camp in September.

There weren’t many better “feel-good” stories this past season in the National Hockey League than Bryce Salvador, who came back from missing an entire season with a cochlear concussion to play in all 82 games this past regular season, as well as all 24 playoff games for the Devils.  Not only did Salvador establish himself as the solid physical defensive presence in his own end, but he added a rare scoring touch in the playoffs as well.  After a regular season that produced just nine assists, Salvador found a nice scoring touch in the postseason, scoring four goals and adding ten assists to finish second overall in postseason scoring for a defenseman.  Not only, did the Devils win all four games Salvador scored a goal, they were an amazing 10-0 when he scored a point in a game (He had four multi-point games).

Because of the success Salvador had in the playoffs, he may have priced himself off the team.  Since the Devils currently have six defensemen under contract for next season (Anton Volchenkov, Marek Zidlicky, Henrik Tallinder, Andy Greene, Mark Fayne and Adam Larsson), as well as some prospects like Eric Gelinas and Alexander Urbom knocking on the door, you have to wonder whether it makes sense to bring back a 36-year old defenseman.  Despite his great “team-first” mentality, I think it is best for the team (and its salary cap) to let Salvador see what type of offers are out there in the open market and let Salvador maximize what might amount to his last NHL contract.

Another factor against the return of Salvador is the “35+ factor” from the CBA.  Assuming the rules carry over to the new CBA, if Salvador was given a multi-year contract, his salary would count against the salary cap even if his play tailed off to the point the team wouldn’t want him on the roster.  I find it hard to believe there isn’t a team out there that will offer him a multi-year deal at a rate close, if not above his current $2.9 million salary.  I just don’t think it makes fiscal sense for the Devils to pay that out, with the types of players they have on the current roster, and the players they anticipate having on the roster in the next couple of seasons.

If I had to guess where Salvador will end up, my first guess is one of his former teams, the St. Louis Blues might look to sign him.  It’s also possible the Manitoba native could draw some interest from his hometown Winnipeg Jets, or others like the Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers or New York Islanders.  Basically, any team that can use a good defensive defenseman with great leadership skills and a locker room presence.  Take the salary cap out of the picture, and there would probably be about 25 of the 30 teams that would have interest in Salvador.  As a Devils fan, I truly respect the body of work Salvador provided to the team and will miss his toughness in front of the Devils net and on their penalty kill, and generally making it more difficult for opponents in general.

COMING SOON:  Off-season question #7

#9 Is there a succession plan for Lou Lamoriello’s eventual retirement?

It’s probably not a question many fans are thinking about or even want to think about these days, especially coming off of a Stanley Cup Final appearance, but I have to hope owner Jeff Vanderbeek has already thought about it.  Maybe Vanderbeek and Lamoriello already have a plan of how to handle when the inevitable frightful day does arrive.  Whoever eventually replaces Lamoriello, they must be prepared to fill the role because it certainly won’t be easy.  With Lamoriello turning 70 years young this October, it makes sense to at least raise the question.

As for Lamoriello’s career, it speaks for itself, whether it was hiring Rick Pitino as basketball coach at Providence College, the first commissioner of Hockey East, serving on the Board of Directors for the New York Yankees, President of the New Jersey Nets or his 20-plus year successful run with the New Jersey Devils, Lamoriello seems to be an irreplaceable executive.  His respect from around the league cannot be measured and if recent history is an indication, he once again will likely be an instrumental part of the upcoming CBA negotiations.  Quite frankly, despite the whole Kovalchuk saga of 2010, Lamoriello garners a lot of respect in the league office (and across the league) and its well deserved.  He was also voted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009. 

As for potential replacements, some people first mention Lamoriello’s son Chris, who currently runs the show in Albany, the Devils’ AHL affiliate.  Chances are, I would think the Devils might prefer someone with experience at the NHL level.  At this point, with no time table for Lamoriello’s departure, it is nearly impossible to start naming specific candidates. But, we have to keep in mind how much longer can Lamoriello sustain his current role with the Devils where he juggles so many different hats?  More importantly, will the time come that Lamoriello considers retirement?  Eventually, that day will come.

Lamoriello did share his personal organization blueprint with Dean Lombardi and it worked out quite well for Lombardi, who has had successful GM runs in San Jose and Los Angeles, not to mention beating the Devils in this year’s Stanley Cup Final.  It certainly isn’t hard to imagine that Lamoriello could help train his successor into the role and have them take over with a smooth transition. 

In the last couple of years, a lot of the non-hockey related business has been moved away from Lamoriello’s watch.  Although many did not like his old fashioned marketing style, it has definitely been a boost for the Devils, as they continue to build to their current season ticket holder base and the team has established a much bigger presence the last couple of seasons throughout the state of New Jersey, things that can only help the financial side of the business going forward, and laying a foundation ton increase the fan base.  However, make no mistakes about it, when it comes to the hockey side of things, Lamoriello has his say over everything.

Did I answer a whole lot to this question?  Probably not, but let’s hope that owner Jeff Vanderbeek and CEO/President/General Manager Lou Lamoriello do have a plan to answer the question to avoid the franchise falling back into the dark “Pre-Lou” days of the early to mid 1980′s, not exactly the best of times in New Jersey Devils history.  There has to be some type of succession plan to ensure the “Lamoriello way” carries indefinitely into a future that at some point will not include the great architect of the successful blueprint he used to help build one of the most successful organizations in recent NHL history.

Let me know your thoughts on the Devils future without Lamoriello by commenting below.

Coming soon:  Question #8 gets answered, a look at the future of Bryce Salvador.

With that, let’s jump into what I value as the tenth most pressing question to the New Jersey Devils organization in the upcoming off-season.  (NOTE:  I plan to have each of the next nine installments out hopefully a day, if not two apart, or possibly even two within the same day)

#10 When should we expect Jon Merrill to leave the University of Michigan and sign with the New Jersey Devils organization?  With that, what should we expect from the Devils in the upcoming NHL Draft weekend?

Perhaps the question is a little wordy, but there is a lot of optimism to have for Jon Merrill, rated the top prospect of the Devils by Hockey’s Future, and is considered the 27^th best prospect in the league.  His on-ice skill hasn’t been questioned by many, it’s been his maturity and off-ice issues that have led to the biggest question marks surrounding his future.  It was an off-ice incident that had Merrill suspended the first 21 games of the Michigan season last year, and it was not disclosed what it was for, although the rumor mill seems to leave the opinon that immaturity was a big reason behind it.

You would think the best course of action for Merrill for the long-term would probably be to return to Michigan for his junior year.  At this time, it appears he is undecided on how to proceed and is leaving it open pending development camp next month.  It appears he is leaning towards returning to school, but even if he does not and turns pro, it is not likely he will be expected to join the parent club, at least not right away, and would continue his development most likely at the AHL level.  If he were asking me (which he clearly is not), I’d advise him to stay for his junior season and to make sure he stays out of trouble before turning professional.

