Who's Out There To Steer The Devils Back To A Contender?

[engy]

Washington he laid an egg but outside of that he hasn't been too bad. The last was mostly power play goals and poor coverage. This has been said ad nauseum but the key to them giving up less goals is taking less penalties (1+1=2; sky is blue level of obviousness).

I'm pretty sure the key to less goals is to make saves and stop shots from getting into the net. Not every goal the Devils gave up were unstoppable.

 

[devilsblood]

Washington he laid an egg but outside of that he hasn't been too bad. The last was mostly power play goals and poor coverage. This has been said ad nauseum but the key to them giving up less goals is taking less penalties (1+1=2; sky is blue level of obviousness).

Just checked, .917 ES, .811 on PK.

11 ES goals, under 2pg, 7sh goals, over 1pg. And amongst Cory's softies, and he's had a couple, I don't remember any on the pk.

So yeah pretty clear what the issue is.

 

[DevilinDC]

There's a phenomenon that happens on this board that I've noticed the past three years:
1. Summer happens and people get excited for the season. Minor additions/subtractions (major subtractions) occur and people overemphasize and underemphasize the wrong way with each.
2. Season starts and after a few games the arguments start. "Small sample size," "You're an idiot," "Not his fault," etc.
3. Time goes on and the narratives conflate all kinds of ideas into very strange stories.

I thought the consensus, finally, after last year, that Pete was a major problem for this franchise. I thought, that before he was re-signed nearly each and every one of you were near guaranteeing he'd be replaced or you'd never watch another devils game again. I thought that after all the face palms, all the sighs, all the whining and moaning after he was re-signed, we could still all agree, that though his system was solid, his faults outweighed his strengths.

But here we are again. Small sample size. Not his fault. And now, "who do we replace him with."

This man gives me high blood pressure. I want him gone for medical reasons.

(and if he makes the playoffs, and wins the cup, it's a fluke)

 

[Unknown Caller]

There's a phenomenon that happens on this board that I've noticed the past three years:
1. Summer happens and people get excited for the season. Minor additions/subtractions (major subtractions) occur and people overemphasize and underemphasize the wrong way with each.
2. Season starts and after a few games the arguments start. "Small sample size," "You're an idiot," "Not his fault," etc.
3. Time goes on and the narratives conflate all kinds of ideas into very strange stories.

I thought the consensus, finally, after last year, that Pete was a major problem for this franchise. I thought, that before he was re-signed nearly each and every one of you were near guaranteeing he'd be replaced or you'd never watch another devils game again. I thought that after all the face palms, all the sighs, all the whining and moaning after he was re-signed, we could still all agree, that though his system was solid, his faults outweighed his strengths.

But here we are again. Small sample size. Not his fault. And now, "who do we replace him with."

This man gives me high blood pressure. I want him gone for medical reasons.

(and if he makes the playoffs, and wins the cup, it's a fluke)

It's the other way around. Like you said, people overemphasize the players we've added and under emphasize the players we've lost (nevermind players like Elias, Zubrus, Clowe, Zidlicky, Jagr, etc. who are aging and gradually becoming less effective). Let's be honest, the last two seasons this was a bottom-of-the-barrel roster that performed well above its potential for the majority of the season. This year it is a middle of the pack, playoff bubble type roster and that's exactly how they're playing.

Since Parise left, I've said that the issue with this is that they have no core. Every great team has one, and the Devils don't. Until they develop a new core, they'll continue to be a playoff bubble team at best. So keep blaming the coach all you want, but until a new core arrives, this team will be more of the same.

 

[devilsblood]

It's the other way around. Like you said, people overemphasize the players we've added and under emphasize the players we've lost (nevermind players like Elias, Zubrus, Clowe, Zidlicky, Jagr, etc. who are aging and gradually becoming less effective). Let's be honest, the last two seasons this was a bottom-of-the-barrel roster that performed well above its potential for the majority of the season. This year it is a middle of the pack, playoff bubble type roster and that's exactly how they're playing.

Since Parise left, I've said that the issue with this is that they have no core. Every great team has one, and the Devils don't. Until they develop a new core, they'll continue to be a playoff bubble team at best. So keep blaming the coach all you want, but until a new core arrives, this team will be more of the same.

I disagree, I thought last years roster was talented enough to make the playoffs, and I think this years roster is better then last years, so again, talented enough to make the playoffs. 2013 season was a lousy roster no question.

 

[JimEIV]

There are a few hundred on this board...

