honest question

[nj_cup]

does this team really make the playoffs?

pens/flyers/isles/caps/rags thats just in our division alone! the jackets also on the rise. the hurricanes meh


they could grab 2 spots from the other division for the playoffs buuuuuut

that division has the bruins/habs/wings/sens



teams that should make the playoffs are

pens/bruins/habs/wings/sens/flyers/isles/caps/rags thats 9 teams!

even with kovy on the team this would be a stretch to make it.

 

[Nasty_Magician]

If Kovy was on the team yes, I think we 100% would. Now, it's going to be tough but certainly not impossible.

We don't have a legit top line but that doesn't mean we don't have any talent. It just means we have 2 2nd lines, which isn't the worst thing in the world. I think Marty and Schneider can keep us in most games and make us competitive. If guys stay healthy and we get quality seasons out of Henrique, Zajac and Clowe I don't see any reason we can't be competitive.

Elias and Ryder I have faith will continue to do their thing.

D needs to be better for us to have a shot. If we can get back to being a shutdown PK unit we'll be ok.

 

[Nasty_Magician]

Also, it can't hurt going into a season with no expectations. Nobody thinks anything of the Devils right now. I think that can work in our favor since we're not nearly as bad as people make us out to be.

 

[irishwhip03]

If we stay healthy yes. The division is rough but I really think Pittsburgh is the only lock. The teams below them have their strengths and weaknesses just like us.

I think the 4 teams you have from the other East division are pretty safe bets to get into the playoffs so that leaves 3 spots assuming PIT does what I think they'll do. Rags will probably get one just cause of Henrik. So that leaves us in 7-8 spot group with Columbus , Toronto , Washington , Tampa , Isles , Philly and Carolina fighting it out for 2 spots.

I need to see Nabakov play as good as he did last season over an 82 game stretch. Same with Bobrovsky. Ward hasnt been consistently healthy and Philly hasnt done enough in goal to call themselves a playoff team.

One things for sure , we arent that much better or that much worse then any of those teams. The health of Marty and Jagr will play a big role in our season.

 

[Nasty_Magician]

I'm not totally convinced that guys last year were fully A) In Shape B) Healthy. A full training camp to get used to the coaching staff and get back into a regular routine should help guys like Salvador who looked off last year.

 

[nj_cup]

yeah we have some issues like other teams the only thing that worries me

other teams are either really good scoring and bad defense wise

or really good defense wise but bad scoring.

flyers/caps/bolts/isles can light it up

rangers can play great defense.

jackets/canes/leafs/sabres are the wild cards.


devils what is our strength?

our depth? we are old really old
our powerplay? sucked with kovy last year without? it cant be better.
penalty kill? kovy played big mins last year on it and was a beast with short handed goals
defense? it was a mess and the brain dead choice not to buy out volchenkov or to trade someone else is going to hurt this team.
scoring? well look at last year without kovy.
goaltending is the only strong spot and thats with a slight * because i would really like to see cory handle 55+ games before giving him the default starting job.

its like we are entering with the same questions as last year with scoring

will the kids step up? no they didnt
will clarkson carry the load? no he didnt except this year its will clowe carry the load.

 

[Nasty_Magician]

yeah we have some issues like other teams the only thing that worries me

other teams are either really good scoring and bad defense wise

or really good defense wise but bad scoring.

flyers/caps/bolts/isles can light it up

rangers can play great defense.

jackets/canes/leafs/sabres are the wild cards.


devils what is our strength?

our depth? we are old really old
our powerplay? sucked with kovy last year without? it cant be better.
penalty kill? kovy played big mins last year on it and was a beast with short handed goals
defense? it was a mess and the brain dead choice not to buy out volchenkov or to trade someone else is going to hurt this team.
scoring? well look at last year without kovy.
goaltending is the only strong spot and thats with a slight * because i would really like to see cory handle 55+ games before giving him the default starting job.

its like we are entering with the same questions as last year with scoring

will the kids step up? no they didnt
will clarkson carry the load? no he didnt except this year its will clowe carry the load.

Rangers COULD play defense, who knows now. Torts gone they won't have five guys clogging up the middle of the ice and blocking shots.

Maybe I'm too optimistic but I think Salvador and A-Train bounce back and play dependable hockey.

The PP remains to be seen. I have no idea if it will be good or not. Kovy is gone but maybe a new scheme can work?

Maybe Larsson takes the next step? Maybe Henrique and Zajac turn it on and both become viable first line centers? Maybe Marty and Schneider run away with the Jennings? Maybe Clowe becomes a better version of Clarkson? Plenty of what ifs with this team but that doesn't mean they're all going to be negatives.