As for this weekend’s upcoming NHL Entry Draft, if you wanted to know who my pick for the Devils was, you can read it in the Hockey Independent Mock Draft.  I think the Devils are most likely to seek help at the forward position, unless one of the top defenseman falls to the 29th slot and is too good for GM Lou Lamoriello to pass up.  As in the past, it isn’t hard to think the Devils might consider trading up, as they did to draft the likes of Zach Parise, Jacob Josefson and others in recent years.  Ultimately, what draft guru David Conte and Lamoriello is hard to predict, so sit back, relax and have fun speculating whether the team will go off the typical draft boards and draft an Adrian Foster like they did in 2001, or trade up to get a sliding-down Zach Parise type in 2003, or sit at their current slot, or even look to trade down if the guys they like aren’t available.

The Devils have a lot of work to do in terms of their unrestricted free agents (more on this to come later), so I don’t expect them to be very active on the trade market at this draft, even if the likes of some guys like Rick Nash, Patrick Kane, Bobby Ryan and others might be available.  I would think the Devils would find themselves limited to either trading up or down, or even possibly trading away a future pick for a current one (or vice versa) if there is a certain player they want to target.  In other words, I wouldn’t expect anything too shocking on the trade market for the Devils at this year’s draft.

Last, in case you didn’t click over to the Mock Draft, here is my guess as to who the Devils might take at number 29:

I think Daniil Zharkov would be a good fit for the Devils.  At 6’3” 200 lbs, Zharkov has the size scouts like, and has a lot of skill to match, tantalizing scouts at times with his offensive abilities, both stick-handling and shooting. However, he does have the label of not always being “into the game,” not utilizing his size enough and too often staying to the outside and waiting for the game to come to him, rather than helping to make something happen. He sometimes doesn’t realize how best to utilize his skill set during games.  In the end, while Zharkov seems to be a bit of a project, there is a big potential payout if the time is taken to develop him and everything comes together. There definitely is a high risk, high reward feel to any team that picks Zharkov, but it is no doubt the potential high reward of why a team would pull the trigger.  He has shown improvement each year in the North American leagues, but needs to develop better hockey sense to team with a good work ethic, which will be the key in determining whether Zharkov becomes a boom or bust.  To give you an idea based on fellow Russians of the recent past, Zharkov could become anywhere from the next game breaker (Alexei Kovalev?), or the next big disappointment (Viktor Kozlov?). I think if the Devils draft Zharkov, they would give him the time he would need to develop and he could be a fine addition to the Devils’ forward prospects, especially to offset some of their current prospects up front that might be undersized such as Mattias Tedenby or even Jacob Josefson.

NHL Comparable: Alex Semin (Washington Capitals)

COMING NEXT:  Offseason Question #9, and behind it, 1 – 8

Enter Peter DeBoer as head coach.  Exit Brian Rolston and Colin White to rid the team of any salary cap issues and we can all safely say, 2010-2011 was LAST year folks. This year, there were a lot of things to feel good about. After a playoff season of 24 games, the Devils fell just two wins short of a fourth Stanley Cup title. Along the journey, the Devils defeated the Florida Panthers in 7 games in a very tight first round, blew the doors off the Philadelphia Flyers in 5 games in the second round and knocked off their rivals, the New York Rangers in 6 to win the Eastern Conference.

While the Final didn’t get the desired result, the Devils showed a ton of heart, as they attempted to rebound from a 3-0 deficit, falling short in a desperate Game 6. They came up short in their efforts to duplicate the reverse sweep accomplished only by the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs. They also were trying to become the first team since the 1966 Montreal Canadiens to lose the first two at home, yet come back to win a Stanley Cup Final.

But, even despite falling short of the shiny silver chalice, the Devils showed a ton of promise in a season many projected to be a rebuilding season for them. Amongst the highlights are the following:

• Martin Brodeur continuing to show why at age 40, he still is one of the most clutch goalies in the league today. Time and time again, he stepped up and rose to the challenge when needed most. Brodeur enjoyed this season so much, he is all but certain to return to the Devils next season, even if his workload will be expected to continue to decrease.
• Adam Henrique established himself as a star in the making. Beyond being a Calder Trophy finalist for his body of work in the regular season, he took his game to a whole new level in the post season, scoring big goal after big goal when needed most. Included were overtime series-clinching goals against both Florida (Game 7) and the Rangers (Game 6). The sky is the limit for Henrique, a player who seemed immune to pressure or intimidation of playing with elite talent.
• Ilya Kovalchuk didn’t necessarily have his best series of games in the playoffs, but what was so impressive was that Kovalchuk still led the team in points this post season, despite losing his normal skating ability and flexibility due to an alleged herniated disk (or disks) in his back. It was painfully obvious Kovy was nowhere near 100% healthy, but it did not prevent him from being on the ice and helping to be a factor, even if he was reduced to a significantly lessened version of himself.
• Zach Parise showed he has recovered from his knee surgery that limited him to just 13 games in 2010-11.  While he’s set to become an unrestricted free agent in a few weeks, Parise was a big part of the team’s success and was the fuel injection to the team, filling a major leadership role as team Captain, and the players and fans alike hope the team is able to work out a new contract with him.
• The fourth line of Ryan Carter, Stephen Gionta and Steve Bernier established themselves to be a force in the playoffs, combining for 10 goals and 11 assists in 24 games.  Simply amazing and that doesn’t even take into account all the momentum-changing shifts they had throughout the postseason.  Yes, Bernier had the shift that led to the most painful penalty of the season, but it doesn’t discount all the positive all three brought to the fold.  Simply put, the Devils don’t make the Final without the contributions of the CBGB line.
• The young Swedes Jacob Josefson and Adam Larsson had solid runs in continuing their devlopment.  While they haven’t reached close to the ceiling their talent dictates, they both took giant strides in their development, leaving the foundation for next season and beyond.
• Travis Zajac has fully recovered from the Achilles injury he suffered last offseason and played a huge role in the postseason, with 7 goals and 7 assists in the 24 games, while showing he still adds his solid two-way play and is the team’s best faceoff man.

The team ended with a wonderful season, but there are still a ton of questions to be answered this off-season, to ensure the team has a chance to match its long playoff run of 2011-12 again next season.  My next installment will try to answer some of these questions.

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The Devils added a free agent from the European market, adding LW Harri Pesonen to the fold.  He seems like a nice potential signing as a highly skilled good skating forward.  How he adapts to the smaller NHL rinks will determine where he ends up, whether he starts in the AHL or NHL.  For some highlights of his work in Finland, check out this video:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Goaltenders:  There are certainly a number of cliches that can be bantered around to describe this matchup, whether it’s the old vs the new, or the legendary Hall of Famer against the up and comer potential star, I’ll let you choose which one you want to use.  However, don’t sell either goaltender short as their opponents have during this playoff run.  Neither team would be here if not for the strong goaltending of Jonathan Quick and Martin Brodeur.  Quick has been sensational for the Kings thus far, posting a 12-2 record with a ridiculous 1.54 GAA and .946 save percentage.  When you compare it to Brodeur’s 12-5 record with a 2.04 GAA and .923 save percentage, you would think Quick might have a distinct advantage.

