This week the Devils played 4 games in the Friday to Thursday stretch, winning 3 of those 4 games. They looked decent against Florida and Pitt which was followed by an awful game in Calgary and then a game that needed the extra frame to get the win.

Marty Brodeur – Didn’t play against the Panthers because of his play against Boston on the 4th, did ok against the Penguins and then got an early hook against the Flames. His game is so inconsistent, you just don’t know who you are getting when he shows up to the rink. Said it before, I’ll say it again… please retire. We love what you’ve done for this organization but now, it’s getting ugly.

Zach Parise – I’m still on board with signing Zach long term this summer. He had 7 points in 4 games, one of which was the game winner in Edmonton. He’s one of two guys I feel that we’ve been able to count on this season. He also averages a little over 20 mins per game so that means  he is out there A LOT!!

Patrik Elias – He’s the other guy I feel that I can count on, have so for years. He had 6 points this week including a huge game last Friday, which happened to be his 1000^th for the Devils. Quick, name the two guys ahead of him on the list of most games for NJ….

While they didn’t make my list this week, a special congrats has to go out to Adam Larsson and Adam Henrique (The Adams!!)  for making the NHL's All-Star Rookies and will travel to Ottawa to represent the Devils when the All Star festivities get under way on Thursday, Jan. 26.

Watch It: MSG+ Listen To It: 660 AM

The Last 10 Games: New Jersey 6-3-1; Florida 4-3-3.

Season Series: This will be the third meeting between the two teams this season. Florida won the first game on Nov 21, when they climbed back from a 3-0 deficit to win 4-3 in regulation. I’m sure we all remember that gem!! NJ then beat Florida 3-2 on Dec 13^th but needed a shutout to do it.

Know Your Enemy:  http://miamiherald.typepad.com/flapanthers/

What We Think of the Panthers:  I thought maybe the panthers would have dropped down a little in the standings by the time January rolled around but the truth is, they are a good team and continue to play decently. They’d better watch out though, looks like Washington is started to storm up the standings.

What I Am Looking For Tonight: Any sign of life because god only knows this team flat lined the other night against the Bruins. Here’s the issue that the Devils face. They were up 2-0 on Ottawa, lost that lead in the third and lost the game in OT. The Bruins proved how much better they are than us by just destroying us. If the Devils don’t win tonight, that means they’ve dropped 3 in a row going into Pittsburgh tomorrow night. Not a great way to go into Pittsburgh.

Describe the Panthers top line in one word. Lethal!! So the Devils will need to stop them.

And finally…. This is a screen shot from the Devils / Panthers game on Dec 13^th… Obviously she didn't like the call. Stay classy Panthers fans, stay classy!!

This recap was written by our friend Dana Williams. He did another bang up job..too bad the Devils couldn't step up like he did tonight!!

I was not expecting a win tonight, I just wanted the Devils to stop embarrassing themselves with shoddy defense and anemic offense.  Is asking for consistency too much?  I dont want to settle for mediocrity, I really dont. I want to see the play-offs one last time before we hand Marty his life-time box-seat tickets, hang his number from the rafters, and go about finding his replacement.
We arent halfway though the season yet, and yes the Devils sit currently in 7th, but again we arent halfway through the season yet. I dont want to be all doom and gloom, but luck and capitalizing on other teams bad days will only get you so far.

Shortly into the first Boston coughs up a penalty and the Devils ACTUALLY capitalize. From the get-go we are playing harder and looking a little better then we did against the Sens on Monday. A lot of pressure on the offensive end of the ice, a lot of shooting and taking the shot chances that we are given. 
If my recap were to end here it might be considered positive, but the game I am currently watching has very little positive about it.

The league leading PK team is out on the ice and Boston goes up 2-1.
I find it amazing that the PK team is so effective and our PP unit can almost give up their 13th of the season. Wait, I recant that last statement. They DO give up their 13th, but it wont be credited because the PP expired just 2 seconds prior. Really? I am so tired of seeing teams score on OUR PowerPlay. When we are supposed to have the advantage. How does that happen?