 

[MadCaptain]

Well the one think that will surely be better is the shootout, which was the biggest reason the teams record sucked last year.

 

[irishwhip03]

Yeah if Marty is Marty our goaltending is a huge advantage. Especially in all those back to backs.

Schneider alone being here makes me think we can get into the playoffs..if this was a Marty and Moose type season , even with Kovy , I wouldnt feel as good about it cause then there would be zero room for Marty to either struggle or get hurt.

 

[nj_cup]

Well the one think that will surely be better is the shootout, which was the biggest reason the teams record sucked last year.

you think we will be good? i dont know about that

 

[MCDevils]

Adam Henrique and Cory Schneids will decide.

 

[MadCaptain]

you think we will be good? i dont know about that

Well, they got rid of Hedberg. I see that as a huge positive in the shootout.

 

[Vortimous]

One of the big differences last year and the year before was the shootout. Look how many games we won two years ago (Parise) in the shootout and look how many we lost last year. That is a ton of points left on the table. You would hope that we are good enough to win in regulation, but that wasn't always the case. Shootouts killed us last year and really helped us earn some points the year before... if we are talking about making the playoffs....

 

[MCDevils]

It's funny how close it is. If the Devils went 7-2 in the shootout instead of 2-7 or just won 5 of their 10 OTLs, they would have been 2 points out of the playoffs. Meaning, if we beat the Islanders in regulation one game we lost to them we would have been in.

 

[MCDevils]

Also, in terms of real points the numbers don't look supremely bleak.

G A
Clarkson 15 9
Kovalchuk 11 20
Poni 2 7

Jagr 16 19
Clowe 3 16
Ryder 16 19

And frankly, I would be shocked if clowe only scored 3 goals again. The guy averaged about 20G and 55Pts per season consistently. Even if he can't get back to those numbers he looks like an easy Poni replacement.

Like I said before though, the real key is going to be guys like Henrique, Loki, and Schneids. They need to fill a lot of the void left by the departures.

We'll see. The defense is basically unchanged from the one that took us to the finals, so we'll see.

 

[MadCaptain]

I agree MC. The main reason why I'm thinking losing Kovalchuk wont be a huge hit from last year is because he missed a large portion of the last year anyways.

I think the key is goaltending. If its the same as last year we're a bottom-5 team. If Schneider is as good as advertised we're competing for a playoff spot, and if Schneider can ba an elite top-5 goalie as Lou said he could be then anything can happen in the playoffs. Hot goalies have been able to carry teams to the cup. Look at Cam Ward, Tim Thomas, etc.

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

I think they have an outside shot, it's not a bad roster with Jagr, Elias, Ryder, Zubrus, Henrique, Carter, Bernier, Gionta, Zidlicky, Volchenkov, Greene, Larsson, Salvador, Clowe, Loktionkov, etc.

Also with Schneider there, they won't have to rely so much on Marty.

It's really not a bad team on paper. The only problem is that they've lost a leader/superstar each of the past couple offseasons & that's gonna shake up the chemistry. With stable ownership, I could see the Devils returning to prominence rather soon (say 2-3 seasons?).

 

[nj_cup]

I think they have an outside shot, it's not a bad roster with Jagr, Elias, Ryder, Zubrus, Henrique, Carter, Bernier, Gionta, Zidlicky, Volchenkov, Greene, Larsson, Salvador, Clowe, Loktionkov, etc.

Also with Schneider there, they won't have to rely so much on Marty.

It's really not a bad team on paper. The only problem is that they've lost a leader/superstar each of the past couple offseasons & that's gonna shake up the chemistry. With stable ownership, I could see the Devils returning to prominence rather soon (say 2-3 seasons?).

thats the thing i'm worried about missing that go to game changer. i know everyone loves the "team" concept but still would like that 1 go to guy

 

[nj_cup]

It's funny how close it is. If the Devils went 7-2 in the shootout instead of 2-7 or just won 5 of their 10 OTLs, they would have been 2 points out of the playoffs. Meaning, if we beat the Islanders in regulation one game we lost to them we would have been in.

which really should be a prime example for why the "loser point" should be gone. the team last year was no where near good enough to be in a playoff contention.

 

[Nasty_Magician]

The current roster may or may not make the playoffs but I think they can certainly be competitive enough to tread water until the trade deadline. At that point who knows what could happen. If Lou thinks we have a real shot he'll pull the trigger on a deal.