Ok, we are trying something different.  The Devils are home tonight playing the Caps.  Greg and I are at the game.  Seperately.  He is with his friends, getting drunk and having fun.  I am dressed properly, in the press box about 9,000 feet from the ice looking directly down.  I am like looking into a well of hockey.  The coffee is really strong.  Really strong.

For reasons out of my control, I showed up a little late.  I walked in about half-way through the first period. 

I did get the chance to see the Devils stellar powerplay.  Which, well, sucked, to be honest.  Greg will be contacting me via text message to chime in from time to time.  He mentioned “he loved the cycling on the powerplay.”  I am mentioning he was being sarcastic. 

The constant repeating of the ”Rangers Suck,” chant is really annoying.  But, I guess I knew that would happen coming in.  Broduer starts the second period with a right pad kick save.  To keep everyone updated, it is scoreless and the Devils are outshooting the Caps 7-5.   Zach Parise with a shot, and Cristobal Huet with the save.  With the whistle, the “make more noise,” graphic appears on the video screen and the crowd gets louder.  This is followed up with a ….guess what? “Rangers suck,” chant.  My neck is starting to hurt.  Back to the action.  Broduer with a save on Matt Bradley with the rebound coming loose and a player hitting the outside of the net before Broduer covers up.  I am assuming Greg is on his third Amstel at this point.  Broduer makes a flurry of saves and play continues.  Broduer makes a geat pad save on Alex Semin.  Best save of the night.  Let’s not forget Semin had his way with the Devils D last weekend.  The Sergei Federov line for the Caps has been good thus far.  Not a lot of offense from the Devils. 

Just a footnote here, I will be posting and editing for anyone reading as the game is going on.  

Pandolfo with a shot and it is blocked.  Would have been a good shot.  12:30 to go in the 2nd period, we are scoreless.   Parise with a BREAKAWAY…..Save by Huet!  Langenbrunner with a shot, wide of the net.  Best chances of the night so far.  Langenbrunner shot, save, rebound…wide!  The Devils are getting things going, with a stoppage of play and a commercial break.  Now I crack my knuckles and relax for a few seconds….Now they show two unattractive females on the big screen, poor job by the camera man.  Back to the action….

Ovechkin has been quiet.   As is Tartaglia.  Good pace here, back and forth.  Zajac with a shot, kicked away by Huet.  Another anti-Rangers song from the crowd.  Good times.  Ovechkin with a pass to Backstrom, save by Broduer.  Now a “you suck,” chant from the crowd.  Poor guy.  Ovechkin IN, POKE CHECK BRODUER.  Bad job by Alex.  Now a penalty on the Devils.  I think it will be tripping.  Commercial break….<phone vibrating>  Greg is checking in!  “Did the Caps sign Dikembe Mutombo and Manute Bol, cuz they are blocking every shot.”  The answer is….”no.”  That would have made headlines there big fella.  On a sidenote, Manute Bol did play hockey for one game to raise money or something.  I remember seeing that on Sportscenter.  Andy Greene with the penalty.  Off the draw a glove save by Broduer.  Capitals cycling, pass to Mike Green and he SCORES!  What a shot by the defenseman, an even better pass by Alex Semin.  Wow.  That will make the highlight reel.  Andy Greene is probably again in Sutters doghouse.  And the crowd comes back with a “Rangers suck” chant.  On the announcement, Sergei Federov gets an assist on the goal. 

Right off the draw, the Caps take a delay of game penalty.  The Devils are cycling.  Mike Mottau tees up and a save by Huet.  Shots are 14-14.  Devils moving the puck, but no shot gaps.  Caps having trouble clearing the puck.  Colin White takes a shot, blocked.  Lots of action in front of the net, but nothing.  We go to commercial.   A few observations…this is my second time here, this is the best lit arena ever.  There are plasma TV’s everywhere.   Back to the game.  We are in the latter stages of the second period here at the Rock.  1-0 Caps on a goal by Mike Green.  Tom Poti (hahahaha) takes a shot for the Caps and it goes wide.  Federov with a chance and a save by Broduer.  Federov didn’t get all of it.  The Devils take an icing.  John Madden with a 2 on 1 and he can’t get a shot off.  To the point, Colin White and it is blocked by Dikem…I mean, Alex Semin.  Devils come in, Zubrus with a shot and a glove save by Huet.  I am realizing there is an ad on the boards for “Swedish Fish.”  You don’t see that often.  That is going to wrap things up for second.  My hands are tired…..on a late note, Broduer makes a late save to end the period.