Then again, Brodeur will be starting his 200th playoff game Wednesday night in New Jersey.  Jonathan Quick will be playing his 27th, with it his 15th of this playoff.  Brodeur has won five Jennings Trophies, four Vezina Trophies and three Stanley Cups Championships, all while making more saves than any other goaltender in the history of the National Hockey League.  Quick is no slouch in his own right, being voted a Vezina Trophy finalist this season, after a 1.95 GAA and 10 shutouts on the season.  In the end, Quick has the better numbers, but Brodeur has literally been through everything and at age 40, he’s seen it all.  Quick does have the chance to get sidetracked while playing in his first Stanley Cup final, but I don’t see that too likely to happen.  All in all, when you add it all up, I think it’s pretty even.  Advantage:  Even

Defensemen:  I see another comparison of opposites here, as the Devils have a very unheralded group, the Kings are led by one of the better defenseman in the game in Drew Doughty.  The Devils have been led by the combination of Marek Zidlicky and Bryce Salvador in the playoffs, but have also received invaluable contributions from the combination of Mark Fayne and Andy Greene, both of whom aren’t the flashiest in the bunch, but they consistently get the job done.  Filling it out have been mostly Anton Volchenkov and ex-King Peter Harrold, although Adam Larsson has played five games and Henrik Tallinder is also on the sideline fully recovered from injury, and both are chomping at the bit to get a chance to play in the Finals.

For the Kings, after Doughty, they are led by ex-Devils draft pick Willie Mitchell, who provides toughness from the backline and eats up big minutes, all while providing leadership, similar to what Bryce Salvador brings to the Devils.  They also have vets Rob Scuderi and Matt Greene, plus promising youngsters Viatcheslav Voynov and Alec Martinez.  The Kings rely heavily on the combo of Doughty and Mitchell, but definitely receive support from the other four.  There is little doubt the Kings have more “star power” with Doughty in their lineup, but the Devils’ “no-name” defense is used to being overlooked.  In the end, I give the slight nod to the Kings,  because of the superstar presence.  Advantage:  Kings

Forwards:  This is certainly a very interesting matchup as well, with lots of star power on  both teams.  Both teams like to focus on puck possession and a solid forecheck to help create scoring chances and utilize the time spent in the offensive zone to minimize opportunities for their opponents.  The Devils are led by Captain Zach Parise and Ilya Kovalchuk, two of the best wingers in the game today.  While they have played together a lot, Coach Peter DeBoer has split them up at even strength of late, and both have helped to carry their respective lines to much success, each scoring seven goals thus far.  Center Travis Zajac has also added seven, and the Devils have a lot of depth up front, when you add seasoned veterans like Patrik Elias, Dainius Zubrus, David Clarkson and Alexei Ponikarovsky to the mix, you get a great balance of size and skill.  Not to be outdone, youngsters like Jacob Josefson and overtime hero Adam Henrique bring a lot of skill to the team, and it’s hard to think the Devils would be at this point of the playoffs without the two overtime series clinching goals from Henrique.

The fourth line, labeled the “CBGB” line by radio color commentator Sherry Ross has been all anyone could’ve hoped for and more in these playoffs, as the combination of Ryan Carter, Steve Bernier and Stephen Gionta (“Gionta’s brother) have added a combined 9 goals and 10 assists in the 18 games thus far, including two game-winning goals against the Rangers in the Eastern Conference Finals, both by Carter.  Like with Henrique, I shudder to think of what round the Devils would have lost in without the contributions of the CBGB line.

As for the Kings, their first line has been absolutely incredible in the first three rounds, as the combination of Anze Kopitar, Justin Williams and Dustin Brown has yet to be stopped for the most part, combining for 15 goals and 27 assists in the first 14 games of the postseason.  The second line of Mike Richards, Jeff Carter and Dustin Penner hasn’t been too shabby either, compiling 11 goals and 19 assists over that span.    The biggest question is how much can the third and fourth lines produce for LA?  Can the size of the Kings’ forwards take advantage of the Devils defense?

Before Andre King (how do you not like that name for an LA King?) broke out in the last round, there hasn’t been much secondary production from the Kings’ bottom six forwards.  How will the likes of Jarret Stoll, King, Brad Richardson, Jordan Nolan, Colin Fraser and Trevor Lewis match up against the third and fourth lines of New Jersey?  This may be the key to the entire series.  The top six for both teams are pretty star-filled, but in the playoffs, it’s often the bottom six that make up the difference if the stars cancel each other out.

Other:  I see a lot of similarities between this series and the last time the Devils were in the Stanley Cup Finals, back in 2003 against the Anaheim Ducks.  The Devils are facing a team from California that has come in extremely hot, posting a 12-2 record, with an incredibly hot goaltender and timely scoring along the way, both after entering the playoffs as an underdog, but are considered the favorites against the Devils, even though New Jersey has home-ice advantage.  There are a lot of other subplots to enjoy between these two teams, including the following:

• Ilya Kovalchuk was courted by the Los Angeles Kings as a free agent before last season, but chose to stay with the Devils, signing his infamous 15-year $101 million contract.  Kovalchuk turned down large offers from the Kings, but I don’t see too much controversy stemming from these free agent discussions.
• Devils Head Coach Peter DeBoer was a Memorial Cup winning coach with both David Clarkson and Mike Richards as his players at Kitchener of the Ontario Hockey League.  I’m sure there will be a lot shared after this series between the three, but you can bet Clarkson and DeBoer will avoid any “face time” with Richards at least during this series.
• Kings Head Coach Darryl Sutter is the brother of former Devils Head Coach Brent Sutter, who helpled to give Brent a job as head coach of the Calgary Flames after he left the Devils under unusual circumstances after the 2008-09 season.  There were a lot of people that were bothered by how it all played out, but whether or not Devils GM Lou Lamoriello was actually bothered by it all, we will never know.  No one keeps their emotions and knowledge closer to their vest than Lamoriello.  Needless to say, there are many Devils fans out there who are happy to know that Sutter did not have any success as Flames head coach, but they should also let it go for the most part at this point.
• Speaking of Lamoriello, he helped mentor Kings GM Dean Lombardi before he became general manager of the San Jose Sharks, and helped Lombardi with the blueprint of how to build an organization.  It’s the kind of thing that doesn’t surprise too many people that know of Lamoriello, who is very charitable with his time and money behind the scenes, and doesn’t like to receive any notoriety for it.
• Zach Parise and Matt Greene were roommates at the University of North Dakota.  Alec Martinez and Andy Greene were teammates at Miami (Ohio) University.
• Both Captains, Dustin Brown and Zach Parise are American-born, giving the NHL its first Stanley Cup matchup between two teams led by American captains, which is a nice boost to USA Hockey and means the second US Captain will lift Lord Stanley at the end of the series.
• The Kings are the second youngest team in the NHL and the Devils are the oldest, so there clearly is no blueprint for teams to follow.