At the end of the second, for a brief few minutes, the Devils are storming the Boston zone, firing pucks at the net again.  Making Tim Thomas work for his pay check. Like I said, BRIEF. The numbers lie, though, Boston only having 20 SOG while Jersey has 23. Boston has swarmed the Devil zone during the middle frame. Picking up only one goal but making the defense work hard, very hard.

A three goal defect at the beginning of the third. Now four goals. This is so pathetic to watch. Like a fish flopping around on the beach gasping for air before it dies. I am usually upbeat and positive about how they are playing, but this is just awful. No hustle, lackluster checking, constantly on their heels. Pathetic. It feels like they are playing the start of the year they way they left the end of 2010. Just a mess on the ice. DeBoer has got to get a handle on this. He is a good coach, obviously far more effective then he-who-should-not-be-named, but something is missing if we cannot play with the big dogs, and the little ankle biters give us a good run. Now five goals. Can we PLEASE, please, put Moose in?  Not that he would fair better then Marty, but I think they are in his head now. As Darren said "I just hope this isn’t the night that the Bruins decided to put 6 or 7 pucks in the back of the net. They certainly have that ability. Not only can they score lots of goals, they’ll have no qualms about beating the living crap out of you while doing so."  Well sorry Darren, tonight IS that night. The only consolation is that we drew first blood, but that just woke up the bear.

Over all, poorly played against a team that at any moment could fire a puck and land it on target behind the goalie. Again the Devils got steam-rolled and really showed no control or drive to fight for the win. For me, the most exciting part of the game was the 'fight' that Cam Jannsen got into. Let me reitterate my statement earlier. It was like watching a fish gasping for breath, flopping around on the beach, dying. The water was just a few feet away, but no way to get there.

Watch It: NBCSN Listen To It: 660 AM

The Last 10 Games: New Jersey 7-2-1; Ottawa 7-3-0.

Season Series: This is the 2^nd of 4 meetings this season. The first was a game in Boston and a back and forth game that the Bruins eventually won 4-3 off the stick of Benoit Pouliot with just over 3 minutes remaining in the game.

Know Your Enemy: http://daysofyorr.com/

What We Think of the Bruins:  I would use the words physical, talented and downright scary to describe the Bruins. Whenever we play the Bruins, I just hope this isn’t the night that the Bruins decided to put 6 or 7 pucks in the back of the net. They certainly have that ability. Not only can they score lots of goals, they’ll have no qualms about beating the living crap out of you while doing so.

What I Am Looking For Tonight: It has to be said, the Devils need to stop this horseshit when up a man. I’m so tired of the Devils giving up shorthanded goals. If you give them up when you’re up 5-1, so be it but we don’t, we give them up at the most crucial times. So, tonight’s number one focus, NO SHORTIES!!!

It’s the Bruins so I am looking for the Devils to come out with an edge tonight. They’ll have to. Boston is a physical team and if the Devils don’t match them physically, it will be a long night for NJ. Dallas gave Boston a severe beating in their last game so I’m sure the Bruins have something to prove. I’ve always wondered if winning in NJ is something special for Claude Julien.

NJ gave up a 2-0 lead the other night and lost the game in OT 3-2. I was more annoyed they blew a 2-0 lead than actually losing the game 3-2 in OT. If they get a lead tonight, please for the love of god hang on to it.

I would expect Boston to come out with fire in their eyes. I’m sure they don’t like sitting behind the Rangers for the Conference lead.

Injury Report: New Jersey defenseman Anton Volchenkov could return to the lineup after missing Monday's game against his former team with a lower-body injury. Forward Jacob Josefson is skating with the team again and getting closer to returning from a broken collarbone. Defenseman Andy Greene is still recovering from a broken toe. Travis Zajac has some soreness in his Achilles and will be sitting tonight.

Projected Lines
Zach Parise - Adam Henrique - Ilya Kovalchuk
Petr Sykora- Patrik Elias - Dainius Zubrus
Mattias Tedenby - Ryan Carter - David Clarkson
Eric Boulton - Tim Sestito - Cam Janssen

Henrik Tallinder - Mark Fayne
Bryce Salvador - Adam Larsson
Matt Taormina - Kurtis Foster

Martin Brodeur will make his fourth straight start (Uh…that’s not good!!)