I got lost between periods, sit down and Viktor Kozlov SCORES!  43 seconds into the 3rd.  Alright than.  <Phone Vibrating> It’s Greg.  He says his pal comes back with pizza and 5 seconds later (literally) Mike Green makes it 1-0 Caps.  Way to be on top of things.  Unless we are in some kind of time paradox.  You can’t rule anything out in Newark I guess.  If the Devils are going to get back into this game, they are going to need to open things up a little bit.  I can’t help but giggle in my head everytime Tom Poti touches the puck.  And I am not laughing because he is allergic to peanuts, but because he the Rangers back in the day, more than he helped them.  Devils break in, a blocked shot.  Big hit along the boards and I think Mike Green is dead.  Yup, he is dead.  Ok, he is back up.  Things getting a little testy out there.  Seeing the replay, he caught a stick to the face. Elias takes the penalty and will sit for 4:00.   A double minor for high sticking.  Devils break in on a  2 on 1 shorthanded!!! and ….can’t get a shot off.  Caps powerplay moving.  Federov gets stopped by Broduer.  Ovechkin rocket of a shot, gloved by Broduer.  Devils move in again…Gionta shot, and a save by Huet.  Devils gettig better chances shorthanded than the Caps are with the powerplay. <Phone Vibrating>  Greg chimes in with “I’m wracking by brain thinking of something more annoying than an ex-Devil scoring on his former team and I can’t think of anything.”  Well Greg, how about …..forget that, Semin one-timer and he puts it homeee….Barring a miraculous comeback, this one looks to be headed towards the books.  3-0 Caps with 11 minutes to go. <P.V>  Greg says “Hates the 4 minute penalty, but loves the fact that Mike Green bled on the ground next to the ‘please donate blood’ ad.”  Well said my friend, well said.  Back to the action….

With the goal being announced, Tom Poti is named with an assist.  Boo! <P.V.>  Greg mentions the fact that being on the black train will be his only win tonight.  I don’t even know what that means, but…hey…good times.   During the commercial break, on the big screen, they point out the fact that there are Mario Lopez and Stone Cold Steve Austin look-a-likes in the crowd.  That’s what is has come down to…..it is 3-0 with 7 minutes to go, barring any changes, I am ending this…..this has been fun and tough on the wrists.  It’s been real.  Till next time, cheers!

One more thing, if there any typos, please forgive me.  I am doing this as fast as I can.  Thanks.

Quick update, Donald Brashear just scored.  Wow.  4-0 Caps. 

The Devils made an early splash today during what is a sort of Christmas like atmosphere for hockey fans; the NHL trade deadline.  I mean, this is the day I would cut college classes and take off for work for.  Just so I can constantly refresh my link to TSN and a few blogging websites.  Yes, I was, and still am a loser. 

But alas, the Devils traded Cam Jansen to the St. Louis Blues for defenseman Bryce Salvador.  Salvador is a defensive defenseman who has blocked 90+ shots this season and is a +12 on the year.  Considering the Devils are the best team in the East, this is a solid move, adding some depth to their blueline.  Expect Salvador to be paired with Colin White when he gets into the lineup.

The prevailing sentiment emanating from The Rock on Saturday: relief. I wasn’t even at the game, but just by seeing the telecast of the Devils’ first win over the [expletive deleted] Icelanders this year, I could feel the weight of an irritating slump being lifted from the airspace over Newark. More than anything, I felt the relief of not having to leave Devilscast and move to Guam, because that’s probably what I would have done if Jersey lost to the Uniondale Six one more consecutive time.

So, good news all around — the Devils not only end the Long Island hex, they do it with their fourth straight win; they do it to move into sole possession of first place in the Atlantic Division; they do it with Zach Parise scoring a goal for the fifth straight game; they do it after trailing twice and stirring up that “here we go again” feeling; they do it with Martin Brodeur getting his first assist of the season (love when goalies get on the score sheet); and, most importantly, they do it to prevent another cardiac-arrest-inducing rant by yours truly.

By the way, just in case I failed to give credit before, the term “Icelanders” was coined long ago by WFAN talk show host Steve Somers. Furthermore, as a former producer of The Schmoozer’s, *I* use the phrase as a tribute to him, no plagiarism intended. When I referred to the term as “the official Greg moniker” a few blogs back, I was taking into account the entire phrase “[expletive deleted] Icelanders”, just to make that abundantly clear.

