It's not huge news like a new coach or a new contract but Brandon Burlon is giving up his final year of college at the University of Michigan to turn pro. It is common practice for NHL clubs to pull draft picks out of college after their junior year,  but word on the street is that the Devils didn't initiate this move.

Burlon (6 feet, 188 pounds) likely will start in the American Hockey League but I've seen this kid play and I have to say he does have some talent and wouldn't be surprised to see him make his way to the NHL quickly.

In 38 games this season, Burlon had five goals and 13 assists for 18 points. He lost a serious amount of weight during a bout with esophagitis during the postseason and didn't play as U-M made it to the national championship game. Burlon has made a full recovery.

The Devils posted this video on the NHL Video site and while it is exciting to watch, it certainly leads you to believe that the Devils were a team that liked to score goals and weren't afraid to hit people.

* With 171 Goals for this season, NJ ranked 30th out of 30 in the goal scoring department.
* With 1539 total Hits laid on opposing players this season, NJ ranks 28th out of 30th in that department. Lets be fair though, John MacLean's strategy of turning over the puck and high fiving the oppostion as they spend through the neutral zone on the way to scoing a goal didnt' count as a hit, otherwise, I am pretty sure we might have led the league in hits.
* NJ ranked 30th out of 30 in the blocked shots department. Look on the bright side, at least we didn't suffer any major injuries, ala Stephen Callahan, late in the season because we like to block shots!!

I get that the Devils have to put out a video recapping the highlights of the season, and there certainly were a few worth noting.

* The signature Kovalchuk game winning goal against the Toronto Maple Leafs
* The game winning goal in OT against the Pittsburgh Penguins that had almost everyone jumping out of their seats.
* The amazing play that was Johan Hebburg throughout the season
* The lucky bounce they got against the Rangers at the buzzer.
* The Elias crossover goal against the 'Canes

They did miss these highlights though:

* Turn this way, that way, no this way move and goal Kovalchuk made on Joe Corvo  of the Hurricanes
* The Tedenby goal where he faked out the entire Islanders team, including the guys sitting on the bench.
* The Talinder to Elias to Talinder to Kovalchuk slapper against the Oilers

I am glad that they got the fat kid and his beer, the guy who couldnt stand up during one of the most exciting moments of the season, we certainly didn't want to miss that one!! And lets be truthful, this video is much more entertaining to watch than watching the staff lip sync, poorly I might add, to Bruce Springsteen. Why oh why do they put this stuff out there?? 15 years/100 million isn't enough material for the haters? If you have no idea what I am talking about, go visit http://video.devils.nhl.com

Mike “Doc” Emrick was named Monday by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences as the winner of a Sports Emmy for Outstanding Sports Personality - Play-by-play for his work on NHL telecasts for NBC Sports. Last month, "Doc" won a New York Emmy for his work on MSG Network as the Devils’ play-by-play announcer. Congrats Mike "Doc" Emrick, you certainly have a gift and I am glad that Devils fans get to hear that gift the most!!

Down 2-0 going into the third period, Nick Palmieri found the back of the net at 1:16 into the third period to cut Norway's lead in half. His goal ignited Team USA in the third and Palmieri would again find the back of the net on a powerplay at 13:44 which gave Team USA a 3-2 lead. Craig Smith would add another PP goal to give USA a 4-2 victory, securing their spot in the second round at the 2011 World Ice Hockey Championship.

Andy Greene would sign on the dotted line today if Lou shoved a contract in his face. Greene admitted yesterday that he would gladly skip the free agency period and stay with NJ given the oppurtunity.

"This is the choice. This is where I want to be," Greene told The Star-Ledger. "If there is an offer there that is good and I felt was right, I'd definitely take it. I'm not dragging my feet waiting for July 1. We'll let it play out."

Question is, do we want to keep him? Lou has said that while obtaining a defenseman that can actually move the puck is high on his list this summer, he would like to see Greene in a Devils uniform in 2011/2012.

The two sides have spoken about getting a contract done but as of now, there has been no contract offer. Greene earned $750,000 this past season. So how much do you think Andy Greene is worth paying to keep him on the Devils blue line?