Prediction:  I see this series as one I expect to go back and forth.  I think there will be ups and downs for both teams, and similar to the matchup back in 2003, I see the Devils taking the series in 7 games.  Devils in Seven

Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying Andy Greene is a superstar.  However, he’s the perfect workman-like player for the Devils lineup.  His poise with the puck and specifically while under pressure, he’s typically able to move the puck forward, out of the zone and typically onto the stick of a teammate.  He has good timing in terms of knowing when to jump into the play.  A good example of this was the winning goal by Alexei Ponikarovsky in overtime last night.  Take a look at the replay of the goal.

Click here to view the embedded video.

While Ilya Kovalchuk circled around back into his own zone, Andy Greene slips behind Wayne Simmonds and Daniel Briere to help create the 2-on-1 rush that led to the winning goal.  Greene entering the zone pushed back Andres Lilja and helped to create the space Ponikarovsky utilized to get the shot that led to the rebound which led to the goal.

Did Greene receive anything on the stat sheet to show his contribution?  No, but he definitely had an impact on that winning goal.  Keep in mind, we’ve only talked thus far about Greene’s contributions on the offensive side of things while in reality, it’s on the defensive side of things where Greene truly has his biggest impact on the game.  Here’s an example of another under the radar type of play that helped the Devils to a Round 1 victory.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Greene basically prevents a Panthers goal, as he neutralized the ability of Florida’s Scottie Upshall to put in the loose puck.  It’s another example of a play that doesn’t hit the stat sheet,  but has a major impact on the outcome of a game.  It’s the type of play Greene makes pretty often and why Greene is so valuable to the Devils that how the Michigan native earned a four-year $12 million contract.

It’s just another example of how Andy Greene makes contributions that go well beyond the stat sheet.  Most successful teams will need a guy like Andy Greene in their lineup.  Teams that go far in the playoffs tend to have players like Greene, who do the little things teams need to win.  Paired with Mark Fayne, the duo have been invaluable to the Devils in the playoffs, especially in Round 2 against Philadelphia.  If the Devils are to continue on and win the series over the Flyers, you can expect Andy Greene to play a major role in it.

(1) New York Rangers vs (8) Ottawa Senators:  On paper, based on the regular season, this matchup should be a no-brainier, but if you get past the standings disparity, you can see the Senators have played the Rangers pretty tough head to head.  That being said, I don’t expect the Rangers to go out in Round 1 after all the success they’ve had all year.  But, things will get very interesting if you ask me, if the Sens steal a game at MSG.  Think of how crazy it will be in Ottawa for the third game in a 1-1 series for a team representing all of Eastern Canada in the playoffs?  I’m sure the Rangers are hoping to not have to face such a scenario.  PICK:  Rangers in 7

(2) Boston Bruins vs (7) Washington Capitals:  The defending Stanley Cup Champions draw a team that didn’t earn its playoff berth until the final days.  Sounds like a potential recipe of catching a hot team and running into a buzzsaw for the Bruins, right?  I don’t see that happening, as the Capitals have had trouble all year searching for an identity, and have concerns in net, mostly due to injury.  I see Zdeno Chara and the Bruins utilizing their depth and championship pedigree to win this one pretty easily, giving them a chance to rest up a bit for the second round and potentially beyond.  PICK:  Bruins in 5

(3) Florida Panthers vs (6) New Jersey Devils:  Despite the seeds, most people feel the Devils are heavy favorites in this series, partially because of the 102 points they put up and also due to the way the Panthers faded a bit down the stretch.  Both head coaches will be in their first career NHL playoff series, so there shouldn’t be a big advantage there one way or the other.  Many would be surprised to hear there are more former Stanley Cup champions on the Panthers than the Devils, so experience may not be the deciding factor here either.  In the end, the Panthers haven’t shown enough depth up front beyond their top line of Tomas Fleischmann, Kris Versteeg and Stephen Weiss, while the Devils have shown the ability to have three lines produce.  Although the Panthers seem to have a more mobile and playmaking defense, the key advantage should be in net, where Martin Brodeur will need to outplay the tandem of Scott Clemmensen and Jose Theodore, which I expect to happen.  PICK:  Devils in 6

(4) Pittsburgh Penguins vs (5) Philadelphia Flyers:  Throw out the statistics in this series, because this one is expected to be an absolute war.  It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that these teams simply don’t like each other.  There’s a ton of star power on each side, but this series will come down to the physical play, and who can control their play the most when its needed most.  Whether or not Sidney Crosby can remain on the ice for the whole series will obviously be the central issue, but the Flyers will miss the physical presence of their Captain, Chris Pronger in this series, that goes without saying and cannot be overlooked.  Even though I expect it to be a war of attrition, I’m picking it to go the distance and can’t wait to watch it all unfold. In the end, the Flyers will have to prove to me they can finally have enough production in net come the postseason. PICK:  Penguins in 7

Western Conference:

(1) Vancouver Canucks vs (8) Los Angeles Kings:  I see this as another matchup that appears to be closer than the “paper matchup” would indicate.  The Kings, while not the offensive stalwarts the Canucks are, do have a couple of potential aces up their sleeves, especially with Jonathan Quick in net, who has proven to be a legitimate Vezina Trophy candidate all season.  With the health of Daniel Sedin and seemingly annual question of Roberto Luongo in the playoffs, the Canucks definitely have their share of question marks.  In the end, I think the Canucks could triumph, but I can see Quick and the Kings potentially steal this series.  Did the Canucks wear themselves out too much going for the President’s Trophy? Time will tell.  PICK: Los Angeles in 7

(2) St. Louis Blues vs (7) San Jose Sharks: At the beginning of the season, most people would have though the seedings would be the other way around for these two franchises, that went in differing directions during the regular season.  The Blues rode the system and teaching of new Head Coach Ken Hitchcock to almost take the President’s Trophy, while the Sharks have not been able to match the output of recent seasons, at even at one point was in doubt just to make the playoffs.  Both teams get a clean slate in the postseason, so it will be interesting to see how it plays out.  I see this one as going either way, but I think the goaltending and defense of St. Louis will be enough to prevail.  The Sharks seem to me as a franchise too much on a downward trend to make a run this year.  PICK:  St. Louis in 6

(3) Phoenix Coyotes vs (6) Chicago Blackhawks: Another interesting matchup out West, as you have the vagabond potentially transient Phoenix Coyotes winning their division and unheralded to a degree, all while potentially playing their last games in the state of Arizona.  Wouldn’t it be something if the franchise which is owned by the NHL were to win the Stanley Cup?  Well, let’s not get too ahead of ourselves just yet.  Goaltender Mike Smith will be the key for Phoenix, as Smith takes the #1 job in the postseason for the first time.  The Coyotes younger defense is overlooked to a degree, but Smith will be the key.  For the Blackhawks, the health of Jonathan Toews is a question mark that will need an answer, and that could turn out to be the deciding factor.  On paper, the Blackhawks are more talented, but talent alone doesn’t usually get it done in the postseason.  Can it be considered an “upset” if the Coyotes were to win? PICK:  Phoenix in 7

