In Lou We Trust

OK, with a game at the Rock tomorrow, I put up my NHLFA article up just now. It discusses the current issues each team is facing right now based on the past week. A bit obvious in some cases, but they do describe the troubles each team is facing right now. Speaking of NHLFA, you should check out this interview Kevin Orris did with former Hobey Baker finalist Chris Collins. You probably don't know who he is unless you're A) a big Boston College/Hockey East fan, B) a Boston/Providence Bruins supporter, or C) a fan of the team he currently plays for, Rauman Lukko. It's an interesting insight as to what the player goes through in and after college hockey. Hopefully, he'll be able to make it back to North American hockey and prove himself worthy of a shot in the NHL.

Now, as far as last night's game, you may be wondering why you haven't seen anything from me yet. Well, I didn't go to last night's game. I was at the Red Bulls one (and only) playoff game at Giants Stadium; yelling, chanting, wearing two scarves, and beating on a bass drum in section 115 with supporters group Raging Bull Nation. While the team looked good against the Houston Dynamo, the Western Conference leaders and winners of the last two MLS Cups, they got a late equalizer and the game ended 1-1. Given that the first round is a two-game leg, the second game is in Houston, the Red Bulls have only won once on the road this season and never at Houston, and the winner of the aggregate moves on, I can't say I'm confident in their chances. I hope I'll be wrong. Anyway, given the time of the game and the time I finally got out of the Meadowlands (not to mention how tired I was from the drum and how lost my voice was), I wasn't going to be able to see the game live. Circumstances have stopped me from seeing the full game; but I did check up online at NHL.com, HFBoards, and Fire & Ice last night, as well as Rich Chere's report in the Star Ledger this morning as to see how things went. I've already commented on the big occurrence at the game; but given everything that I've read outside of the injury, it seems that the Devils just stomped all over a terrible hockey team. I'll watch the game shortly this evening and see if that really sums it up.

Not to steal the thunder of naming the October 2008 Devil of the Month, but I have some In Lou We Trust news of my own. If you've been around the hockey-blogosphere, you probably have learned that James Mirtle has made the move - and with a new blog name, From the Rink - to SBNation.

Well, Mirtle's move is bigger than just a new network to write at. He's actually leading an effort to expand the hockey section of SBNation and he has asked me to represent the Devils on the network. I have graciously agreed and I thank James and SB Nation president - and Devils fan - Tyler Bleszinski for giving me the opportunity to expand the scope and audience of In Lou We Trust. They're looking forward to it, I'm looking forward to the move and getting to post on the SBN network, and it's going to happen in a matter of a few days/weeks.

However, what that means is that the domain name is being transferred over to their servers. So over the next few days or so, inlouwetrust.com may lead to absolutely nothing. Until the SBN version of ILWT goes up, I will continue posting here on the Blogger site that I have been using for the last 2 years. That site's URL is http://inlouwetrust.blogspot.com. I'm hoping that works for everyone involved. Now for the important message:

I would like to thank each and every one of the people who ever linked to or referenced ILWT, be it on a forum or in an e-mail or in conversation or from another blog; the other Devils bloggers both past (e.g. Tom Lycan!) and present (IPB, 2MA); the other bloggers who aren't Devils fans but have complimented me; the others who have corrected and criticized me; those like the NY Times, Rob Kowal, Chris Wassel, Greg Wyshynski, the NHL Fanhouse, Mirtle, and others with media/team connections; and all of the readers - from those who have only visited once and expected something about, I guess, Lou Holtz or some other Lou to those who visit on a regular basis because they love reading anything and everything Devils-related. I understand that's a rather complex run-on sentence, but I truly do thank you all.

I never really expected this blog to take off as it did when I started it two years ago as a bored graduate student, and my only regret has been that I didn't start this sooner. If you have an interest or passion in hockey or news or religion or politics or games or movies or tourism or naked pictures of ugly people or all of that combined - I highly recommend blogging to share and perhaps expand your passion. Just get started at Blogger, all it really costs at the minimum is your time and your Internet connection. If you don't like it, then it's no real issue to stop; and if you get into it, who knows where it can take you. That I'm making this rambling announcement is proof of the latter.