I could take all of this a little more seriously if I didn't see some of our own posters who are some of the loudest DeBoer whiners proclaim Lemaire was the worst coach on the face of the earth in 2010...and then claim he was a legend in less than a calendar year.

I think the meme then was Lemaire sucked and it was all Robinson... proof? Lemaire never won without Robinson but Robinson won without Lemaire.... can't make this **** up.

 

[Devils86]

No justcoach can make this team a contender with the current roster. Give me a break with the Deboer talk, he is a good coach. Our roster has very little high end offense, a bunch of 2nd/3rd liners aint gonna be a contending team.

This..now back to the release Salvador, gio sucks, we can chant what ever want larrson is a god and its all petes fault and told you Marty was better threads

 

[MadDevil]

There a few hundred on this board...

I could take all of this a little more seriously if I didn't see some of our own posters who are some of the loudest DeBoer whiners proclaim Lemaire was the worst coach on the face of the earth in 2010...and then claim he was a legend in less than a calendar year.

I think the meme then was Lemaire sucked and was all Robinson... prove? Lemaire never won without Robinson but Robinson won without Lemaire.... can't male this **** up.

You mean the same people who said Julien lost the team when he was fired, and then after winning a Cup in Boston wondered why Lou fired him? For years it was "Lou has too itchy a trigger finger on coaches". Now that he's sticking with a guy it's "Lou is an idiot for sticking with him this long".

Is Pete a perfect coach? No. Does he make some weird personnel decisions? Yes. But overall I think he's done a pretty decent job considering the ****storm this team has been through since going to the Final.

 

[DevilinDC]

There are a few hundred on this board...

I could take all of this a little more seriously if I didn't see some of our own posters who are some of the loudest DeBoer whiners proclaim Lemaire was the worst coach on the face of the earth in 2010...and then claim he was a legend in less than a calendar year.

I think the meme then was Lemaire sucked and it was all Robinson... proof? Lemaire never won without Robinson but Robinson won without Lemaire.... can't make this **** up.

I wasn't on this board then, I was over at ILWT until, well we know why most people leave there.
But, I've never pretended to know everything about hockey, and I never played. But I've watched since 94 (wow 20 years go by fast) and I just don't like the way deboer does business. I'll say exactly what I've seen 100000 times: neat system, player management sucks. And it's not even little things, it's whopping things like gionta and yesterday's overtime debacle. If it was truly talent, we wouldn't be left with drool coming down our mouths saying, "WTF was that?"

 

[jkrdevil]

Any in season change is going to be Barr promoted or Kowalski coming up from Albany.

When we had this discussion at the end of last season the guy I wanted was John Stevens. LA plays a similar style (which is a style Lou has wanted the team to play for years going back to when he first hired Brent). They have also done a good job developing defensemen and he has a good history of working in young players going back to his time in Philly.

 

[Devils Dominion]

I wasn't on this board then, I was over at ILWT until, well we know why most people leave there.
But, I've never pretended to know everything about hockey, and I never played. But I've watched since 94 (wow 20 years go by fast) and I just don't like the way deboer does business. I'll say exactly what I've seen 100000 times: neat system, player management sucks. And it's not even little things, it's whopping things like gionta and yesterday's overtime debacle. If it was truly talent, we wouldn't be left with drool coming down our mouths saying, "WTF was that?"

Welcome aboard and you are not alone in your thinking.

 

[Devils Unseen Hand]

All I know is, it didn't take long to see the same crap kick in from where we left off from last year. And that's despite the addition of several decent players & a diamond in the rough named, Severson. And it caused by our coach's guidance & decision making.

So yeah, despite the naysayers, this coach needs to be replaced sooner than later. Had we done so in the Johnny Mac era, JL would have had the Devils in the playoffs that season & who knows where it would have ended.

The same can apply to this season, but not under Petey D.'s leadership & that lack thereof. It will have to come from someone else leading this team.

And enough about how we're old, slow, blah, blah, blah. That only applies to several players & those players shouldn't even be in the line-up anymore. This team looks uninspired, unmotivated. incompetent & directionless. And for the most part, that falls onto the coach & his failure to prepare his team & it's lines properly.

 

[ghoti]

This team looks uninspired, unmotivated. incompetent & directionless.

I haven't seen that at all. I think the team is playing hard.

I think the decision to bring in a lot of players to push for spots was a wise one and it will prove its worth in the next few weeks.

It already seems to have worked with Brunner.

 

[Officer Rod Farva]

I don't think the players play hard for this coach.