(4) Nashville Predators vs (5) Detroit Red Wings: The Red Wings a #5 seed?  Wow, times have changed a bit for a team that always seemed to be the lock for a #1 or #2 seed each year.  What to make of it?  Nashville finally won its first playoff series last year and seems to have the makings of a franchise ready to make a deep run into the postseason for the first time, led by stalwarts Pekka Rinne in net and Shea Weber and Ryan Suter anchoring the defense.  There’s enough production up front to have you feel comfortable, but the draw of Detroit in round one must be giving the Predators nightmares.  What can you say about Detroit, they’ve been seemingly one of the Stanley Cup Favorites for just about what seems like the last 20 years.  I’m going to say this is the year they take a step back and are first round victims to a Predators team that likely won’t all be together next year (Suter’s pending UFA) meaning this could be their last chance to get something done and I think they are geared to make that thus far elusive big-time playoff run many have expected for a few years.  As it often is, the first round will be the toughest for Nashville, but I see them getting it done.  PICK:  Nashville in 7

SECOND ROUND:  Obviously, assuming my first round predictions are correct, it would create the following matchups:

(1) New York Rangers vs (6) New Jersey Devils:  Could it be a repeat of 1994?  Well, it isn’t the conference finals, but it could be quite the battle one fan base will love and the other will eventually hate with a passion.  It was quite a battle during the regular season, and maybe it’s a bit of a homer pick, but… My pick…DEVILS in 6

(2) Boston Bruins vs (4) Pittsburgh Penguins:  Another compelling matchup, I think the Penguins may be too beat up from their series with the Flyers to go much deeper and the rested (by my prediction) Bruins will have too much for the Penguins to overcome.  But I would expect this to be a dynamic series to watch  My pick… BRUINS in 6

(2) St. Louis Blues vs (8) Los Angeles Kings:  Could the Quick magic continue? Or do they run into a “Halak-Attack” they won’t be able to overcome?  My pick… BLUES in 7

(3) Phoenix Coyotes vs (4) Nashville Predators:  Some different teams than normal in the semifinals of the Western Conference, huh?  I can’t see Nashville not having enough to win this series, as Trotz, Suter, Weber and Rinne have their eye towards the big prize.  My pick… PREDATORS in 5

CONFERENCE FINALS:  Once again, assuming my earlier predictions are correct, it creates the following conference finals:

(2) Boston Bruins vs (6) New Jersey Devils: A rematch of the 1988 Eastern Conference Finals, which was a great 7-game series, it would a series full of many different story lines.  The regular season was very one sided, the Devils couldn’t keep up with the Bruins depth, but in the post season, you can throw the regular season out the window, right? My pick?  DEVILS in 7

(2) St. Louis Blues vs (4) Nashville Predators:  I may have given it away earlier, but I love the Predators team to make a lot of noise this postseason, before Ryan Suter departs for greener (pun intended) pastures next year.  The Blues have been quite the story this season, but I see it ending in the Conference Finals.  My pick?  PREDATORS in 6

STANLEY CUP FINALS:

New Jersey Devils vs Nashville Predators:  I had a very difficult time picking the Devils for the second straight round, but who could pass up the story line of what would be the battle of pending UFA’s (Zach Parise and Ryan Suter) and one will get the Stanley Cup champion send-off… My pick:  PREDATORS in 7   Conn Smythe pick:  Ryan Suter

It was quite a story around the league and rightfully so, as one of the most talented players in the league changed hands that day.  We can (and probably will) debate the impact of the trade over the long haul for the Devils, but for purposes of immediate dividends, this deal did not have a quick return, as the Devils flamed out in the first round, losing to the Philadelphia Flyers in five games that spring.

Sometimes, its the under-the-radar type of acquisition that gains less headlines and has less star power, but helps impact a team greatly. The Devils have a history of this type of acquisition, bringing in players like Neal Broten and Shawn Chambers in 1995, Vladmir Malakhov in 2000 and Grant Marshall in 2003. All of these guys led directly to a Stanley Cup title.

Even trade acquisitions like Stephane Richer, Claude Lemieux, Bobby Holik,  Jason Arnott, Jamie Langenbrunner and Jeff Friesen all ended up making larger impacts than originally anticipated by many.  GM Lou Lamoriello seems to have the knack for making the right moves more often than not.  For every move like Ken Klee that didn’t pan out, there’s always an under the radar Bob Corkum or Turner Stevenson-type of acquisition that shows how usually in touch with his team Lamoriello often is.

This year has proven to be no different, as Lamoriello has added three pieces so far all of which have paid immediate dividends.  On December 12th, the Devils acquired Kurtis Foster from the Anaheim Ducks in a four-player deal (and draft pick) that has given the Devils some needed help on the power play.  Last month, Lamoriello followed it up with another solid move, picking up Alexei Ponikarovsky from the Carolina Hurricanes in return for a minor leaguer and a draft pick.  Ponikarovsky has also paid immediate dividends, giving the Devils much needed size and production on the third line.  He’s posted four goals and six assists in his 13 games with the Devils thus far, and has played at a +7 plus/minus, while adding making it tough on opponents, a dimension the Devils so desperately needed.

In addition, on January 30th, the Devils recalled Steve Bernier from their Albany team and slotted him in as the third line right wing.  The combo of Ponikarovsky and Bernier has been outstanding for the Devils, as they have worked for the most part with Dainius Zubrus as their center and given the Devils not only some scoring production, but have done a lot of the “dirty work,” by physically draining their opponents along the boards and fighting for the puck.  Quite frankly, the entire team has benefited from the third line production, and the depth should only be that much better if and when players like Travis Zajac return from injury and if Josef Josefson can progress.

Add it all up and the New Jersey Devils are playing like a team to be reckoned with as we begin the sprint towards the Stanley Cup Playoffs.  With a 9-1-1 stretch during their last eleven games, the Devils have moved into potential striking distance of the top of the Eastern Conference.  As I’ve said, sometimes it’s the smaller moves that don’t grab the headlines that can payoff the most at season’s end.  The Devils and Lou Lamoriello have added Foster, Ponikarovsky and Bernier and it’s had a huge impact.  Does Lamoriello have one or two more moves up his sleeve?  We’ll know in the next few days, but it wouldn’t come as too surprising to see another defenseman added to the team and don’t get too concerned if it isn’t a big name, because Lamoriello and his track record have shown sometimes it’s the smaller names that will pay off with the biggest prize of all, a Stanley Cup championship.

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It’s a label that has stuck with the team for the last 20 years or so, but it certainly doesn’t seem to be a fitting one, especially for the teams of the recent past.  The Devils began to play more of an up-tempo fore-checking puck possession type of game under the coaching of Brent Sutter during the 2007-08 and 2008-09 seasons.  Just because a team is also defensively responsible does not mean it makes for a boring team.  Also, find me a team in the league that does not play some version of the trap at different points. That’s right, there isn’t one, because every team in the league plays some form of it at one point or another.  Last year’s hiccup aside, the teams under Sutter and current coach Peter DeBoer have been pretty exciting and have produced a good amount of scoring compared to their league counterparts.