The general point of the blog was really just to get my own thoughts about the Devils out of my head and into some format. If only so I don't try to shoehorn hockey in conversations I have with other people (friends, family, acquaintances, etc.). I'm always impressed at the fact that people, well, read them and either agree or disagree with them; and I think I'll continue to be impressed. I assure you all that the point of ILWT will always be my thoughts on the Devils, Devils-related, and hockey regardless of the network and I hope on your continued readership.

Again, I thank you all and I hope to see you all at SBN when ILWT goes live there. Until then, inlouwetrust.blogspot.com should be a valid URL to use in case the domain name does go to nothing.

First, the self-promotion! Slap Shot at the NY Times is doing their Hockey Night in Blogdom feature and I've answered a few questions from them. Check that out.

Now, for the actual content of this post: hits and shots. Specifically, how have the Devils been hitting and shooting now that Devils hockey is done for October. With only 9 games into the season, the low amount of games skews the results drastically in some regard. But the whole point of keeping track of the Devils' shots, their failed attempts at shooting, and how many times the scorer actually counts a bodycheck is to get an idea of how they are going. It's good to see any trends forming and perhaps find areas where the Devils can improve (or don't need to).

As always, my numbers come from the super stats reports found at NHL.com. I understand the NHL numbers can be biased by scorers being too generous or too picky. A great example is the second half of the home-and-home with Philadelphia last weekend. Amazingly, there were only 22 recorded hits combined in the second Philadelphia game; and that was a very physical and intense game. I really do think there were more than 22 hits in that game. Yet, they are the official numbers and so I will use them. Feel free to take all this with grains of salt.

First, let's look at hits. Over all 9 games, the Devils are barely outhitting opponents 166 to 163. Compared to the other team Their most physical game this month has been against the NY Rangers where the Devils outhit them 43 to 37, a total of 80 hits. The least physical game has been against Atlanta, wherein they were outhit 6 to 8, a total of 14. The Devils average approximately 17.25 hits at the Rock and 19.4 on the road; opponents are averaging 17 and 19, respectively. The differences in averages when the Devils win is +1 (17 to 16) and -0.5 when the Devils lose (20.25 to 20.50). Basically, it's pretty even. And games like the Rangers game as well as the Thrashers game does skew things. Here's an interesting fact: the Devils have been outhit in their last 4 games - all by 2 hits per game.

Based on this, it seems that the Devils do hit more on the road, but that is heavily skewed by the 43 they dropped on the Blueshirts (2nd highest total on the road is more than half that - 20 against Pittsburgh). While I have no issue with the Devils taking the body a bit more, it's too soon to really conclude that they do need to be more physical or not.

The shooting is a bit more complex. In total, the Devils have an overall efficiency of 56.54% and opponents have an efficiency of 56.65%. Devils have a higher total number of attempts on net (520 to 436); shots on net (294 to 247); and, unfortunately, shots blocked (137 to 93). But the Devils have missed fewer shots: 89 to 96, that's a bit new. However, I think their blistering 49-shot and 88 shot-attempt performance against Pittsburgh, I think, tends to skew the averages. Yet, the Devils remain with a total average of 32.667 shots per game and 57.778 attempts per game this month. Opponents this month have put on an average of 27.444 shots per game and 48.444 attempts per game. What surprised me is that the Devils actually miss close to one less shot per game on average than their opponents: 9.889 misses per game compared to opponents' 10.667 misses per game. Blocks are still in the opponents' favor by a huge margin: they have blocked 15.222 Devils' shots per game whereas the Devils only block 10.333 opponent shots per game this month. This is a combination of poor decision making by the Devils - seriously, shooters, stop trying to force shot through defender's legs, skates, sticks, and bodies - as well a conscious effort by opponents to make their shots count.

The most efficient game the Devils have had this month was their second game against Philadelphia, where the Devils put 31 of their 48 attempts on net, good for 64.58%. In contrast, their worst performance in this regard has been against the Rangers, where only 27 out of 58 attempts (46.55%) got to Henrik Lundqvist. The best opposition performance was by Philadelphia in their first game against New Jersey, they put up a rate of 68.29% - 28 out of 41 attempts. The worst opposition performance was Pittsburgh, who got a mere 15 shots on net out of 38 attempts (39.47%).

