Will the Deadline Come and Go for Devils Fans?

With the deadline approaching and the Devils lingering around the top spot in the East with Buffalo do you think the Devils will make a deal or stay put?

Atlanta is on our tail. Injuries to Madden, White and gio are of immediate concern but they will not early indications are these are day to day and none of them will be placed on IR.


The Cap really is a burden for NJ this season forcing for sure that they would have to deal a roster player to get soemone back.

Most Expendable players:

David Hale
Cam Jannsen
Barry Tallackson
Dan McGillis

There will be no changes. The only thing that needs to be changed is that our offense needs to play up to their abilities.....and $alaries

Starting at the top, with our very well-compen$ated Captain.

Starting at the top, with our very well-compen$ated Captain.

Wow. :shakehead

Wow. :shakehead

wow what?

You're happy with the offesnive production this season?

wow what?

You're happy with the offesnive production this season?

On pace for 80 points which is the same he had in 03-04.
He has only hit the 40 goal mark once and a 90 point mark to go with it in 00-01. And that was with the Best line the Devils ever had. So what's your beef? He'll get 30 this year along with 50 assists.

wow what?

You're happy with the offesnive production this season?

Yes. I am very happy with Captain Patty and his production. He is true team leader and makes other guys better. His players look up to him. He is on pace for 80 points. Teams are scared to face him.

On pace for 80 points which is the same he had in 03-04.

Actually 78 according to TSN.

And he's probably not going to reach the 30 goal plateau either.

That's unacceptable.

This guy should be a 40 goal/90 point scorer EVERY season. He's certainly paid like one. Any Devils fan who watches him knows he passes too much instead of shooting and certainly knows he has the skills, esepcially when he's done it before.

Sorry but with a hard salary-cap we need to stop making excuses and demand our players to play up to expectations.

Our offense is horrible & it starts at the top!

I think he's been pretty unlucky this year. Bounces never go his way and he still leads the team in shots.

Yes. I am very happy with Captain Patty and his production. He is true team leader and makes other guys better. His players look up to him. He is on pace for 80 points. Teams are scared to face him.

Yikes!

You have low expectations.

Edit: Wait a minute...teams are afraid to face Elias?
I wish they were.... but somehow I'm not getting that impression, especially when his own coach left him out of the first 3 shooters of a recent shoot out.

I think he's been pretty unlucky this year. Bounces never go his way and he still leads the team in shots.

True but this can be said of him for most of his career as he's always been streaky and unlucky and gets in many more cold streaks than hot one's.

Actually 78 according to TSN.

And he's probably not going to reach the 30 goal plateau either.

That's unacceptable.

This guy should be a 40 goal/90 point scorer EVERY season. He's certainly paid like one. Any Devils fan who watches him knows he passes too much instead of shooting and certainly knows he has the skills, esepcially when he's done it before.

Sorry but with a hard salary-cap we need to stop making excuses and demand our players to play up to expectations.

Our offense is horrible & it starts at the top!


Stats do not indicate how valueable a player is to their team. The Devils focus more on defence then they do on offense. But with a premier goalie, the fact that they score more goals then they allow and the fact that the team responds to Elias as a leader, his season has been more then acceptable. He is a solid two way forward and is very hard on himself when he does not bury the puck which always causes him to respond. A 78 point season by Elias is acceptable based on the fact he means so much in so many otherways to this team.

I would rather have a healthy Patrik Elias for the playoffs then morethen half the captains in the league.

Muttley stop making a fool of yourself. No one here has been more critical of Elias' play this year than me, but you fail to understand the full picture of his significance to the team. He is not part of the problem. Could he be playing better? Of course. But he is well worth the 6 million per he's being paid for his contributions on the ice offensively and defensively, and off the ice in his leadership role.

Elias has improved his game during this recent streak (dating back to Christmas). I still would like to see more from the 1st line, but Elias is not the main problem anymore.

As for the deadline poll.. I think Lou's moves are coming in the offseason. He'll stand pat this year. We don't need anything other than a star offensive dman and he's not gonna trade for one now.

Lets trade Elias this deadline. :shakehead

Muttley stop making a fool of yourself. No one here has been more critical of Elias' play this year than me, but you fail to understand the full picture of his significance to the team. He is not part of the problem. Could he be playing better? Of course. But he is well worth the 6 million per he's being paid for his contributions on the ice offensively and defensively, and off the ice in his leadership role.

Hey, I could care less what people think when I criticize the more popular players on this team. He's getting $7.5 million this season according the the NHLPA site.

He is part of the problem. He's the highest paid player on the team who has been underachieving for most of his carrer. We also have to deal with a salary cap now and worry about signing and retaining players.

We haven't won the Stanley Cup in 4 years.