Greene was the Devils' leading scorer among defensemen with 23 points (four goals, 19 assists) in 82 games. He was durable but also had the worst plus-minus rating among the club's blue liners (minus-23). I like that he was the leading scoring among defensemen but that minus-23 is horrible. If you can manage not be a liability out there defensively, then I say pay the man something in order to keep him here, otherwise go away.

Have you been paying attention to the NHL Playoffs? It has been a great playoff season so far with some very exciting games that have gone into OT combined with a bunch of series that have gone the full 7 games but at the same time, the Devils aren't in it. It is certainly a weird feeling. Its not the the Devils have had deep runs in recent years because they haven't but usually once the Devils go out, I pay more attention to the team that knocked them out. I can always justify losing to a team if they end up being the team that lifts the cup.

The real problem with the Devils players spending their time being Dads, fishing, golfing, etc is that the lack of Devils news really hurts this site. So lets spend today talking about Zach Parise because the rumor mill has been working overtime this week when it comes to the future of Zach Parise and the NJ Devils.

NJ.com ran a story the other day that seemed to make readers believe that Lou and company were leaning towards taking Parise to arbitration instead of trying to sign a long term deal. The problem with the article, or at least the way it is written is that NJ.com appears to be making articles out of nothing really.

Yes, arbitration is a realistic possibility for Parise. The Devils would get to keep Parise on the Devils for what would probably be a low price because of his injury last season and give the Devils an extra year to sign him long term. The Devils have money coming off the books next summer and probably would fit Parise in a little easier. The problem with arbitration is that no one ever wins that game, the players usually end up feeling like crap because a GM can't go into that glowing about the player no matter how important he is. Most the time, I'd imagine that arbitration breaks a player/GM relationship and usually ends with that player signing elsewhere once UFA comes around.

I do hope the Devils sign Parise long term but to be running an article about going to arbitration at this stage in the game is rediculous. It is April 26th, no team is really thinking about signing guys at the moment. The teams that are home are probably letting their players lick their wounds for another few weeks and then getting back down to business once the time is right. I have no doubt that Lou want Parise to stay, that he would love to sign him long term. If Lou feels arbitration is the right route for Parise at this time, it is his call. I certainly hope if he does, that Parise finds away to deal with the disappointment of arbitration and ends up staying in NJ next summer. If Lou and Zach strike a deal this summer, great. Bottom line, it is April and now really isn't the time to speculate what is going on in Lou's mind when it comes to Zach Parise.

Who will end up behind the Devils bench next season?Well, here we are again. It seems that ever since I've start this Devils blog, one thing remains constant, that the Devils are spending the off-season looking for another coach. Two years ago, Sutter left us because he was crying about time away from his family, in came Lemaire. Last summer, Lemaire decided he had enough and in came Johnny Mac. We all know how that worked out but once again, Lemaire has said that he isn't returning to the Devils bench next season.

Take my thoughts for what they are worth because I didn't think hiring MacLean last season was such a bad idea but it turned out to be a very bad idea.

The important thing here is finding a long term type of coach. This one year, two year kind of coaching staff doesn't work. That was part of the reason I felt that MacLean was a good choice last summer. He was young and he had the appearence of a guy that would be behind the bench for a long time.

However, my first choice as coach at the moment defies everything I just said. Ken Hitchcock knows how to win. He's gotten the best out of some of his players, made deep runs in the playoffs and has even won a cup. The rumor is that he wants the job in NJ. I think he'd fit because of all the names I've heard thrown around, his style of coaching and playing closely resemble that of Jaques Lemaire and this team seems to really respond to that kind of coach. But, and this this a big but, he doesn't appear like a guy who will stay behind the bench for very long so should Hitchcock come on, I would think that in 2-3 years, we'd be right back here.

So if we are looking for a long term kind of coach, and don't mind a few growing pains, which could me missing the playoffs again next season, here is my list of other guys I would like to see.

Kirk Muller - He's done a great job in his role with the Canadiens. Yes, he'd be a rookie head coach and after MacLean, I'm not sold on going that route but he's young and like MacLean, has the appearence of the kind of coach that could still be here in 5 years.

Mike Haviland - I kind of thought he was going to be named the coach last summer. The Devils appeared to be waiting until the Blackhawks won or exited the playoffs before naming MacLean so I just thought they were waiting for Haviland. He was born here, he's 43 so he has plenty of years ahead of him but like Muller, has no head coaching experience in the NHL.