Differences between at home and on the road have been huge, as well as the differences in wins and losses. Again, small population sizes skew this heavily; but currently the Devils have been more accurate at shooting on the road than at home. They have had an average of 11.75 more attempts on net; 7.05 more shots; an improvement of .36% in efficiency; and 1.55 fewer missed shots. Only the average blocked Devils' shots are better at home by 3.30. For wins and losses, as one may expect, the winning team is more accurate and more proficient at shooting on net - be it the Devils or the opponents. The Devils difference in efficiency isn't large, only 1.22% greater in wins; but they have many more attempts on net (10.85 more average attempts) and shots on net (7.05 more shots on net). The efficiency is more dramatic among opponents: as their rate is a mere 52.53% when they lose; but it balloons to 61.06% when they win. That goes along with more attempts - 10.45 more attempts on average when they win and an average 10.45 more shots on net. Again, numbers are likely influenced heavily by the Pittsburgh and Toronto games, but the trend appears clear. Shoot more pucks and make more them go on net, and you may be more likely to win.

Of course, given that we're discussing the New Jersey Devils, we all know it's more than just shooting and hitting that causes teams to win hockey games. Still, it's interesting information to consider from the past month.

I was so surprised by the call up of Latourneau-Leblond that I nearly forgot to note that my new NHL Full Access article is up. It focuses on the should-be-short-lived stats and trends of the early season within the Atlantic Division. I say should-be because, while it would be hilarious and grand, I expect the Philadelphia Flyers to win a game this month. I also hope the Devils play a game where they don't take at least 5 minors a game.

Also: There's another Devils blog out there that is fairly new: Devils Talk by Jim Minutella. The Devilogosphere continues to grow. Step by step - like Huey Lewis (and his News).

In the further interest of self-promotion, my new Atlantic Division article at NHL Full Access is up. With all 5 teams having started their seasons - and in the case of New York and Pittsburgh, continued - I felt it was appropriate to summarize what happened. It's nothing groundbreaking, but it'll catch you up to speed on who's doing well and who's not. Go check it out and check out the rest of the site for additional articles and information for your knowledge and enjoyment.

Tonight, the Devils play the Rangers at MSG. In a perfect world, this is what would be predicted. Hopefully, the Devils can also tack on a loss in the Rangers' otherwise perfect record in the process. According to Gulitti, the team hasn't forgotten last season and they are ready for tonight's game. It's time for revenge. Sweet, glorious revenge.

Today, I have made a big find - I have found out where Teemu Laine is playing. He's with HV 71 in the Elitserien, Sweden's top league.

OK. That's not big nor a find. But it's also where Mattias Tedenby is, so there's that reason to follow HV 71. Along with former Devil, the shooting-averse Jan Hrdina.

But seriously, today is the last day we have to go without some Devils season hockey because Opening Night is tomorrow! 7 PM against the Islanders at the Rock, and hopefully the night will finish with 2 points for the good guys (not the Islanders, you silly goose). Tomorrow we will see Marty with a new mask, Anssi Salmela getting a start (h/t Gulitti. Poor Sheldon Brookbank, I didn't think Anssi would start right away), and some competitive hockey. And the hockey becomes competitive right away. The Devils get to visit Pittsburgh on Saturday night and then off to MSG against Our Hated Rivals on Monday. This season begins against the division the team struggled so much against last season. It's an opportunity not only for the Devils to start the season strong, but for a psychological boost. I'm sure Brent Sutter has told the Devils many times about how they lost to the Islanders, Penguins, and Rangers so many times last season and I'm sure the Devils are especially aware of this - extra-especially for the Rangers. Some wins could get their minds right and gain some confidence over their division rivals.

Of course as this happens, and after I'm done with reviewing previews, Mark Everson (NY Post) and Rich Chere (Star Ledger) have them. Everson is surprisingly positive in his article in the Post; his thesis is that the team did well last season and now with more potential offense up front, it should be expected that they do better. I don't disagree with that line of thought, and his prediction is pretty close to what I feel. Chere takes it a step further by using the powerful medium of video where Chere and Tom Bergeron preview the team. Small nitpick first: John Madden's first game was in 1999 and became a regular in 2000. Still, it's an excellent video. Bergeron does well setting up each section and Chere is absolutely great in this. He's knowledgable, he's thorough without being longwinded, and he's got plenty to say (and bold considering his predicitions for Patrik Elias and Zach Parise). Overall, the preview is positive - he sees New Jersey challenging for the top of the conference.