The post Stevens/Daneyko/Neidermeyer legacy that has been created since 1993 is one of playoff failure/1st or 2nd round exits.

How many years are we going to give excuses for Elias or will he always be above criticism?

Elias has improved his game during this recent streak (dating back to Christmas). I still would like to see more from the 1st line, but Elias is not the main problem anymore.

As for the deadline poll.. I think Lou's moves are coming in the offseason. He'll stand pat this year. We don't need anything other than a star offensive dman and he's not gonna trade for one now.

No we don't. We need forwards that can score. We have them, but they aren't scoring.

wow what?

You're happy with the offesnive production this season?


Leading the team in points, like he does every year? Yeah, I can live with that.



Getting back on-topic, I don't see them making any moves. Matvichuk will be squeezed in and Hale/Greene/McGillis can be #7/8/9. And Pittsburgh is on our tail. Not Atlanta.

Actually 78 according to TSN.

And he's probably not going to reach the 30 goal plateau either.

That's unacceptable.

This guy should be a 40 goal/90 point scorer EVERY season. He's certainly paid like one. Any Devils fan who watches him knows he passes too much instead of shooting and certainly knows he has the skills, esepcially when he's done it before.

Sorry but with a hard salary-cap we need to stop making excuses and demand our players to play up to expectations.

Our offense is horrible & it starts at the top!

You do know that a captain's worth should not be measured in points and points alone.......Patty has captained this team to a 1st place pace and brought stability to the team since his return last year, he's scoring at almost a point per game pace, which he will top at the end of the year. He finishes strong and scores 82+ points and 35 goals or I'll change my name to Muttley's ***** for 3 months.

You do know that a captain's worth should not be measured in points and points alone.......Patty has captained this team to a 1st place pace and brought stability to the team since his return last year, he's scoring at almost a point per game pace, which he will top at the end of the year. He finishes strong and scores 82+ points and 35 goals or I'll change my name to Muttley's ***** for 3 months.

But are we going to get out of the 1st or 2nd round of the playoffs?

Leading the team in points, like he does every year? Yeah, I can live with that.

Agreed, but when one leads the team with 78 points, that's not saying much.

I think the slight drop in production of both Elias and Gionta is a result of Gomez's inability to break through the opposing zone anymore. Last year it just seemed so easy, and he would do it every game. All you had to was watch one game and you could see how many times we had it set up for Gomez. The news has gotten around now and I hardly see one of Gomez's rushes anymore. Last night was the first time in a while.

You do know that a captain's worth should not be measured in points and points alone.......Patty has captained this team to a 1st place pace and brought stability to the team since his return last year, he's scoring at almost a point per game pace, which he will top at the end of the year. He finishes strong and scores 82+ points and 35 goals or I'll change my name to Muttley's ***** for 3 months.

:biglaugh: That would be interesting.

Agreed, but when one leads the team with 78 points, that's not saying much.

It says a lot when your captain leads the team in points with 78 and the team is 2nd in the Conference and 1st in the league in GA.

I think the slight drop in production of both Elias and Gionta is a result of Gomez's inability to break through the opposing zone anymore. Last year it just seemed so easy, and he would do it every game. All you had to was watch one game and you could see how many times we had it set up for Gomez. The news has gotten around now and I hardly see one of Gomez's rushes anymore. Last night was the first time in a while.

Defenses are picking up on it a lot better this year.

Hey, I could care less what people think when I criticize the more popular players on this team. He's getting $7.5 million this season according the the NHLPA site.

For the one trillionth time, the $7.5 million means absolutely nothing. His cap hit is 6 million per year and that is the only number you have to consider concerning his compensation.

He is part of the problem. He's the highest paid player on the team who has been underachieving for most of his carrer. We also have to deal with a salary cap now and worry about signing and retaining players.

Underachieving? Are you kidding me? Are we talking about the same player here? This is a guy who has averaged 30 goals and 70 points over the past 7 years. Not to mention the fact that he is considered around the league to be one of the best defensive forwards in the league.

We haven't won the Stanley Cup in 4 years.

Oh no! Trade everyone we haven't won the cup in 4 years. Not to mention 1 of those years was a lockout season, and the another one of those years you seem to consider we are CURRENTLY IN.

The post Stevens/Daneyko/Neidermeyer legacy that has been created since 1993 is one of playoff failure/1st or 2nd round exits.

...we won 3 stanley cups in that span... you wanted 8 cups? Will you whine about players unless we win the cup every single year?

How many years are we going to give excuses for Elias or will he always be above criticism?

As I have said before, what you do is attack Elias and undermine his significance to the team. I and others give constructive criticism and try to help figure out what the problem is with him at times and what could be done to fix the problem.