Up next: a visit to our nation’s Capitals. In addition to Parise’s streak, Patrik Elias has scored at least one point in three straight, and Madden is on a two-game goal-scoring streak. With Brian Gionta also upping his production (that was a sweet rebound goal against DiPietro, bee-tee-double u), the question now is: can the Devils keep moving in the right direction?

My answer for the time being: please do.

Well, the Devils aren’t the only ones to move into a new building this season — part of the reason our Devilscast coverage has been a bit spotty this week (and for that we apologize) is that I have just moved into a new apartment. Except that I didn’t hire movers and didn’t pack up some of the stuff ahead of time because I was only moving a mile away and figured I could save time by just taking a little bit at a time over to the new place each day. Mistake. Kids at home, don’t ever attempt such actions yourself.

One of the semi-fun (or, at least, non-annoying) parts of moving was taking down all of my old Devils posters and pennants and reminiscing. I still have two from 1995, including the “team photo with the Cup” poster where one of the players’ ironed-on NJ logos fell off of his official championship hat — I seem to recall it being Shawn Chambers’ hat, but the poster is still packed up so I can’t check — because everyone expected Detroit to romp and they had to throw something together at the last minute when the Devils actually won. At least, that’s always been my theory.

One of the other old posters I enjoyed reminiscing over was the 2001 NCAA hockey championship “banner” from my senior year at Boston College. Of course, that was also Brian Gionta’s senior year there, and he scored the game-winning goal against Ottawa on Wednesday, so see, it all ties together. Nice to see him break a long goal drought and get back to contributing offensively.

I would be remiss not to congratulate Marty on his 12th consecutive 30-win regular season, but even he would tell you the greater concern lies in getting those 16 wins in the postseason. It is a shame that the Devils’ exit off the Turnpike is no longer 16W, as that was without question one of the best and most appropriate addresses in hockey history, especially since they won 3 Stanley Cups as residents of the Meadowlands.

Hopefully the 2-game win streak Jersey takes into its meeting with the Thrashers tonight is the beginning of a strong push to cap off the season and stay near the top (preferrably on top) of the Atlantic Division in Year 1 at The Rock. In fact, I wouldn’t mind if such a streak continued right through into June — those ‘95 Stanley Cup posters could use some new company in my brand new digs.

I really don’t have a lot to say.  I just wanted to point out that I said the Ducks would sweep the Islanders-Rangers-Devils road trip.  And guess what?  They swept the series.  How about that?  And how about Scott Neidermayer, getting boo’d.  Why?  All he did was win, and is continuing to do so.

On a side note, for those of you old enough to remember Clint Malarchuk, the new generation will now remember Richard Zednik for the same reason.  The Florida Panther had his neck struck with Ollie Jokinen’s skate and sliced his  internal carotid artery.

For those of you that can stomach this, I have provided a video to the Malarchuk video.  I almost got a little sick watching this.  Greg and I will be back for more Devilscast tomorrow.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=QaZXoZbvq9s

Till then.   Be well. 

I decided that I would do something a little different.  As oppose to throwing out a bunch of opinions, both unbiased and honest, I want to take a look at this team and come up with some things they could use and do better.  Let’s face it, it has been a good year thus far, but something is missing.  Things are not consistently going well.

Yes, the Devils will make the playoffs, win a series and play well.  But, all things equal, are they really a Stanley Cup contender?  I don’t think they are….yet.  I think they can be, but need a few things. 

–Find an identity.  Yes, they are Martin Brodeurs team, but ever since Scott Stevens retired and Scott Neidermayer signed with the Ducks, no forward or defenseman has stepped up and been the face of the team.  I know Jamie Langenbrunner is the captain, and a good one at that but when you think of the Devils, do you think ”Jamie Langenbrunner?” Not really.  You don’t think “Patrik Elias,” and you don’t think “Zach Parise.”  Well, not yet anyways.   The solution?  I think he is on trade block in Los Angeles.

–Get Kevin Weekes in the net.  I know Marty is a workhorse.  But the reason they signed Weekes was to have a backup goalie they could trust.  This guy is a former starting goalie who lead a team to the Stanley Cup Finals (If you recall, he beat the Devils in that run).  The last thing the Devils need is a worn out goaltender come playoff time.  If they are going to go deep in the playoffs, Brodeur needs to be fresh.  He won’t be at this pace.