In any case, the time for talk is over and the time for hockey is upon us. What to do in between? Look at the Lowell preview at Hockey's Future to gain some thoughts from Jared Ramsden about New Jersey's AHL affiliate. If there's any Lowell blogs out there, let me know, I'd like to see what a follower of the team thinks of the team from time to time. You can check out Mike Ashmore's blog about the Trenton Devils; he'll be covering the team and updating this regularly - so you can get your Jeff Frazee fix. Lastly, if you want laugh for 5 minutes straight, check out proof that a minor league affiliate can own their NHL team. Yeah, I know it's preseason, but it's still a loss to your minor league team. A team filled with players not good enough or not ready for the NHL. That gets one of these.

Anyway. Important point: Devils hockey begins tomorrow at the Rock, I'll see YOU in Section 1! Unless you're not there, then I won't see you - but it's OK because we will see Jersey's Team.

Yes! A few-hours-early article is up on NHL Full Access which previews the offense within the division. I am serious when I say that I expect the Devils' offense to get better. I did find this article through Puck Daddy I didn't get a chance to reference. Mark Everson thinks the Devils will be dynamite if the forwards meet expectations. Given that it's Everson, one has to be cynical as the article feels like a backhanded compliment on one hand. On the other hand, he's got a point in that the Devils' forwards should do much better given how poor they were last season. Should the Devils get more goals, that could mean a couple more wins, and then who knows how far along the Devils would be then.

So yeah, new article. As an aside and because I have no other place to put it: check out this list of blogs by newspapers who cover the NHL from The Columbus Dispatch. Useful! Though, I think they missed a few, like Tom Gulitti of Fire & Ice. NJMG owns the Bergen Record. (hat-tip: Puck Daddy, again!)

Lastly, you need to check out NHL Arena Program on Blogtalkradio. Chris Wassel isn't just a Devils fan and a main guy at The NHL Arena Program; he's a broadcasting machine. He does shows on fantasy hockey and the NHL at a regular rate. And it's getting big. How big? Check out the 10/5 show which features a taped interview with someone special; and coming this Wednesday is a taped interview with Mirtle. Chris and Rick and others have put a lot of effort into doing this regularly and it's great to see their efforts being rewarded with getting interviews like this. I personally was floored with who they got for an interview tonight. when Chris told me the other day. If you're looking for a podcast about the NHL and fantasy hockey with a good medium for listening and interaction, the NHL Arena Program is a good choice. At the least, listen to the 10/5 and the 10/8 shows for the interviews.

If it's still between 7 and 9:30 PM, go to the WFAN's site. That will give you the link to the streaming audio of tonight's game and to hear the sweet tones of Matt Loughlin and Sherry Ross. Devils-Islanders are in the middle of the first and the good guys are up 1-0 thanks to Zach Parise pouncing on a Islanders mistake. During a power play. Yes, it's a short handed goal and I believe the first this preseason. If I may refer to another blogger's schtick, Parise continues to have his sex on fire.

In the meantime, here's some more self-promotion. Frank at Pensburgh asked me for my thoughts about the Devils for the coming season. He's done the same for all the other team's in league and compiled them all into a big conference preview. Here's the Western conference and here's the Eastern conference, which includes me. Feel free to criticize my preview as I've done quite a bit of that over the last few weeks.

UPDATE: I wrote a second preview that is now up as of yesterday at Faceoff Factor. Jesse Marshall from the blog asked if I could give him a short one and I've obliged with something that has summarized the offseason well enough. It even has a bold prediction (note: not actually in bold). Check it out.

Lastly, a small anecdote. I recently got a copy of the NHL catalog, which shows off all the merchandise you could buy. One of their advertized items were jersey t-shirts (J-shirts?) with a faded look for hockey heroes of the past. Among those pictured included Hull' s#9 for Chicago, Howe's #9 for Detroit, and Hextall's #27 for Philadelphia. I didn't make that last one up. Of all the Flyers' players in the past, and among those to show off in the catelog, the people in charge picked...Ron Hextall.

