Tag Search Results for "amerk626"
With Brendan Shanahan signing a 1-year $800,000 deal, of which he will receive $400,000 for playing the second half of the season, Shanahan has officially become a member of the team that drafted him over twenty years ago, the New Jersey Devils. Throughout the first half of the season, the Devils have had four solid lines, even when their lineup was plagued with injuries t...
At the All-Star break, I have compiled remarks for all 30 NHL teams, each one being one sentance, and should sum each team up nicely.
Anaheim Ducks- A good solid team that has plenty of time to get it together, or to dismantle their establishment to rebuild for the future.
Atlanta Thrashers- They score a lot thanks to Illya Kovalchuk and Brian Little, but don't do mu...
With John Tavares being the likely candidate to go first overall in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, there have been various people have been saying how this kid is possibly better than Sidney Crosby and how he may in fact be the true "next one". Bringing a kid like this into the NHL can do wonders for the team that drafts him and for the league. Look what Crosby and Ovechkin did...
The title is very broad. What I am really asking is who is better right now, this season in your opinion. You cannot directly compare Elias and Parise overall for various reasons. Patrik Elias has played in the NHL over a decade, where he has competed in the "old" and "new" NHL, whereas this is Parise's fourth NHL season, all of which he has played in the post-lockout era....
It's a question I have been pondering for quite some time. What truly makes a hockey game exciting, and what truly makes a hockey team exciting? The question first dawned after New Jersey's last game before the All-Star break, a 5-2 victory over the Habs. I remember after the game, I had a very happy debate with various Habs fans, along with one or two other Devils fans on...
Something's happening in Florida. They're winning. In their last ten games, the Florida Panthers have an impressive 6-2-2 record, and have been flip-flopping between seventh and tenth in the Eastern Conference, and 2nd and 3rd place in the Southeast Division. The Panthers currently have an above .500 record of 23-18-8, and in their surge through the standings, have defeate...
As the regular season trudges on, as teams compete for division supremacy, as the standings continue to change constantly with teams rising and sinking, with each game becoming just as significant and vital as the previous one, the playoffs inch closer and closer as each day passes, which makes the constant playoff race tighter and more tense. This will go on until every t...
I am not writing this to start anything between fans of rival teams. I am not trying to be bias or suck up to anybody. As a fan of a rival team, I am just writing this as a fan of the sport and as a casual observer.
We all know that New York City is perhaps the hardest US city to play any sport in. You are expected to give nothing less than a 110% effort night in and ni...
For Devils fans and people who know him, the much anticipated return of Martin Brodeur may arrive as early as the end of the month. Along with his return comes the answers to the common questions that have been asked by Devils fans, analysts, bloggers, critics, and observers of the Devils. How will Brodeur be treated upon returning to the lineup? Who stays in net, who goes...
This year's standings have probably seen a lot of activity in terms of teams moving up and down in their conferences and divisions. Despite the active movement, there are also enormous barriers between certain seedings that give certain teams very comfortable cushions. I think this year's playoffs will be just as unique as the season has been so far. One could say these ar...
Recently, things have been eventful for the teams in the Atlantic Division on and off the ice. Here are a couple of thoughts I have for each team.
I just found out a couple of minutes ago that the New York Rangers have fired Tom Renney. I'm sure most Ranger fans would say the wrong guy got fired, but the way the Rangers have been playing, a change was imminent. Sather h...
As we try to cope with yet another early off season, different people find different ways to occupy themselves to pass the time. As someone on a CBS Sports forum said, this is one of the worst times of year. You don't hear any rumors about your team, and for fans of 26 other teams, the only NHL hockey on is the conference finals. Still, fans prowl hockeybuzz, hoping to sal...
amerk626 writes...
What the Rangers, Devils, and Flyers all have in common
Posted Wednesday | Comments 0
Obviously, the main theme amongst these three Atlantic Division rivals is a solid above .500 season that always results in an early playoff exit for the same and different reasons. You could sit here and blame the referees, one player, or injuries, but good teams play through instances like that and overcome the adversity such obstacles present.
The Pittsburgh Penguins ...