Looking at the entire picture, over the last 20 years (19 seasons), there have been countless exciting moments, including physical play (including the best open ice hitter of his generation in Scott Stevens) and more often than not, the team has finished in the upper half of the league in goals scored (including first or second four times) see accompanying table below) and has been one of the most productive clubs in the NHL over that time in terms of producing regular season wins.  Add three Stanley Cup titles to the mix and I don’t know how or why the “boring” label has ever been attached to a team that has produced like they have.

Superstars like Scott Stevens, Scott Niedermayer, Martin Brodeur, Patrik Elias, Zach Parise and Ilya Kovalchuk have produced for this franchise over the last 20 years.  Obviously, some of these players have helped both offensively and defensively to varying degrees. To me, as a fan, my first hope is for my team to win. Beyond the Detroit Red Wings, who can match the winning pedigree of the New Jersey Devils over the last twenty years? I think you’d be hard pressed to come up with anyone else on the same level.  There are other franchises that have featured the neutral zone trap mostly to hide their lack of superstar talent.  That simply hasn’t been the case with the Devils.

As for this year’s team, the Devils are currently ranked 14th in goals per game, scoring at a clip of 2.69 goals per game. Ilya Kovalchuk, Patrik Elias and Zach Parise are all in the top 25 scoring leaders. Head Coach Peter DeBoer has installed a high energy system based on puck pressure and fore-checking, similar to the system played by Brent Sutter a few years back. Add it all up, and the Devils have been mislabeled over the last twenty years. Assuming last season was more of an outlier than anything, instead of being labeled boring, perhaps a more accurate label for the New Jersey Devils would be WINNERS. And if you ask me, that’s all a fan could ever ask of their hockey team.

Goaltenders: 

Johan Hedberg:  The Moose has been loose much of the year, giving the Devils just about all anyone could ask for, putting up solid production overall.  He’s not really a number one goaltender by any means, but he’s been just about all you can ask for in terms of a backup goaltender and seems a great teammate in the locker room.  His Swedish heritage only helps things out that much more with the young Swedes like Josefson, Tedenby and Larsson in the mix.  Grade:  B

Martin Brodeur: Unfortunately, throughout his distinguished career, the great Brodeur has set the bar extremely high.  While he certainly isn’t the same goalie he used to be, he still can rise to the occasion at times, like he did on both December 31st and January 7th, both against Pittsburgh.  To compare him to his past isn’t necessarily fair, but he is still in the upper half of NHL goalies, especially when he’s playing at the top of his game.  While I don’t expect him to reach a Vezina level again, if the Devils are going to have any real kind of success, Brodeur will need to play a big part in it, similar to how he did in last year’s second half surge.  Grade:  C+

Defensemen:

Adam Larsson:  It’s tough to think of a fair grade for a 19-year old Larsson, who was practically named the savior to the Devils’ back line after being drafted number four overall this past summer.  While Larsson has certainly showed glimpses of becoming the star is he is expected to become, he isn’t quite there yet.  While star prospect forwards like Sidney Crosby can come in and take the league by storm, it usually takes a few seasons for a defenseman to become a star, similar to the career paths of Victor Hedman or Scott Niedermayer, I have llittle doubt that Larsson will become a top defenseman within the next couple of seasons.  It’s the glimpses he’s shown so far that have Devils fans dreaming of what he is expected to come in the next few seasons and what helps to overlook the growing pains that rear their ugly head from time to time.  The minus-9 plus/minus needs improvement in the second half.  Grade:  B

Bryce Salvador:  Salvador has played as well as one might imagine considering he missed all of last season due to post-concussion symptoms.  He provides solid leadership and a steadying influence to the back line.  He also does a lot of the little things and dirty work that not all players are able to provide.  Winning teams need players like Salvador on their team and he’s a big part of the reason why the Devils have the number one ranked penalty killing unit.  He had a little difficulty earlier this year, but after missing the prior season, it would be unfair to think there wouldn’t have been a few bumps along the way on his road to returning.  At plus-6, it is an indicator of the steady influence Salvador provides to the team and his 46 hits and 52 blocks are another indicator of how he’s willing to do the dirty jobs a team needs.  Grade:  B

Mark Fayne:  Fayne was a revelation last season as an unheralded rookie who gave the Devils some of the puckmoving ability from the back line they desperately needed.  This year, there have been more rookie “moments” than last year, which have been more noticeable.  It’s tough to be very critical on the guy, but hopefully those errors in judgement will become less frequent over time as Fayne continues his development.  Others in blogs and message boards feel that Fayne should be sent to Albany, but I disagree, even though I think there has been a clear reduction overall compared to last season.  Either way, the Devils are going to need significant contributions from Fayne if they want to get into the playoffs and stick around for awhile.  His shot has been his best asset, as he has the uncanny ability (a la Brian Rafalski) to get his shot through and on net, giving his teammates chances at deflections and rebounds.  Grade:  C+

Anton Volchenkov:  Volchenkov has had some trouble staying injury-free, but has helped to be a stabilizing force on the back line, especially on the league-leading penalty kill.  He leads the team with 68 blocks, and while he’s been a disappointment overall since his signing before last season, he definitely has played significantly better this year as opposed to last season.  He’s chipped in with a little bit of offense of late, but pairing him with a more offensive player at even strength, definitely seems to be the right move.  It could provide the potential number one pairing for the team to rely on come down the stretch and into the playoffs, if the pairing meshes well together.  Grade:  C+

Henrik Tallinder:  It isn’t pretty,  but Tallinder‘s impact on the team is hard to gauge, especially if you are just using statistics.  His numbers (0 G, 5 A, -5 in 35 games) look pretty pedestrian, but Tallinder does a lot of little things that are hard to quantify.  He’s made more mistakes than most would like, but he works well with young players, and uses his size to win battles along the boards and fill passing lanes.  A rash of minor injuries cost Tallinder six games, but he’s the type of player you miss when he’s not playing.  That being said, he needs to pick up his game a little more in the second half, similar to how he did last season, when he did just about everything for the Devils last year.  Grade:  C

Kurtis Foster:  Foster was brought in via a trade with Anaheim, as the Devils hoped to add a threat from the back line and to help add some production to the power play.  It’s been just twelve games so far, but the glimpses of production have been shown.  The second half will be key to the pending free agent, as he looks to potentially cash-in for one more decent contract.  Grade:  Incomplete

Andy Greene:  Limited to just twelve games, Greene has been denied the chance to try and justify the big 4-year $12 million contract he signed in the off-season.  Greene, similar to Tallinder, does a lot of good things beyond what the statistics will dictate, but his sample of games is too small to warrant a grade at this point.  Grade:  Incomplete

Matt Taormina:  Coming off a significant ankle injury last season, Taormina was forced to start the season in Albany, where he earned an All-Star berth, being named the only Albany Devil representative.  At the big club, he doesn’t have enough of a sample to warrant a grade, but despite some limitations, Taormina has added some needed offensive ability to the back line.  Injuries and potential acquisitions will likely dictate how much playing time Taormina gets in the second half.  Grade:  Incomplete

Alexander Urbom:  Urbom, at age 20, is expected to be a big part of the Devils future, but for now, he was too up and down and will benefit over the long-term from playing significant minutes in the AHL with Albany.  Four games is not enough to warrant a grade, but I think the future from Urbom looks very bright.  Grade:  Incomplete

Overall, the group of defensemen has done an okay job, but if the team wants to make a run in the playoffs, they will need to either step it up some or bring in outside help to raise the talent level.  Don’t think GM Lou Lamoriello isn’t contemplating a big splash type of move to bring a top-flight defenseman to anchor the back line.  However, the right guy needs to be available and at a cost that makes sense to Lamoriello.  The perfect candidate is Ryan Suter of Nashville, but the cost might be too high.  That will be something to definitely keep an eye on as we get closer to the trade deadline.