Since I'll be at the preseason game against the Capitals tomorrow, I posted up my new Atlantic Division article at NHL Full Access a little more than 2 hours early. It's about which prospects I think we'll see in the NHL for each of the teams in the division. Some are pretty obvious like Kyle Okposo, who I think he'll be great for the Islanders, and Alex Goligoski, who's pretty much a Pittsburgh Penguin with long term injuries to defensemen Ryan Whitney and Sergei Gonchar. Others are more of a reach, but not much of one, as Claude Giroux, Lauri Korpikoski, and Petr Vrana are talented players in their own right and will make it to the NHL definitely sooner rather than later.

By the way, the archives now work for the Atlantic division columns. So if you want to read my first two columns, you'll now be able to do so.

Incidentally, as an aside, the NJD TV (come on, call it Devilvision!) now uses a brand new player - the same template to what the other NHL teams have as well as the NHL itself. I can't really link it directly, but you can access it through the official site. The interface is clean and it's more organized than the previous player, in my opinion. I still think the Devils should host their videos outside of the NHL for more access; but there you go - new streaming video interface for the Devils' NJD TV.

The Front Office Sports Network is a growing organization that has namely focused on baseball with two separate sites for the sport. The first is MLB Front Office, which focuses on fantasy baseball, and a blog about what's going on in the world of baseball, Major League Report. Today, they just launched a site about the NHL - NHL Full Access. It just launched today and hopefully it'll grow into a massive site for the fans of the game, with articles focusing on each division, a blog for fantasy hockey called Rotopuck, and even a section for the minors.

Why am I so particular about this site than others? Well, namely because I'm a part of this one. I am currently writing a weekly article about the Atlantic Division every Monday for NHL. The first one is up and it's right here. That's right, you can read me actually trying to be unbiased and fair to the Philadelphia Flyers and the New York Rangers. It's a struggle. I'm still figuring out with how I want to approach the column; but I'll definitely try to have something to say every week. And if you have any suggestions about (or for) the column, feel free to e-mail me or leave a comment. The worst that happens is that I don't read it or outright dismiss it, so you got nothing to lose, really. So check out NHL Full Access on a regular basis. Thanks to Kevin Orris for giving me this opportunity and for putting a lot of the site together.

Also, while I'm on the subject of talking about what I'm doing, you all should know that I have become a full season ticket holder of the New Jersey Devils. So that means fewer gameday posts and more "game review" posts. Something tells me that most of you won't mind that. However, it also means I got preseason tickets. I hope to make it to all of them so I can give you all some idea of how the prospects, fringe players, and regulars are doing before the season truly begins.

I was reading Puck Daddy tonight and among the many things Greg Wyshynski has typed words about was this interesting ranking of fan bases by Derek Felska at The State of Hockey. (Minnesota) I nearly expected this, but he rates the Devils fanbase rather poorly. Dead last, to be precise. What's particularly interesting about this is that one of the three metrics include fan activity on the Internet about their favorite team. As expect, Felska does not rate the Devils highly in this regard - sorry NJ Devs, Devils Rule, HF Devils, and the blogs (see the side for those).

While Greg at Puck Daddy hit upon many of the other additional issues that Felska may or may not be aware of, I think the root cause of the Devils' woes is that not a lot of people in New Jersey know about them. If you're into hockey, then, sure. You know the score. You're a hockey fan. You know these things. You may even be a fan. But if you don't know hockey, you may think the Devils refer to something other has a hockey team. Bizarrely, I've known people of all ages who have been living in New Jersey their entire lives and they don't know who the Devils are. They don't know about any of the three Stanley Cups. They think Scott Stevens is a guy you know from another town and they don't know what Marty is so great at, much less who he's better than. You may say, "Lou made another awesome move today," and you may be greeted with a response of "Who?"