In all honesty, I have attempted to write this blog more than a handful of times, but I either got frustrated just thinking about it and Xed out, or I could not organize my thoughts properly. Rather start with a tacky intro, I'll get to the point.
Since the lockout, the best way I can describe a typical New Jersey Devil's regular season is like drinking a red bull. It t...
Aside from figuring out what free agents he wants to try to sign and re-sign, how to handle the upcoming draft, and what direction to steer this seemingly broken Devils team towards, Devils GM Lou Lamoriello may be faced with another problem if head coach Brent Sutter decides to step down from his post and part ways with the Devils.
I think the hiring of Brent Sutter w...
I'm not one that welcomes change. I believe in tradition, sentimental values, and fear taking things in the present for granted, but want to appreciate them when they're not around to appreciate anymore. Change is constant and you have no choice to embrace and deal with it, especially the inevitable changes. When Martin Brodeur was injured for a three month stretch this se...
With the playoffs drawing to an end, a lot of questions surround the New Jersey Devils as the beginning of the off-season nears. The major questions being asked by fans, bloggers, and analysts are mainly routine questions that come up every year, but there are a few that stand out more than others, whose outcomes can affect this Devils team in different ways.
[b]What is...
This is a pivotal off season for the New Jersey Devils. After another "red bull" season, the Devil's weaknesses were exposed greatly after the trade deadline and in the playoffs. This, along with the need to hire a head coach, handling the upcoming draft, and his annual free agent situation puts a lot on Lou's plate. This off season may be the most important one for the De...
The woes of the New Jersey Devils; but doesn't every team have them? Trade this guy, sign that guy, buy him out, waive that guy, fire him, he should retire, blah blah blah. I swear if we the fans dictated what moves our teams made, we'd see more people come and go than on the Apprentice.
Since The Devil's 2008-2009 "Red Bull" campaign ended, the same ideas and opinions ...
For the record, I'm not saying I don't like Jacques Lemaire or think he's a bad coach. Any coach that wins a Stanley Cup and has coached as long as he has is good enough in my book. I just think at this point and time Lemaire isn't the right coach the Devils need, especially if Lou is looking to hire someone long term. He would not be in my top five choices but is not my l...
In the Dark Knight, Aaron Eckhart said "You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain". Metaphorically speaking, I think there is a lot of justification behind this quote and of course I can relate it to hockey and my New Jersey Devils. For the better part of two decades, Martin Broduer has been the face of the New Jersey Devils and GM Lou La...
July 1st is less than a week away and the NHL Entry Draft is hours away. Rumors seem abundant for 29 other teams in the NHL, while what little news regarding the Devils is scarce and broad. Is this another instance of the Devils living up to their reputation of confidentiality or Lou sitting on his you know what picking his fingernails?
I digress.
We all know who the...
After comparing the stunning game 7 loss the Devils suffered to the Carolina Hurricanes and the events that occurred...well didn't occur at yesterday's free agency opening, I couldn't figure out when I was more speechless. Like many Devils fans yesterday, I experienced a whirlpool of emotions, emotions that lasted into today. I was frustrated, outraged, upset, stunned, mor...
Rebuilding, back stepping, reloading, call it what you want. It is evident the Devils approached this off season with the intentions of instilling a youth movement and seem to be going through with it. Fans were outraged as players like Brian Gionta and John Madden signed elsewhere, while the Devils stood pat since July 1st. After realizing Lou Lamoriello's plans for the t...
As reported in the [i]Star Ledger[/i], with no agreement in sight, it looks like the Devils and Travis Zajac are headed for arbitration this Friday. 24-year old Travis Zajac is coming off a career year after tallying 20 goals and 62 points. He's been lauded for his astounding chemistry with Zach Parise, and is rendered as someone who would be in Jersey long term.
How ma...
Another off season going by, another opportunity the Devils have passed on to obtain that top 2 defenseman the blue line has lacked. Unless the Devils execute a trade, which is unlikely (just because I have no recollection of the Devils ever making a significant move between now and the beginning of the season), it looks like they'll have to work with what they've got. The...