But are we going to get out of the 1st or 2nd round of the playoffs?

Absolutely...who did we lose to last year? The Stanley Cup Champs.....no one was beating the Canes last year, not even the mighty Sabres (who had a better all around team last year than this year) and the year before that? The Flyers and why? Because Robert Esche stood on his head and carried his team to game 7 of the ECF only to lose to the Cup champs.....there's no reason why we can't do it this year. Marty has been playing his best hockey, and this team is just on a vicious streak, one of the hottest teams since that disastrous road trip out west. Who do you think turned the team around after that? I guarantee it was Patty, he's the captain, I remember hearing about a closed door team meeting and I guarantee Elias is the one who told them to get their butts in gear and well, here we are.

It says a lot when your captain leads the team in points with 78 and the team is 2nd in the Conference and 1st in the league in GA.

:amazed: As Devils fans, didn't we always stess the significance that we are more concerned with what happens in the playoffs as opposed to the winning the Divsion, Conference during regular season?

So now, just winning the Conference or being in 2nd place is such a big deal?

What happens in the playoffs?

But are we going to get out of the 1st or 2nd round of the playoffs?

Sorry to break it to you buddy but you know, only 1/30 teams win the Stanley Cup per year. Just making it to the 1st or 2nd round of the playoffs every year for over a decade is quite an accomplishment. Don't act so spoiled, your precious Devils can't win it every year.

:amazed: As Devils fans, didn't we always stess the significance that we are more concerned with what happens in the playoffs as opposed to the winning the Divsion, Conference during regular season?

So now, just winning the Conference or being in 2nd place is such a big deal?

What happens in the playoffs?

Elias scored 16 points in 9 games last year in the playoffs?

Absolutely...who did we lose to last year? The Stanley Cup Champs.....no one was beating the Canes last year, not even the mighty Sabres (who had a better all around team last year than this year) and the year before that? The Flyers and why? Because Robert Esche stood on his head and carried his team to game 7 of the ECF only to lose to the Cup champs.....there's no reason why we can't do it this year. Marty has been playing his best hockey, and this team is just on a vicious streak, one of the hottest teams since that disastrous road trip out west. Who do you think turned the team around after that? I guarantee it was Patty, he's the captain, I remember hearing about a closed door team meeting and I guarantee Elias is the one who told them to get their butts in gear and well, here we are.

I think it was excellent play by our defense and superbr goaltending. Many of the games that we have one have been a little to close for comfort. The offense could chip in much more to make it easier on our defense and especially Marty. That's the point of my issue with Elias. But everyone thinks he's doing a spectacular job thus far.

Elias scored 16 points in 9 games last year in the playoffs?

Great. What happened to that Elias?

:amazed: As Devils fans, didn't we always stess the significance that we are more concerned with what happens in the playoffs as opposed to the winning the Divsion, Conference during regular season?

So now, just winning the Conference or being in 2nd place is such a big deal?

What happens in the playoffs?
Tell me you wanted to get rid of Niedermayer after he captained us to our last first round exit and you're a fool, if not you're just a hypocrite.

I think it was excellent play by our defense and superbr goaltending. Many of the games that we have one have been a little to close for comfort. The offense could chip in much more to make it easier on our defense and especially Marty. That's the point of my issue with Elias. But everyone thinks he's doing a spectacular job thus far.

The closed door meeting got their butts in motion, don't kid yourself.

http://web.telia.com/~u86302840/bilder/banan.gif

Tell me you wanted to get rid of Niedermayer after he captained us to our last first round exit and you're a fool, if not you're just a hypocrite.

Not sure what you mean.

Actually I still wish we had Niedermayer. Don't you?

Hey, I don't think Elias is the right captain for this team and he gets paid a lot to underachieve. Deal with it, I will continue to believe it.

Nobody has given a substantial reason why he should be Captain. but the only way he would be considered a successful Captain of this franchise is if this team wins a Stanley Cup.

And I'll be the first one to appologize.

Great. What happened to that Elias?

Let's not just write off Elias for slumping. That Captaincy has been getting to him. In the playoffs, he and Langs are $$ so I wouldn't complain about Elias in the playoffs.

Maybe because he hasn't played a full season of hockey since '04? :dunno:

Maybe because he hasn't played a full season of hockey since '04? :dunno:

Come on, is this yet another excuse?

Actually 78 according to TSN.

And he's probably not going to reach the 30 goal plateau either.

That's unacceptable.

This guy should be a 40 goal/90 point scorer EVERY season. He's certainly paid like one. Any Devils fan who watches him knows he passes too much instead of shooting and certainly knows he has the skills, esepcially when he's done it before.

Sorry but with a hard salary-cap we need to stop making excuses and demand our players to play up to expectations.