Basically, it's a problem (and a bit of a shame) that the Devils don't get their name out there more. I don't think being a fan of a team should be like a club where you know how great it is to be a Devils fan but at the expense of others not knowing. Ideally, I'd like everyone to know about the Devils. That itself isn't possible; but I have a couple of ideas in my head - some approaches on how the team could raise their profile. I'm certain a lot of them have issues of their own, but it's at least worth discussing. The whole point of all this isn't so much to raise the team's ranking on Felska's list. But it's a catalyst of sorts. The Devils should not be the best kept secret in sports in New Jersey and the tri-state/metropolitan area. The Devils should not have to take a back seat to the Rangers in the North Jersey and the Flyers in South Jersey. And the only way that will happen is for the franchise to get out there and introduce themselves.

There's a brand new, red-bordered button that will be next to the comment link on each post. Yes, you too, can "hype it up." It being the post and where it will be hyped is here: Ballhype. I've noticed this on a number of sports blogs over the last year or so, and now is the time for a small Devils blogger to look askance at the big crowd, say "me too," and jump on in.

In any case, while there isn't much to report, I will say that I got a Ticketmaster update for the first Devils-Rangers contest of the year. OK, it's at Madison Square Garden. OK, it's actually just a preseason game. But it - along with the glorious return of college football (a.k.a. college foobaw) a sign that hockey will soon be upon us. It's only a few more weeks until training camp, everyone.

Tom Gulitti has an update with respect to Vitaly Vishnevski's future - and it's in Russia. Best of luck to Vishnevski. I personally thought he would definitely get a spot on a team in the league; but he wants to be in Russia so he that's where he should go. Interesting that the Devils won't buy out his contract; perhaps they don't need to because he's waived and is already off the cap? I do not know. Still, it was an amicable split and I sincerely hope Vishnevski brings the pain in the newly founded KHL.

The waiving of Vitaly Vishnevski has hit the Devlogosphere (I'm working on the name - and I didn't want to go with the George Clinton inspired Devilsblogginthefunkoutthisweb) hard. Jersey at Imperfect Dynasty uses a bad pun in summarizing the Vishnevski saga. Frank Pyzik at Section 209 is back from vacation and thinks the Capitals could use a guy like Vishnevski. Maybe so, but we won't find out this coming season. Hasan Numbers at Battle of NY takes a look of the current Devils' defense without Vishnevski. He's figuring Matthe Corrente is the next man in line, and he may be right come the end of September. Richard Adranga at Hell on Ice never really rated Vishnevski and thinks there may be more moves to come. With 8 possible defensemen on the roster on opening night, I could see another move being made. 2 Man Advantage just says goodbye to the Russian hit machine. Just to nitpick, Vishnevski wasn't a scratch that often, as he played the fourth most amount of games for the team; but he wasn't a great defenseman by any means.

Fortunately for all of us, we can re-live and re-create the Vishnevski style of play in the upcoming NHL 09. With their new "Be a Pro" trailer (source: Kotaku), you too can be the physical defenseman of your dreams. Or - as seen in the trailer - you can be like Sean Avery; though you can accomplish that by being a gigantic d-bag this side of the Jersey shore. Me? I'm not sure what style I want, but I'm more confident that his name has to be Manic Lehoux.

Specifically to have a happy Fourth of July! Enjoy the long Independence Day weekend, where ever you may be.

First, some self-promotion. I was asked for a brief sentence by Jeff Klein of Slap Shot about whether the NHL playoffs drag on too long. I don't agree with that sentiment if only because more hockey is better than less hockey. I understand that the delay for the Stanley Cup Finals to begin is a big deal, but a little patience never hurt anyone. Though it could lead to some head scratching postings on some blogs. Seriously, NY Times, a conspiracy theory that the Red Wings-Penguins final was helped about by the refs? The Philadelphia Flyers organization has a reputation of being penalty minute machines for a reason; they generally provide good reason for referees to award them minors. (Aside: Whether that reputation actually reflects the numbers is something I may look into in the future; but my point - and their rep - retains.)

Still, because the Finals are a marquee matchup doesn't mean it was done improperly. These two teams have done the best in the playoffs this year by far and they have clearly earned their trips to the finals. Just like Carolina and Edmonton in 2006; and Ottawa and Anaheim last year. The Detroit Red Wings will be without The Mule for Game 1, but it should an excellent series against the Pittsburgh Penguins all the same.