 

[Emperoreddy]

I don't think the players play hard for this coach.

Based on what? The majority of the team has nothing but good things to say about him, and they are professionals.

They may not be playing sharp or their best hockey, but to say they aren't playing for Pete I think is disingenuous and there is no proof of that at all.

 

[ghoti]

I don't think the players play hard for this coach.

Looks to me like they are.

 

[NJDevs26]

There are a few hundred on this board...

I could take all of this a little more seriously if I didn't see some of our own posters who are some of the loudest DeBoer whiners proclaim Lemaire was the worst coach on the face of the earth in 2010...and then claim he was a legend in less than a calendar year.

I think the meme then was Lemaire sucked and it was all Robinson... proof? Lemaire never won without Robinson but Robinson won without Lemaire.... can't make this **** up.

This is kind of a strawman argument and I see it a lot with multiple things here. Just because there were people proclaiming both POV's on this board, doesn't mean they were generally the same posters flip-flopping. It just means people are 'vocal' on both ends of the spectrum on a message board.

 

[JimEIV]

This is kind of a strawman argument and I see it a lot with multiple things here. Just because there were people proclaiming both POV's on this board, doesn't mean they were generally the same posters flip-flopping. It just means people are 'vocal' on both ends of the spectrum on a message board.

Simply not true...I don't feel it would prove anything to call out posters by name...but it's far from a strawman argument...I've watched this cycle of complaints followed by time that proves everything loudest were complaining about to be 100% wrong, or at the very least uninformed and those very people move on to next thing...

I always wonder, how often do some people have to be wrong before they pipe down and take a more diplomatic approach?

Now where were we? Fourth liners?
DeBoer hates kids that aren't North American?

Last year Brodeur's save percentage, Bernier/Gionta, log jam on defense, lack of scoring...Now a new year and a new set of nonsense

 

[Devils Unseen Hand]

I haven't seen that at all. I think the team is playing hard.

I think the decision to bring in a lot of players to push for spots was a wise one and it will prove its worth in the next few weeks.

It already seems to have worked with Brunner.

Although we have (3) wins, we allowed the Flyers to come back & we almost lost that game. With Tampa, we caught a break with a bad call that allowed us to win that one. Florida was the only solid win we displayed. The last 3 games were absolute aborations!

During the last 3 games, I saw players who tried hard, I saw players who looked lost, i saw players who showed me again & again, why they shouldn't even be playing anymore. And I saw a coach make one after another, bad player/line combo & on-ice decisions.

Brunner looked fine, as he doesn't want to sit in a press box and nor should he. Nor should Gomez after what he showed me in the preseason.

Yet, here we are another year later & we're all typing the same, redundant crap that we all typed over & over again for the last two seasons with this team, under this coach.

No worries though. Everything is status quo. We'll be fine. Just watch!

 

[ghoti]

Yet, here we are another year later & we're all typing the same, redundant crap that we all typed over & over again for the last two seasons

Well, this I agree with.

 

[Devils Unseen Hand]

Well, this I agree with.

So then...what's the pattern here?!?

This team needs --->

 

[devilsblood]

Simply not true...I don't feel it would prove anything to call out posters by name...but it's far from a strawman argument...I've watched this cycle of complaints followed by time that proves everything loudest were complaining about to be 100% wrong, or at the very least uninformed and those very people move on to next thing...

I always wonder, how often do some people have to be wrong before they pipe down and take a more diplomatic approach?

Now where were we? Fourth liners?
DeBoer hates kids that aren't North American?

Last year Brodeur's save percentage, Bernier/Gionta, log jam on defense, lack of scoring...Now a new year and a new set of nonsense

Was any of these issues nonsense?

 

[Jossipov]

No coach can make this team a contender with the current roster. Give me a break with the Deboer talk, he is a good coach. Our roster has very little high end offense, a bunch of 2nd/3rd liners aint gonna be a contending team.

I agree with you. Personally, I like Pete and all things considered he's doing as good as can be expected with our current line up

 

[TheUnseenHand]

What's out there to make the Devils a contender? Many forwards that have yet to be drafted.

 

[JimEIV]

Was any of these issues nonsense?

If they weren't nonsense, what's all the complaining about when every single one of them are gone?

Goal scoring is significantly up...

3 defensemen have been jettisoned and Larsson still can get in the lineup...4 if you go back to last year with Tallinder.

Bernier is gone and the 4th line is playing fewer minutes than ever. The 4th line last night even had Brunner on it.

Brodeur is no longer here....

Order up new nonsense.