In Lou We Trust

Now that the NHL season is over, there are a couple of dates to be aware of that are of importance to the New Jersey Devils.

The New Jersey Devils have a couple of awards they could win. Jay Pandolfo is a finalist for the Frank J. Selke Trophy for the season's best defensive forward. Martin Brodeur is the one who has the most to gain. In addition to being a finalist for the Vezina Trophy for the season's best goaltender, Brodeur is also a finalist for the Hart Memorial Trophy for the NHL's most valuable player. While I don't have inside sources or anything, I would think Brodeur is going to have at least one trophy by the end of the night.

Interchangeable Parts plans to live-blog the awards ceremony as soon as they know when it'll be on TV. Given that it's this upcoming week, I would hope we'll know soon. Nothing on Versus' website, but they will air one thing later this month.

Yes, the NHL Draft is upon us. NHL.com has plenty of information about the big event, where prospects are selected to become the future of the league. Versus will only air the first round; it's my understanding that only the first round will take place on the 22nd. The 23rd will host rounds 2 through 7. The Devils do not have a first round draft pick, having traded it to San Jose as part of the deal to get Vladamir Malakhov off the salary cap. Unless I'm mistaken, the Devils will pick 27th in every successive round, so it will be up to David Conte and his crew to find late gems. It's my understanding that this draft is all over the place with some projected late first rounders easily becoming second round picks; so it's certainly possible. If you're not sure who is available in the draft or who is projected where, I highly recommend checking out Hockey's Future and their extensive message boards about prospects. Going to your local supermarket or bookstore to get The Hockey News' 2007 Draft Preview is also not a bad idea. (Note: THN 's website also has links and rankings from Central Scouting Services and International Scouting Services for additional information.)

July 1 is when teams can start signing unrestricted free agents. Hopefully by this date, the Devils will have named a new head coach. In addition, it'll be worth seeing whether the Devils make a move for a new #1 center - something they will need if Gomez is gone - or give Scott Gomez a sweet deal to return.