–Not fire the coach a week before the end of the season.  Or just hang on to the coach.  Robbie Ftorek, Larry Robinson, Kevin Constantine, Claude Julien.  Enough said.

–Beat the Islanders for the sanity of their fans.  See Greg’s blog two or three below or listen to episode 10 of Devilscast, right here on Devilcast.com

–Try to unload Dainus Zubrus.  You don’t have to be a hockey guru to say to yourself “What? 6 years?”  The guy has 25 points, including 8 goals and was expected to have some kind of impact on the scoresheet.  I know it’s early in his Devil career, but get what you can for this 3rd line forward getting 1st line money.

You may or may not agree with any or all of these.  But if the Devils do a few of these, I think the team will be twice as good when it matters.  Till next time, be well.

–

Coming off a nice win over the Kings on Super Bowl Weekend, the Devils now have the Pittsburgh Penguins at The Rock tonight.  Sidney Crosby is still out with an ankle sprain, but the Pens handled the Devs last week with Sid the Kid. 

The Devils did handle business over the weekend with the LA Kings.  Six different player scored en route to a 6-3 victory.  Martin Broduer made 23 saves for the win.  The Devs exploded for four goals in the second period.  This coming off a tough loss to the NY Rangers on Friday night.

The Devils are a point behind the Pens in the standings and tonight will be a big game in the Atlantic Division.

Ok, even I thought they were going to win last night against the Rangers.  I watch all hockey very closely, thanks to sports packages that allow to you watch every game, every team almost every night.  And yes, my social life is questionable if I sit home watching hockey every night.  It should be noted I am watching Sharks/Blackhawks as we speak.  Game is locked at 2 midway through the third.  Good times.  With all this said, I really thought after the Rangers went down to Philly, handled business somehow by defeating the Flyers 4-0 on Thursday, they would surely head back to NJ and get crushed.  But the Devils continue to struggle against local opponents. 

This division really is going to be an interesting one to watch down the stretch.  Every team has hot and cold streaks weekly, allowing this division to be up for grabs at all times.  About a month ago, it looked as though the Devils were back on track and would take hold of the division lead and run.  Then they cool down and the Pens get hot and grab the lead, then they lose Sid the Kid and the Flyers go on a tear and take the lead.  Now the surging Rangers have won 4 of 5 and are 3 points out of the lead.  The only team not making a run is the Islanders.  I am not complaining though and I know Greg certainly is not.

I am not sure if this is right, but I think the Devils may have 3 total points in all their games this season against the Rangers and Islanders.  If that is in fact the case, that’s a problem.

The trade deadline is approaching.  I would not be shocked to see the Devs make a move to add both offense and defense.  How big of a splash?  I have no idea.  Will they enter the Mats Sundin sweepstakes?  Most likely not.  But would I be shocked if Rob Blake is a Devil come 2 weeks from now? Not at all.

Greg and I will be back on Monday for more Devilscast.  Go Giants!

Well, the bad news is, me having an evening TV gig at Brian’s alma mater (Kean University) set us back on getting any sort of real back-and-forth dialog going. But I think I have enough left in the tank to respond to Mr. Monzo’s thoughts before I keel over asleep on my keyboard…

Brian — Yes, another loss, like the 6th since I have started this, which is like almost 3 months.  Makes a Ranger fan happy.  Of course if by happy you mean, not happy.  Miserable, in fact.  Well, not really.  It has been fun and I am a fan of good hockey.  And good call with the woods down on the Bayou line.  Reminds me of playing Metal Gear Solid 3.  Which is the greatest set of video games ever.

Greg — Wait, did he just imply that a Devils loss makes a Ranger fan unhappy, or that a Devils loss just makes him happy? Although from a sour grapes standpoint, the best losses to bug your opponent about are the painful, epic and/or choke-tacular failures that happen when the team is playing at its best, which is why Ranger fans seem to have a Rain Man-esque obsession with 1994… even though New Jersey has basically be avenged 90-fold since then. Also, on the video game front, my next conquest is Guitar Hero since I’ve still never actually tried it.

Brian – Don’t scream like you did two weeks ago.  I thought you were gonna fall to the ground dead of a massive heart attack.  Or something less dramatic. 