More Devils offseason information is coming about. From the NY Post's Sports Shorts, the Devils are looking to re-sign Bryce Salvador. He looked pretty good in the few games he did play for New Jersey. While he is not fast and won't provide much offense - save for the fluke from the neutral zone - he's a physical veteran defenseman who can play in that #4 spot if need be. I would like to see how Salvador does in a full season. Hopefully, he still has enough in him to provide a good full season. From Gulitti we learn that the Devils do not necessarily have to sign Alexander Vasyunov and Vladamir Zharkov to retain their rights. But they do have to sign Kirill Tulupov by June 1 to keep him in the Devils organization. Given what Jared Ramsden had to say about Tulupov; he's not a bad prospect. OK, so he may not be a big minute defenseman; but he's big and can bring the pain and positional coverage on a third pairing - and maybe at a #4 spot if he continues developing. Echoing Ramsden's analysis; I'd be surprised if the Devils would let Tulupov go back to the draft. Here's hoping he gets signed over the next few days.

Lastly, I've gotten a bunch of e-mails asking whether they can link to here. You don't need to ask; you can add ILWT as you wish. Even if it's not even a sports site. I'll be cool with it, for the most part.

Want to see the 2008 IIHF World Championships in Quebec? You know, the only tournament that you can see your favorite Devils (and one soon-to-be-ex-Devil)? Well, it's not going to be on TV here in the US. But you can see it through the power of the Internet™. WCSN will air all 56 games of the tournament. It's not free, but it's worth it if you want to see some international hockey. There's plenty to be interested in. You can see how the youth will work out for USA Hockey, you can follow it to see if Canada will retain their title, you can view Alexander Ovechkin play his heart out to win something this year, and you can witness who will be the better team: Denmark or France.

There will be 5 Devils at the WCs: Karel Rachunek and Patrik Elias will suit up for the Czech Republic and Paul Martin, Zach Parise, and Kurt Kleinendorst (yes, the Lowell coach!) will represent the Red, White, & Blue.

Not familiar with how the tournament is set up? That's OK, here's a helpful format explanation as to everything will proceed at the IIHF. Groups A and C are, uh, interesting; but Group B has Canada versus the USA in Halifax. That should be an exciting one, even though Canada will probably win given their talent and the fact they have home ice. If anything, Canada should be the favorites to win the WC. However, Ovechkin and Russia could easily rise up to contend for the title as well. I don't think I'll pay for that WCSN

OTHER THINGS:
Tom Gulitti reported the other day that Martin Brodeur will be a part of the Goalie Equipment Working Group. The group will make decisions on the size and regulations of goaltender equipment. With Brodeur on the panel, you can be sure he will make a big point of making changes while not putting his fellow goalies at risk. I'm happy to see that the other goalies named to the list are Rick DiPietro and Ryan Miller. All three goalies don't have particularly large pieces of equipment. Unlike, say, Jean-Sebastian Giguere.

James Mirtle runs some numbers and notes that the playoffs this season has had the same rate of goal scoring as the regular season. That's pretty impressive since playoff hockey is all about the struggle, the raised play of goaltenders, and ruthless defending. I wonder how that will impact calls to reduce goaltender equipment to increase scoring? Well, no, I actually don't. The NHL Competition Committee will take a look at it anyway. Which is the league's right. The NFL changes all kinds of rules every year that affects the game - recent changes have benefitted the quarterback (e.g. roughing the passer is heavily cracked down upon) and the passing game (e.g. cornerbacks can't obstruct receivers beyond 5 yards). That said, I hope the NHL doesn't take it to a ridiculous extreme.

Speaking of Mirtle, I agree with him about the latest announced award finalists. Ovechkin is pretty much a lock to win the Hart (and Nicklas Lidstrom should have been a finalist). And the Pearson (the NHLPA's MVP). All three finalists have an argument to win the Jack Adams Trophy; but I think it's clear that Bruce Boudreau is the favorite. He took a team that is young, not particularly deep, and in dire straits when he went behind the bench and turned them into Southeast Division winners. The team's turnaround this past season can be directly attributed to Boudreau and if that isn't deserving of coach of the year honors, then I really don't know what is deserving. Fair play to Guy Carbonneau and Mike Babcock; but their teams weren't sitting at the bottom of the league in November where it was thought that the playoffs would be a mere dream by February.