That's my short list, a list of guys who I would be happy with, any of them. There are some other names floating around that I wouldn't be too fond of. That list includes:

- Marc Crawford - I just don't like the guy
- Michael Therrian - Never really thought he had control of the Penguins, even though he got them to the Finals.
- Guy Carbonneau - Never thougt he did a great job in Montreal.
- Peter DeBoer - A lot of people like this guy but Florida was bad

If Carolina were to let go of Paul Maurice, I do think he would jump to the top of my list. However, I don't see them letting him go again. They made that mistake once, it did pay off for them because they won the cup with Peter Laviolette but then ended up firing him and rehiring Maurice.

So who's your choice? Any of the guys I mentioned of someone who I didn't even think of?

Go Nordiques!!...Wait What?? Who??Anyone at the Devils season finale or watching it at home would certainly have noticed a lot of blue shirts in the arena on Sunday April 10th. At a quick glance you might have thought that the Devil's cross Hudson rival Ranger fans had shown up to heckle the devils on their season finale as if failing to spoil their playoff chances on Saturday wasn't enough disappointment for the devils.

However this was not the case, the sea of blue shirts at the prudential center were fans of former NHL team the Quebec Nordiques.

Approximately 2100 Nordiques (1600 by bus and another 500 by car) turned out to the rock on Sunday. Many questions were floating around amongst Devil fans in championship plaza like "why are they here?" and "who are they supporting?". To put it quite simply the Fanatical Quebecois had arrived with an agenda; they want a team. For sixteen years now the Québecois have been without a team in the NHL when the franchise moved to Colorado and became the Avalanche due to financial woes.  As you can imagine many fans refused to change loyalty to geographic neighbors and bitter rivals the Montreal Canadiens. Do you see yourself as a future Ranger fan should the Devils ever leave NJ? And so formed the organization known as Nordique Nation; a traveling band of peaceful Quebecois who want to be heard by the NHL.

Whether the NHL heard them or not, one thing is certain; the NJ Devils and their fans heard them. The impact on the crowd at the prudential center was significant. Many laughs and cheers could be heard coming from Devils fans as the Quebecois were alternating their chanting between "Let's Go Devils!" and "Nordique Nation!" and on occasion "Martin Brodeur!", despite Brodeur not being on the ice. Every period at 16:10 a backwards countdown from ten in french would occur followed by cheering and colorful celebrations that lasted for a minute or so to represent the sixteen years the Quebecois have gone without a team. A French Canadian reporter was seen meandering through the crowd and interviewing various Devil fans on their impression of the traveling fan club. Towards the end of the game in the final five minutes the Nordiques flooded the lower level and began riling up the already standing crowd to maximal decibel capacity. It was unfortunate that a foreign fan base were more enthused than the Devils fans themselves. The crowd left the arena the same way it had entered, full of energy with smiles and thank you's to the home crowd.

As a side note the Nordique Nation had crashed a NY Islander game back in December with the same luster. The question then pops up; is it a Trojan horse scenario where the fan club is showing up to games of teams who have been known to not boast great attendances or is it a case of attending games of teams who are within proximity to them?  In any event it is clear that in the NHL money and politics speak louder than any group of fans can and whether or not Quebec will get a team back is unclear. Do they deserve a team? Undoubtedly.

 - This article was submitted by guest writer Thom

Lemaire leaves the ice for the final time this season.The Devils played 82 games this season and for the first time since the 1996 season, they don't get to play more than that. This season started with such great promise. Kovalchuk was supposed to score goals with ease, the line of Kovalchuk, Zajac and Parise were supposed to put up incredible numbers and Arnott was suppose to reignite Elias. Not only were the Devils supposed to be playing an 83rd game, they were picked by many to have a deep run at the cup. It didn't happen and we the fans knew early that it wasn't going to happen.

So what went wrong? What went right? Well, here is my list.

The Bad Stuff

1. John Maclean - Plain and simple, he wasn't ready to be a head coach in the NHL. In fact, I'm not even sure its about being ready, maybe he's just not a head coach kind of guy. The Devils never looked ready for their games with him behind the bench, their play was very sloppy and the players just never responded to his rants and discipline. Yes the players need to be held accountable but when Lemaire came in and said he'd never seen a more out of shape bunch of guys, you knew just how badly MacLean ran this team.