Do you love the Devils? Have you always wanted to write about Devils hockey, you just didn't know where to do so? If so, you're in luck. I am looking for some good people to help make this site the best Devils blog on the net. So if you are a person interested in writing about Devils hockey, please send me an email.

Watch It: MSG+  Listen To It: 660 AM

The Last 10 Games: New Jersey 7-3-0; Ottawa 6-3-1.

Season Series: New Jersey leads the season series 1-0 (4 game total) after Adam Henrique scored the game winner in a shootout in NJ on Dec 8^th.

Know Your Enemy: http://www.the6thsens.com/

 What We Think of the Senators:  I have to think the Ottawa and NJ are two teams that are very evenly matched and these two teams will probably battle until the end of the season. As always, Alfredsson  always makes me nervous when he laces them up against us.

What I Am Looking For Tonight:  Keep it rolling. The Devils ended 2011 with two very good wins and a full effort in those wins. Don’t change too much, keep playing disciplined hockey and keep firing the puck.   

Final Thoughts: We are approaching the halfway point of the season and the Devils have put themselves in a good position so far. I never expected to win the division and I did expect some sloppy play and headaches this season but I also expected them to battle it out for the 8^th spot. Right now NJ sits in the 6^th spot and are only 3 points behind Pittsburgh. If the Devils can do what they did last year in January, February and March, the spring might be a good one for us!!

Watch It: MSG+  Listen To It: 660 AM **This is a 3pm Start!!**

The Last 10 Games: New Jersey is 7-3-0 and Pitssburgh is 5-5-0.

Season Series: This is the second meeting between the two teams this season. The last meeting was on October 22nd in Pittsburgh where the Devils were handed a 4-1 loss.

Know Your Enemy: http://www.thepensblog.com/

What We Think of the Penguins: One of the most talented teams in the league. There are so many weapons offensively that even without Sydney Crosby, they could easily blow this game open and make the Devils end 2011 on a bad note.

What I Am Looking For Tonight: The Devils put in a full 60 minute effort the other night and they skated away with the win in regulation. It was certainly one of their better efforts this season and they are going to need to repeat that kind of performance if they want to beat Pittsburgh. There is a huge difference between the Sabres and the Penguins and the Devils have to be prepared for that. I thought DeBoer did an excellent job with his lines the other night and he’s going to have to do an even better job against Pittsburgh.

Let’s redeem ourselves for a bad showing in Pittsburgh back in October and end 2011 on a high note.

Final Thoughts: I got a lot of heat the other day after I blasted Kovalchuk  for his performance against the Hurricanes. I can’t and won’t apologize for what I wrote or how I feel about the guy.. The only thing I will admit to is that his errant pass could have happened to anyone and it takes a stroke of bad luck to send it 200 feet into your own net. However, for those who say I am too hard on him, let me have you sit on this thought. Believe it or not, the Devils are 1 of 2 teams in the NHL that have 7 players with 10+ goals so far this season. With that kind of balanced scoring, is a guy like Kovalchuk and  his $6.667 million cap hit really necessary?  What’s he adding? Yes, he’s one of those 7 but he’s certainly not doing what Giroux, Stamkos or Kessel are doing for their teams although his paycheck suggests he should be. Just imagine this team if he were.

Don't forget to stay for the fireworks after the game. We wish all our readers a very happy and healthy 2012. 

The Devils showed up for the entire 60 minutes and what happened? They won in regulation, that's what happened!! It was a huge game because the Sabres were 2 points behind NJ in the standings. With the win, the Devils leapfrog over the quickly falling Toronto Maple Leafs. That's right, time to start paying attention to the top 8 standings!!

Crosby-less Pens up next on Saturday afternoon to close out 2011 and ring in 2012.

 

Watch It: MSG+  Listen To It: 660 AM

The Last 10 Games: New Jersey is 7-3-0 and Buffalo is 4-4-2.

Season Series:  This is the second meeting between the two teams this season. The last meeting was on Nov 16 in Buffalo where the Devils skated away with a 5-3 victory.