Lastly: This weekend, I give out the final shooting stats of the Devils. As you would expect, there's room for improvement. I'm not including the playoffs in the overall numbers; but I will address them to a degree.

Once again, I'm in the NY Times (hockey blog). Jeff Klein has asked me a few questions about the Devils' loss to Our Hated Rivals. Check it out over here, along with 5 other bloggers about the other 5 teams that didn't make it into the playoffs. No idea why it's not a total of 8, but it's still good. And it's also probably the only time I can say I'm in the same piece with Eric McErlain and Dirk Hoag.

Expect a Season in Review type thing this weekend. I'm still trying to figure out who the Devil of the Year. Suggestions? Make them in the comments. Or say anything else. Go Pittsburgh, for not being the Rangers. Go and beat the Rangers for being the Rangers.

How do I still feel about what just happened? Well, like this: (source)

The official stance of ILWT for the rest of the playoffs: Anybody But New York. Should Montreal do what they're supposed to do tonight, expect Pittsburgh to really pounce on the Rangers. The Penguins will definitely pick up on Lundqvist's lack of rebound control and they have the speed and dynamic offense that can eat a trap up for breakfast.

In any case, tomorrow expect April in Review & Devil of the Month. Later in the week will bring tidings of Devil of the Season and a look ahead at what to expect in the next few weeks. Likely some World Championship coverage, playoff thoughts about non-Devils teams, and maybe some more stats. Though I made hold off on the latter until after June.

I'd like to thank the New Jersey Devils organization for the new arena in Newark and putting on one really interesting season. The playoffs were miserable, we can agree on that; but the team also did a lot better in some ways than I and many fans were thinking back in October. Next year will be better and I can almost guarantee an prediction - one originally provided by Jay last night - that there will be a meeting between Lou, Brent, and Jeff Vanderbeek. They will sit down, face the brutal truth that the Devils just decisively lost to Our Hated Rivals in the playoffs, and start planning to improve the team to make sure that nothing of the sort will happen any time in the near future.

I'd like to thank all of you for reading this site be it for the first time or for the hundredth. I'd also like to thank the people around me in Section 1 for putting up with me and hearing me yell and rant and rave and generally being the loud supporter in the area - thanks Jay, Herb, Aaron, Mark, Marylin, Barbara, Chris, Matt, and anyone else I'm sorry I forgot your name. I'd like to thank the other people in the Devilogosphere (I'm sorry I just typed that): 2 Man Advantage, IPB, Fire & Ice, Devils Daily, Battle of NY, the NHL Arena Program, Beast of the East, Snowman on Fire, and even the older ones like Trendon Lynch and Tom Lycan (Devils Due). Also thanks to those in the larger media like Rob Kowal at NY Hockey Talk and Jeff Klein at the NY Times for giving me more than I ever expected to get out of this blog. Thank you all.

Jeff Klein has asked me five questions about the upcoming playoff series against Our Hated Rivals. My answers are up at Slap Shot, so go ahead on and read it. Do take the time to read the responses of Scott Olivenbaum, representing the other side. Typical and hackneyed smack talk referencing 1994 (the last year the Rangers did anything of value), attendance, and suggests that the NY faithful will taunt the most experienced, talented, and successful goaltender in the playoffs with a lame chant.

Tonight, it has become official. If the Penguins win, they'll take first in the conference from Montreal. The Flyers snuck into the playoffs and could earn the sixth spot with a win tomorrow. The Washington Capitals did what they had to do to secure the Southeast Division and made the playoffs for the first time since 2002-2003. And the Devils will face Our Hated Rivals in the first round of the 2008 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Today's 3 PM game at The Rock will determine who gets home ice. In a playoff series between two hated rivals; home ice is crucial. Fans of both teams are jacked up, just check out this video made by "Weeonta" of HFBoards.

While the Devils lost the seven games these two played so far this season, most of them were rather close. However, the previous seven games do not matter. Today's game is the one that does. Whoever wins will have the momentum going into the playoffs AND have the luxury of hosting the first two games.

Today, I turn 25 years old. And I would love nothing more than to see my favorite team, the New Jersey Devils, destroy the Rangers. Let's go Devils.