Coming soon will be a look at the forwards.  What do you guys think, did anyone get an unfair grade?  Comment below and/or follow me on Twitter @ LEVINAKL.  Until next time…

So, we are getting to a point of urgency for a lot of players who find themselves to be potential unrestricted free agents at year’s end, with the general managers left to decide now if they think they should begin to engage in trade talks about certain players.  For the New Jersey Devils, you would think GM Lou Lamoriello has to know by now whether or not he has a good feeling about whether or not his team can keep Zach Parise for the long-term once this season is over.

Do I think there is any chance Lamoriello will trade away Parise with the Devils competing for a playoff spot?  No, I do not.  Unless the Devils collapse, I don’t see Lamoriello trading away his captain and one of his personal favorites, even if that means he will walk away at season’s end without any compensation to Lamoriello and the Devils.  However, that doesn’t necessarily mean he shouldn’t.

Just to play “Devil’s Advocate,” as an example, would it make sense for Lamoriello to talk to Anaheim GM Bob Murray about possibly dangling Zach Parise in return for one of the “Big 3″ in Anaheim.  I’d let the two of them decide if it warranted a straight up deal or not, but would the Devils feel better with the likes of either Corey Perry ($5.325M cap hit through 2012-13), Ryan Getzlaf ($5.325 through 2012-13) or New Jersey native Bobby Ryan ($5.1M through 2014-15) on their team?  They may not all bring the same as Parise, but wouldn’t it be better than getting nothing at season’s end?  Is it possible one would be a better compliment to Ilya Kovalchuk and the rest of the team? 

While it’s widely reported that Anaheim is looking to shake things up.  However, the obvious question is would Parise be willing to re-sign in Anaheim?  Obviously, as an outsider, its tough to know where things stand between the Devils and Parise’s representatives.  Do they have a feeling they might get a deal done or are they confident it’s going to be tough to do a deal?  All very pertinent questions that would greatly impact Lamoriello’s ultimate decision. 

This is only one possible scenario, there are plenty of other teams that could be a potential trade partner for Parise.  In the end, as a fan, it’d be hard to stomach Parise in a different uniform, but the practical answer if you can get a return that will help you immediately (i.e not prospects/draft picks), it might be something wise to consider for the best of franchise.

What do you guys think?  Should the Devils move Parise?  What would be the best potential situation for both teams?  Who do you potentially see signing Parise if he becomes a free agent this off-season?

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My apologies for going a LONG time between posts here, things have been hectic of late.  I’ve had writer’s block to an extent to, starting but not completing articles of late, so my apologies.  I’ve also started my mid-season review, which I hope to get out in the coming week or so.  Want to talk Devils or the NHL in general?  Follow me on Twitter @ LEVINAKL.

 According to Tom Gulitti’s Fire & Ice blog from today, Tedenby sat down with head coach Peter DeBoer today to discuss what Tedenby could do to earn more playing time.  Last night, Tedenby only received one shift in the third period.  Gulitti quoted DeBoer as saying:

“He’s a guy that individually we spend a lot of time with,” DeBoer said defensively. “I’ll tell you exactly the way I explained it to him. He has to get my trust defensively that I can play him with the lead late in third periods at critical times. And that’s not just him. That’s all our young players.”

Now, I give credit to DeBoer for trying not to single out Tedenby completely with the latter part of the quote, but the handwriting is on the wall.  When you sit for the last 18 minutes of a one-goal game, it’s pretty clear the coach doesn’t have much confidence in your ability to play strong in your own zone.  DeBoer basically played three lines, and moved Brad Mills up from the fourth line to replace Tedenby, who sat on the bench alongside Rod Pelley and Cam Janssen as spectactors for most of the third. 

If the former first round pick Tedenby can’t be counted on to be on the ice for essentially the entire third period, then I feel I have to ask why is he on the team at all?  At this point, I think it may be a realistic option to send him to Albany to work on his overall game, be a first line player in the AHL and build off of that.  It may only take a few weeks or months for that development to kick in, but I think it would pay benefits to both Tedenby and the Devils over the long haul.

Now, if the Devils are going to send Tedenby to Albany, who might the team have to replace him?  To me, the obvious answer here is Vladmir Zharkov, especially when you take into account the role Tedenby has been playing of late.  Zharkov couldn’t score less goals than Tedenby has thus far (zero) and would add a solid presense in every other aspect of the game.  Zharkov is very responsibly defensively and is a solid penalty killer.  He has offensive skill, but hasn’t been able to put it together for the most part, to the point that he was very gunshy when it came to shooting.

At this point, I think the Devils would be better served to have Zharkov play on the third line and have Tedenby further develop both his skills and confidence by excelling in Albany.  It would help for the short term by giving the Devils another reliable defensive option at forward in Zharkov and give the Devils the best opportunity to maxime their “asset value” over the long-term in Tedenby.  In my opinion, this needs to happen sooner rather than later.

Do you agree?  Let me know your thoughts, either comment below and/or follow me on twitter @ LEVINAKL.

Five Things I Like About the Current State of the Devils:

5. Adam Larsson continues to be unfazed by his surroundings as an 18-year old. Sure, he’s made his share of mistakes, but what else would you expect? The way he responds to those mistakes say it all and the positives continue to far outweigh the negatives as I am concerned.  Larsson has also begun to put points up on the board, with two assists now in his first 12 NHL games.  It isn’t Paul Coffey-esque, but it certainly is a nice start.  He also continues to eat up a ton of valuable ice time, usually leading the defensemen in minutes played game in and game out.

4. Ryan Carter has been a good addition to the team from off the waiver wire. He shouldn’t be thought of as a superstar by any means, but he’s brought an element to the team that has been missing, especially at the center position. He’s added that little “edge” to the team and has played hard in his first five games as a Devil. Although he’s been a minus-4 during that time, I think he’s been better than the stats might show.  He’s made it harder for opponents to play against the Devils, and while it’s hard to guage numerically, it has its impact over the course of not only a game, but the season overall.  If he can add some offensive production at all, it could turn a good addition into a great one.