Our offense is horrible & it starts at the top!
What the hell does how many goals he scores matter if the team is winning? Elias led the team in goals with 29 in 2002-03.

Let's not just write off Elias for slumping. That Captaincy has been getting to him. In the playoffs, he and Langs are $$ so I wouldn't complain about Elias in the playoffs.

Yeah, but as a team, look where it has gotten us. I'm looking at the big picture.
But I guess people are happy with what has happened the last 2 post-seasons.

Yeah, but as a team, look where it has gotten us. I'm looking at the big picture.
But I guess people are happy with what has happened the last 2 post-seasons.

04 playoffs is long forgotten to me. We lost our Captain and I believe Rafalski to injuries. We had no big bodies to take care of Primeau who pretty much too over the series.

Yeah, but as a team, look where it has gotten us. I'm looking at the big picture.
But I guess people are happy with what has happened the last 2 post-seasons.Yes, let's look at where it has gotten us. Do you ever look at the standings? It doesn't seem like. You seem like a whining baby who picked Elias for your fantasy hockey.

04 playoffs is long forgotten to me. We lost our Captain and I believe Rafalski to injuries. We had no big bodies to take care of Primeau who pretty much too over the series.

It seems like we are falling into the trap of comming up with too many excuses for this team, individual players, something we used to criticize other team's fans about.
This team has the talent to get past the 2nd round this season And we can't use the excuses, "well, we ran into the Cup winning team" or "they were the hot team comming in"

Not sure what you mean.

Actually I still wish we had Niedermayer. Don't you?

Hey, I don't think Elias is the right captain for this team and he gets paid a lot to underachieve. Deal with it, I will continue to believe it.

Nobody has given a substantial reason why he should be Captain. but the only way he would be considered a successful Captain of this franchise is if this team wins a Stanley Cup.

And I'll be the first one to appologize.

Failing to match his career year (40g, 96p. His second best year was 38g, 81p) is not underachieving. The same goes for the team for that matter. Only four teams make it out of the second round each year.

the devils are a very good hockey team, so i don't think they will do much, why mess with a good thing

Yes, let's look at where it has gotten us. Do you ever look at the standings? It doesn't seem like. You seem like a whining baby who picked Elias for your fantasy hockey.

wow, second snotty comment in less than a week. you got some serious issues.

No we don't. We need forwards that can score. We have them, but they aren't scoring.

Thats true, but the point is that we have em, therefore we don't need more. We need a shot from the point, or a dman who can take it end to end like Neidermayer did it, or for a more recent example, the way Boyle did it to us on Sunday.

Not to say Rafalski can't do it, but it would be nice to have another defenceman of his type in the lineup.

Okay guys, stop this little *****-fest here or I'm just going to shut this down

Absolutely...who did we lose to last year? The Stanley Cup Champs.....no one was beating the Canes last year, not even the mighty Sabres (who had a better all around team last year than this year) and the year before that? The Flyers and why? Because Robert Esche stood on his head and carried his team to game 7 of the ECF only to lose to the Cup champs.....there's no reason why we can't do it this year. Marty has been playing his best hockey, and this team is just on a vicious streak, one of the hottest teams since that disastrous road trip out west. Who do you think turned the team around after that? I guarantee it was Patty, he's the captain, I remember hearing about a closed door team meeting and I guarantee Elias is the one who told them to get their butts in gear and well, here we are.
I'd be willing to bet a big part of that loss also had to do with Pat Burns getting cancer. I'm sure he was somewhat distracted, the other coaches were probably distracted, and even though he didn't tell the team I think I remember reading quotes where they said they knew there was something not right.

Anyway, back to the original topic - I don't think the Devils will do anything. They have basically no cap space, and I don't think they need to do anything. I like this team as it is.

the devils are a very good hockey team, so i don't think they will do much, why mess with a good thing

Yep, this team has as good a chance as any of the "contenders".. it's all about hard work and a little luck from here on in. How many times in the NHL does the best team on paper win the cup anyways?

I'd be willing to bet a big part of that loss also had to do with Pat Burns getting cancer. I'm sure he was somewhat distracted, the other coaches were probably distracted, and even though he didn't tell the team I think I remember reading quotes where they said they knew there was something not right.
I also think it had something to do with, as many fans probably forget, Rafalski playing with a BROKEN LEG.

I also think it had something to do with, as many fans probably forget, Rafalski playing with a BROKEN LEG.

I knew Rafalski was hurt that year!

But the bottom line is: Elias is NOT in a ****in RANGERS uni. I would rather give Elias this contract then play for those ****ers!

I voted for minor trade, but I'm still hopeful that a physical scoring winger can be acquired this month.