Greg – That was strictly an Icelander-related occurrence, and I tried to make it clear that rants can’t just be spouted off at any time or they lose their effectiveness. They need to be saved for the big-deal stuff. Of course, if I never made that clear, then I did intend to, an am doing so now.

Brian — You know, I realized today I really hate the Canadiens.  I am sick of them.  Their fans, everything.  I am down on that team.  However a loss to the Pens you can’t really be all that mad about.  Although they are without Sid the Kid.  I am worried now about this little two game losing streak.  Although if there is ever a time to struggle a little bit, it’s when there is 30 games left in the season, not 3.

Greg — Once again, Brian restores sanity to the show. Although now there is at least mild cause for concern that the Monzo-Canadiens dynamic could start moving in the Greg-Icelanders direction if not dealt with properly. I will now skip to the final response because, well, I can.

Brian — Dude, I went to the gym, cooked dinner, and watched two hockey games.  The ball is rolling my friend and the Rangers will look to improve to 5-0 against the Devils this season.

Greg — Someone do me a favor. In case Brian the Prophet returns to form and his quasi-prediction comes true, please copy down the following and post it on monster.com on Saturday morning: “WANTED: One (1) co-host for up-and-coming Devils podcast…”

Can’t wait for tomorrow’s Devilscast.

Greg – Ok, so we weren’t able to get Monday’s Devilscast online due to our old pal, “Technical Difficulties.”

Brian — This is true, I tried hammering out the kinks, good times. 

Greg — He’s the type that only shows up when you don’t want him around, like that neighbor character from the sitcom Empty Nest — you know, the one who played Joe Izusu in those commercials.

Brian - Uhh yeah….what?

Greg — Anyhow, 80s pop culture references aside, Brian had an idea last night that at the very least we could dialog back and forth all day today via blog, just to throw some thoughts out there on another spectacular loss at home. It’ll be like “Dueling Banjos”, except without the backdrop of the creepy woods down on the Bayou.

Brian — Yes, another loss, like the 6th since I have started this, which is like almost 3 months.  Makes a Ranger fan happy.   Of course if by happy you mean, not happy.  Miserable, in fact.  Well, not really.  It has been fun and I am a fan of good hockey.  And good call with the woods down on the Bayou line.  Reminds me of playing Metal Gear Solid 3.  Which is the greatest set of video games ever.

Greg — Alright, alright, I’ve fulfilled my tv/film reference quota for today. Now, can someone answer why the Devils have not only lost two straight home games but given back a lead each time?

Brian – Ok, shoot.  But don’t scream like you did two weeks ago.  I thought you were gonna fall to the ground dead of a massive heart attack.  Or something less dramatic. 

Greg –The Montreal mail-in was inexcusable, but at least you could pinpoint a reason (early vacay) even if it wasn’t a good reason. Giving up a second-period lead to the Crosby-less Penguins? Not terrible… as long as you can actually come back and score in response! (P.S. Mike Rupp is the only one we’re letting off the hook for that one). Also, Pittsburgh was without Colby Armstrong, which at worst should have balanced out the lack of Langenbrunner and Pandolfo.

Brian — You know, I realized today I really hate the Canadiens.  I am sick of them.  Their fans, everything.  I am down on that team.  However a loss to the Pens you can’t really be all that mad about.  Although they are without Sid the Kid.  I am worried now about this little two game losing streak.  Although if there is ever a time to struggle a little bit, it’s when there is 30 games left in the season, not 3.

Greg — I’ll also throw in that New Jersey has coughed up leads in each of its last 3 home losses, taking into account the Panthers loss on the 18th. After that nice 10-1 stretch at The Rock, the Devils have dropped 4 of 5 there, and that’s not even remotely the kind of momentum you want to see building when they’re basically at home for the next 3 weeks.

Brian — Agreed.  But if it makes you feel any better, the beer there is good.  Really good.  But I would not worry about.  They wil get back on track.  They started the season poorly and got back on track they will do the same.  They are the Devils, this is what they do.

Greg — Well, hopefully that gets the ball rolling… someone go wake up Monzo and tell him it’s his turn. Except when we have to preview the Rangers game in tomorrow’s Devilscast. Then it’s okay for him to sleep right through it.

Brian — Dude, I went to the gym, cooked dinner, and watched two hockey games.  The ball is rolling my friend and the Rangers will looked to improve to 4-0-1 against the Devils this season.