Know Your Enemy: http://www.topshelfblog.com/

What We Think of the Sabres: The Sabres are pretty much where I thought they would be this season. At the beginning of the season I pictured a dog fight for the 7^th and 8^th spots in the East between NJ, Buffalo, Carolina and Toronto. I was right about NJ and Buffalo but way off on the other two. Buffalo has been struggling recently but they’ve had injuries and any time you have a Ryan Miller in your net, a winning streak isn’t far away.

Big Story Lines Tonight: The Sabres beat the Caps the other night to snap a 3 game losing streak and now they get Brad Boyes and Jochen Hecht back in their lineup tonight. The Devils lost to the ‘Canes 4-2 the other night and looked pretty bad doing so. Adam Larsson will return to the lineup tonight (non-injury) and Henrik Tallinder is hoping to get back to it tonight.

What I Am Looking For Tonight: I’ll call it a Christmas hangover but hopefully we see a much better effort tonight than we did on Monday night. We’ve been kicking and screaming about the Devils not showing up for the third period but the other night in Carolina, they showed up in the third, they just didn’t show up in the second. Let’s play a full 60 minute (or usually in our case 65 minutes) and get the win. We have a tough game on Saturday at home against the Penguins so it would be nice to go into that one and not be on a 2 game slide.

I’m looking for Kovalchuk to redeem himself tonight. He had an awful game Monday, seemed to know that in his post-game comments and hopefully goes out there like a man on a mission tonight. I was a little hard on him yesterday and it was more frustration than anything else but I do expect a lot from him.

I’m also looking for more from our captain. He had an awesome game in Dallas but since then has been quiet. It is time to pick it up again and start leading this team

Marty is in net tonight so hopefully the good Marty shows up. Sadly, we just never know which Marty we are going to get.

Projected Lines:

Zach Parise-Adam Henrique-Ilya Kovalchuk
Petr Sykora-Patrik Elias-Dainius Zubrus
Mattias Tedenby-Travis Zajac-David Clarkson
Eric Boulton-Ryan Carter-Cam Janssen.

Bryce Salvador-Adam Larsson
Matt Taormina-Mark Fayne
Anton Volchenkov-Kurtis Foster

Martin Brodeur, Johan Hedberg.

Stopped me if you’ve heard this one before, Ilya Kovalchuk isn’t worth the money we pay him. Hell, he might not even be worth the money we pay Adam Henrique at this point. Why is it a man who can sign a long term contract in the NHL for over $100 million can't grasp the concept of puck control? With the Devils on the power play and the Kovalchuk controlling the point, he was unable to control the puck which led to a league leading 11^th shorthanded goal against.

If that weren’t bad enough, the Devils were looking for an equalizer late in the game and Kovalchuk made a HORRIBLE, AHL caliber pass that went the length of the ice and found its way into the our net. Yes, Kovalchuk scored one for the other team putting the game out of reach.

I am sick of this guy but regular readers know how much he bothers me. We wasted A LOT of money on him and it hasn’t paid off. I don’t expect championships the minute he gets into town, that’s a ridiculous thought but I do expect a competitive team with a guy that breaks games open or at least causes other teams to pay more attention to him which opens up opportunities for the other guys on the team. Kovalchuk doesn’t seem to do any of that. Occasionally there is a flash of brilliance from the guy but there are LONG stretches where he’s just eh… All I heard after the game was excuse after excuse out of the guy’s mouth. Just shut up and starting proving to me why you’re worth even HALF of your contract.

Lou, you suck for bringing this guy here. You’d better find a way to keep Parise in town and you BETTER not offer Marty ANYTHING after the end of this season. I read an article yesterday pondering the question would Marty be happy signing a contract with NJ and having NJ also sign a young goalie that he could split 50/50 with and mentor. Seriously??  If that’s what Lou has in mind, he should have been doing that over the last few seasons. I love Hedberg but why haven’t we been thinking about the future?

I’ll give the Devils credit for showing up in the third last night, it’s just a shame they didn’t show up in the second this time around.  Adam Oates, what the hell are you still doing here? People credit you with the success of the Devils PK but the PP is KILLING us. How many more games would we have won if you took away those 11 shorties?

Frustrating loss and the Devils have much to work on at this point in time.