I think it's safe to say this is the most drab time of year in hockey world. A time when news is scarce, the free agent frenzy has been reduced to leftovers, and the only thing to do is count down the days until training camp starts. Scarce news doesn't necessarily mean there's nothing to talk about because I'm sure you can point out something about each team that's be wor...
Happy August everybody! The 2009 Free Agent Frenzy is a month old today, a month of excitement, frustrations, surprises, and disappointments for the fans of the 30 NHL teams. We haven't watched a live game of hockey since the conclusion of the 2008-2009 season in June, but have been entertained by the Entry Draft, Free Agent Frenzy, and the occasional trade, hiring, or fi...
It dawned on me. There are times when I'll be hanging out with friends and the topic of sports comes up in conversation. 9 times out of 10, they talk about baseball, football, basketball, even nascar. Whenever I mention hockey, they look at me like I have 2 heads, or start saying hockey stinks, it's boring to watch, baseball's better, and blah blah blah. Living in New York...
Stanley Cups, Vezinas, gold medals, broken records...this is the gist of what Martin Brodeur has accomplished throughout his decorated 15-year career. Like him or hate him, you have to admit he's one of the greatest goaltenders to ever play the game and is arguably still one of the best. To say Marty has nothing to prove anymore is a debatable topic that I contradict with ...
I initially thought this was a no brainer, but now have reason to believe otherwise. I speculated the Devil's second line would include Patrik Elias and Nicklas Bergfors at the wings and Brian Rolston giving center another shot. Jacques Lemaire stated in an interview with Tom Gulitti that he felt Rolston played best at wing, but was unclear whether or not he'll try him at ...
Tonight's 3-1 victory over the Anaheim Ducks is the Devil's sixth consecutive win, tying them for the division lead, while getting them one win shy of becoming .500 at home. The Devils have gone 12-2 since their worrisome 0-2 start, which I acknowledge my frequent bringing up of for good reason. Record aside, it looked as if the two winless games forecasted a long and misf...
Let's be real now...the way things have been going for these New Jersey Devils, the Olympic break couldn't have come any sooner. Since January, the Devils have gone 9-13, losing eleven of those thirteen in regulation, and were shut out four times. Over the course of these twenty-two games, the Devils have barely averaged over two goals a game and save a significantly tight...
After suffering another consecutive loss and descending to the .500 mark in games played after the Olympic break, my frustrations and concerns have risen for this New Jersey Devils team. This is the second game in a row that the offense has failed to maintain any productive consistency or convert on the power play for the sixth consecutive game. I normally like to abide by...
The wounds of suffering a third consecutive first round exit aren't as painful as they were a few weeks ago, but still persist. With the team's future, along with general manager Lou Lamoriello's intentions uncertain going into the off season, a lot of question marks surround this Devils team. Some fans still ask what went wrong and what has to be done to snap the Devils o...
We're well into training camp and I'm sure I can speak for all hockey fans when I say how excited I am that hockey's back. Although we're in the stages of exhibition hockey, consider it your fix to help ease the anxiety that comes with the anticipation of waiting for October's arrival. After a summer where the New Jersey Devils were among the more relevant teams in the hoc...
The leadership quality of Devil's captain Jamie Langenbrunner has been questioned since last year's mid-season slide, a trend that's worsened as it crossed into this year's campaign. At this point in the season, Langenbrunner's been as ineffective as most of the players on this team have been with only three goals and eleven points in eighteen games, going a minus ten. As ...
First and foremost, I wish everyone a happy 2011!
After ending the 2010 year with a modest 3-1 defeat over the Atlanta Thrashers, a year during which the Devils went 30-42-9, they stumbled hard into 2011, getting crushed by the Carolina Hurricanes 6-3. Going into tonight's game (1/4/2011) against the Minnesota Wild, there have been a number of intriguing events that tr...
For those that read Devils posts on here, I'm the one known as Intern Mike. Sam's been relatively busy as of late so I'll take the liberty of continuing to submit my posts to read.
With the Devil's off-season starting a little earlier than we're used to, they are surrounded by a bunch of question marks yet again. I was fortunate to get some time from my good friend Todd...