2. Injuries - In a season that consists of 82 games, sometimes on back to back nights, sometimes 3 games in 4 days, you are going to have injuries. Every team has them but the Devils lost a veteran defenseman for the entire season before the season began and lost a prolific scorer and team leader very early on. No team is deep enough to make up for that.

3. Marty Broduer - He showed his age this season. As the year went on, he got better but in the very beginning of the season, he looked terrible. Injuries were a problem as well and it reminds us that he isn't getting any younger and hopefully the Devils management is looking at the future and planning for life without Marty.

4. Henrik Tallinder - I'm sorry, this guy is awful. Early on in the season, the opposition would blow right by him as if he were standing still. In the Rangers game on Saturday, guys were STILL blowing right past him. He hasn't really improved and I am really surprised he only ended up a -6 for the season.

5. Andy Greene - a -23 for the season? WHAT!!?? That is disgusting!!

6. Lack of Scoring - as always, the Devils had a tough time finding the back of the net. We're Devils fans, we're used to that but in the past, we've had the defense and goaltender that kept us in low scoring games. This season it was a much different story. No scoring + shakey defense + aging Marty = Tee times in April instead of playoff games.

The Good Stuff

1. Jaques Lemaire - Thank god Lou called him around Christmas and thank god he decided that he wanted to come back to NJ. Yes, they didn't make the playoffs but he made the season enjoyable and for a brief time, had a lot of people believing the Devils could make a run at the playoffs. He got his team to battle back from 23 points out of the final playoff spot and got as close a 6 points out. He took over a team that was 9-22-2 and got them to finish 38-39-5. Just imagine what NJ could have accomplished if he didn't leave last summer.

2. Johan Hedberg - Hands down, the best move the Devils made last summer was signing Hedberg. He was clutch at times and was able to put Marty on the bench as a spectator for stretches. No one has done that before!!

3. Trading Jamie - The guy had to go and he wasn't adding anything to this team. As soon as Jaques came back, we all knew Jamie's days were numbered. He was a UFA this summer so I think what we got for him was more than adequate.

So now we get to sit on the sides and watch the other teams compete for the Stanly Cup. It's not a great feeling knowing your team doesn't get a shot but lets be honest, this is the first time in 15 years we missed and only the 3rd time in the last 23 seasons that the Devils have missed the playoffs. In 1997, the Devils returned to the playoffs and if it wasn't for the dumb "in the crease" rule, probably would have found themselves in the Eastern Conference Finals. Lets hope that rings true about 2012!!!

I'm sure at the offseason progresses, we will have much more on the 2010/2011 season as well as stuff for next season. Please stay tuned!!

TV : MSG PLUS (HD)  RADIO:  WFAN 660 AM

Lat 10 Games: New Jersey 4-5-1 - New York 6-3-1

Know Your Enemy: NY Rangers Blog

What NY Rangers Blog is saying sbout the Rangers:

On the "We Will Win" quote from Brian Boyle -

Love the confidence by Boyle. Let's hope Lemaire doesn't see this quote and use it as bulletin board material. Don't need the Devils anymore motivated than they already will be to knock off the Rangers.

What We Think of the Rangers:

They're a rival and we hate them, what more can we say because that's all most people think of anyway when a Devils fan critizes the NY Rangers. All season I've been telling people that I didn't think the Rangers were as good a team as the media and fans were making them out to be but I always got the brushoff because the Devils were having a terrible season and it was just coming out because of jealousy. Truth is, Lundqvist IS that team but the dude can't do it all himself, although he's tried this season. When your goalie posts 11 shutouts in one season and on the final game of the season you're facing a must win to secure the 8th and final spot, something is seriously wrong. It's not like the Atlantic is a super hard division because this season its proven not to be one. Rangers will miss Callahan this afternoon, the guy is a tremdous player.

Today's Game: This is our playoffs basically. The Devils have a chance to send the Rangers home for the summer. So this game plan is simple... JUST WIN!! It won't put us in the playoffs or give us a shot at the cup but for a brief moment, it will make all the Devils fans smile knowing we were the final nail in their coffin.

This is probably my favorite Rangers moment all season...