3.  The goaltending continues to be pretty solid on a nightly basis. While Martin Brodeur struggled in his first game back from injury against Toronto last week, his team left him out to dry a bit too.  He played much better in his follow up affair against Winnipeg and I expect it to continue to improve on a nightly basis as Brodeur gets more and more comfortable.  The combo of Brodeur and Johan Hedberg give the Devils a chance to compete just about each and every night.

2. Splitting up Bryce Salvador and Anton Volchenkov as a defensive pairing seems to have definitely had a positive impact on the backline. This was a maneuver that seemed obvious to do, as I’ve pointed out previously, but it seems to have given the Devils more production and balance in their defensive corps.  Especially in the case of the two slower vets playing together, it seems to leave them less exposed.  We’ll have to continue to watch to see if the trend continues, but I think it’s also helped out youngsters like Mark Fayne and Adam Larsson to partner with more of a veteran, whether it’s Salvador, Volchenkov or Henrik Tallinder.

1. Adam Henrique has done just about anything anyone might have hoped for since becoming a regular in the lineup. Now on the first line with Zach Parise and Ilya Kovalchuk, Henrique has fit like a glove thus far, scoring three goals thus far, with countless other high quality scoring chances generated, including a pair of breakaway goals against the Jets, including the OT gamewinner. If he keeps it up, he could very quickly find himself in the mix for the Calder Trophy, but let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves just yet for a guy who was playing in the AHL just two weeks ago.

Five Things I Remain Concerned About with the Devils:

5.  Injuries continue to mount and take their toll on the Devils, as they greatly miss their projected two top centers in Travis Zajac and Jacob Josefson. Martin Brodeur missed six games, Eric Boulton has missed seven, and now Ilya Kovalchuk has a leg injury, forcing him to miss his first game as a Devil due to injury. Andy Greene has also lost the last two games due to a lower body injury.  The team has certainly weathered the storm for the most part thus far, but you have to wonder if it may catch up with them at some point over the course of an 82-game season, especially when we aren’t sure today when both Kovalchuk and Greene might return.

4.  It is now twelve games into the season and Mattias Tedenby has yet to score a goal. He certrainly has made a few great offensive plays at times, some of which have led to goals for teammates, but if Tedenby can’t be counted on for 15-20 goals, he should be down at Albany refining his overall game. To me, the fact he gets very little, if any power play time, is an indication maybe Head Coach Peter DeBoer may wonder if Tedenby might be better suited for Albany. If a player is on the team primarily for offense and isn’t getting a regular spot on the power play, then I have to ask, why is he on the team?

3.  Is it time to be concerned the Devils have rarely played with a lead much at all recently? Prior to scoring the first two goals in Saturday’s game, it had been a few games since they had a lead. If history is any indication, this franchise has always been a much different team when playing ahead versus tied or behind. While it sounds so obvious, anyone who has followed this team through thick and thin realizes where I am coming from and what I am referring to.

2.  Is it time to start worrying about Ilya Kovalchuk and his production yet?  He has just two goals thus far and has had too little production at even strength. The plus/minus rating is taking a hit thus far at minus-5, although it hasn’t reached the horrible numbers of last year just yet. Overall, the team goal differential is a general concern, as the team has scored just 27 goals and yielded 33. GM Lou Lamoriello has often mentioned he doesn’t get concerned with goals scored or goals against as much as he worries about goal differential and will be something worth closely monitoring in the coming weeks.

1. Unfortunately, this overlaps to an extent with the previous two, but the Devils have not been able to shut down opponents when they have the lead.  Case in point, the Devils had to scramble for an overtime victory over Winnipeg after carrying a 2-0 lead into the third period Saturday night.  If the Devils want to be a playoff team and have the ability to go deep into the playoffs, they must learn to effectively play with a lead and shut down their opponents.  That’s the way things were for the Devils when they were at their best, if they had the lead, the game was usually over.  Coach DeBoer must tweak things to build towards that for the team to maximize success.  While I realize it’s much easier said than done, it should still be the goal.

That’s all for this week, I look forward to your comments, I know I’ve left out some more obvious positives like David Clarkson’s play of late, but I’m hoping it will continue for my next installment. 

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1 – Similar to last year, the list of injuries continues to grow. First, it was Travis Zajac with an Achilles heel injury. Then, goaltender Martin Brodeur with a shoulder injury knocking him out for 7-10 days. Friday night Jacob Josefson broke his clavicle and will miss at least 3-4 months. In the same game, Eric Boulton suffered a hand injury that will cost him an unspecified amount of time.
Yes, every team faces injuries, but outside of Pittsburgh where they lost both Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, I’m not sure I can come up with a comparable list to the Devils losing their top two centers to injury, as well as their number one goaltender.

2 – The defense continues to handcuff the offense, as still too often, the forwards are forced to drop deep into the defensive zone, costing the Devils too much time and effort to just get the puck into the neutral zone, let alone the opponent’s zone.
Despite the addition of the talented Adam Larsson, the 18-year old cannot do it by himself. Not to mention, his inexperience clearly shows from time to time. That’s not intended to be a knock on Larsson, he’s exceeded any fair expectation anyone might have had for him thus far.

3 – Bryce Salvador is coming off missing an entire season and unfortunately, it understandably has limited his play at times. Granted, its only been six games the team has played, but it will need to be something to be monitored in the next 15-20 games.
I think Salvador is handcuffed to an extent being paired with Anton Volchenkov and might benefit from being paired with someone more mobile like Andy Greene, but Head Coach Peter DeBoer hasn’t chosen to try that out yet.

4 – The depth of this team was something that was clearly going to be tested if there were injuries. Thus far, guys like Nick Palmieri, Petr Sykora, Mattias Tedenby and Dainius Zubrus have yet to score a single goal. From aa quartet of players you were likely hoping for 50-70 goals from (combined), the shutout thus far is definitely a concern.
Youngsters like Adam Henrique and Palmieri have been thrust into roles they may not fully be ready for today. While these players certainly have ability, they are being asked to “sink or swim” earlier than the team would have preferred. However, that is the way it works in today’s salary cap NHL, young players must step up when needed.

5 – I’m not a huge plus/minus guy, but if last year showed anything unusual, it was how bad the statistics were for a Devils team that was used to having most of its players with a plus rating.  This trend has carried over to the beginning of this season, with just one player (Jacob Josefson (+1)) having a plus-rating thus far.  Six players are at even, but guys like Bryce Salvador (-4), Anton Volchenkov (-3), Nick Palmieri (-3) or Ilya Kovalchuk (-3), are all giving the appearance of continuing a downward trend and too often shaking their heads after an opponent’s goal.

As I asked earlier, is it time to panic?  No, but the Devils must avoid putting themselves into the position where they start to doubt themselves.  Last year took away any invincibility the franchise may have felt after making the playoffs each season from 1997 – 2010.  With three road games coming up in Los Angeles, Phoenix and Dallas before coming home.  At least one win is an absolute must, or it might become time to panic.  Until next time…

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