Throughout the offseason, we here at Running With The Devils will take an in-depth look at the Devils’ 2010-2011 schedule. The Devils, who finished first in the Atlantic Division and second in the Eastern Conference, will look to extend their consecutive playoff streak to 14 straight seasons. Read after the jump for my preview of this season's matchup with the Buffalo Sabres.

The hearings for a grievance case filed over the NHL’s rejection of Ilya Kovalchuk’s 17-year, $102 million contract with the New Jersey Devils ended today in Boston.

Make sure to check after the jump for more details!

Throughout the offseason, we here at Running With The Devils will take an in-depth look at the Devils’ 2010-2011 schedule. New Jersey has made the postseason 13 times in a row, winning the Atlantic Division and finishing second in the Eastern Conference last season. This year, the team will look to continue it’s impressive playoff streak while maintaining their place among the best in the conference. I’ve already previewed two opponents – the Dallas Stars and Washington Capitals – and today we preview a well-known rival – the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Read after the jump for the full preview!

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And Here We Go!! The grievance hearing over Ilya Kovalchuk’s rejected contract gets underway today in Boston.
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Throughout the rest of the offseason, we here at Running With The Devils will take an in-depth look at the Devils 2010-2011 schedule. New Jersey has made the postseason 13 years straight, and won the Atlantic Division during the 2009-2010 season. This year, the team will look to continue their impressive playoff streak and finish near the top of the Eastern Conference. A few days ago, I previewed the team’s games against the Dallas Stars. Today we take a look at an Eastern Conference power – the Washington Capitals.

Devils vs. Capitals – Historical Data

The Devils are 77-87-13-1 all-time against the Capitals. The team averages 2.96 goals per game against their Eastern Conference opponents, but they allow 3.31 goals per game. Last season, the Devils and Caps faced each other four times, with the Devils going 3-1-0 against them. The Devils won the first meeting, 3-2, on October 12, 2009. Mike Green and Mike Knuble scored first period goals to give the Caps an early 2-0 lead. But the Devils answered back, scoring one in the second and third to tie the game. The game went to a shootout, where Jamie Langenbrunner scored the winning goal for the Devils.

The Devils took the second matchup of the season, defeating Washington, 3-2. Brian Rolston tied the game at one apiece in the second period, and the Devils used two third period powerplay goals from Niclas Bergfors to power past the Caps. The Devils took three in a row from the Caps ten days later, when they beat them, 5-2. The Capitals, as they had during the season series, scored first. Mathieu Perreault scored at 5:02 of the first to give the Caps an early 2-0 lead. But the Devils came roaring back, scoring five unanswered goals to win the game.

The Capitals denied the Devils of a season sweep, defeating New Jersey, 4-1, on December 26, 2009. Alex Ovechkin opened the scoring at 4:09 of the first period, and Matt Bradley scored the game-winner at 13:54 of the period.

Capitals vs. Devils – This Season’s Matchup

The Caps and Devils will again face each other four times during the regular season. The Caps return virtually the same lineup as last season, except in net. The team decided not to re-sign Jose Theodore, their starting goalie the past two seasons. The Devils will still have to contend with the likes of Ovechkin, Green and Nicklas Backstrom. The Caps have been near the top of the Eastern Conference for the past few years, and that figures to continue this season. Despite their sub-.500 record against Washington, the Devils played them really well last year. Recording another six points against the Caps during the regular season would be nice to see, especially since they will probably directly compete with Washington for the top spot in the conference.

Photo Credit: Mike Stobe/Getty Images North America

Last summer I put a short list together highlighting games coming up that I was excited for. Most of the games I picked were ones that turned out to be exciting and/or extremely important to the Devils season. So I figured I would do the same list again, picking 1 game per month that I am excited to watch.

October 11th - Pittsburgh @ NJ - Paul Martin returns to NJ very early on in his Penguins career. It will be interesting to see what kind of welcome he gets. I honestly could care less that he signed with another team. The Devils won without him during the season last year, so the value he added to this team in my mind wasn't that much. I highlighted this game because I know a lot of people feel much differently than I do and his return to play against is former team is so early that I am sure those fans that feel betrayed will let him have it. We also owned Pitt last season and it will be interesting to see if we can own them again this season.

Novemver 27th - Flyers @ NJ - This is the first regular season game against the Flyers, the team that embarrassed us in the playoffs last season. Wait, not just the playoffs, the embarrassed us all season long. Philly had guys on their team that just pushed our defence around but with additions like Anton Volchenkov, I am interested to see if Philly can continue to push us around.

December 17th - Predators @ NJ - Decemember wasn't a great month to pick from but Jason Arnott's old team comes to town and I am sure they are going to want to bring it against their former captain. If this game doesn't thrill you because of the East/West matchup that means very little, the Devils also visit Ottawa on the 10th which marks Volchenkov's first return to Ottawa since signing out of town. That might be interesting as well!

January 9th - Lightning @ NJ - New GM Stevie Y has put together a decent team this summer. The Lightning haven't really been a threat in recent years but with St. Louis, Lecavalier, Stankos and new addition and Devil killer, Simon Gagne, the Lightning have become one of the more interesting teams. This will be our first look at them and its late enough where TB should have gotten used to all the changes.

February 18th - Rangers @ NJ - You can't  have a Devils schedule highlighted without picking out a Rangers/Devils game. This one is in the dead of winter, which last year at this time gave us quite a showdown between Marty and Lundqvist. These matchups always seem to matter in Atlantic Division standings.
 
March 18th - Capitals @ NJ - The Capitals were the best regular season team last season and have the ability to repeat that. This late season matchup might mean something in the standings as we get closer to the playoffs.

April 5th - NJ @ Penguins - The last 4 seasons have come down to NJ and Pittsburgh battling it out for the division so with 4 games to go in the Devils schedule, why would we think this game wouldn't mean everything?

So which games are you looking forward to?

Martin Brodeur was named a winner in the 2010 NJBIZ Forty Under Winner awards program yesterday.

The Forty Under Forty awards program honors both men and women under the age of 40 who have made headlines in their field and who share a common commitment to business growth, professional excellence and to the community.

To qualify, candidates had to meet specific qualifications, including working in New Jersey and possessing significant authority for decision making within a company or organization.

Brodeur and the other winners will receive their awards Monday, September 20 at an awards ceremony at the Palace at Somerset Park in Somerset.

Several sources have reported that the NHL and NHLPA have agreed on a systems arbitrator to rule on the grievance filed over Ilya Kovalchuk’s 17-year, $102 million dollar contract.

The hearing date, identity of the arbitrator and location have yet to be announced.

Reports say that both sides want a ruling by the end of next week. Since the arbitrator will have 48 hours to deliver a ruling, it’s likely the meeting will take early next week. The hearing is expected to take two days.

Since the NHLPA represents Kovalchuk, the Devils will have limited involvement in the case. The arbitrator can call team representatives – including general manager Lou Lamoriello and owner Jeff Vanderbeek – to be witnesses during the hearing. Representatives can also be there to observe the proceedings.

Kovalchuk does not have to be at the hearing, but he may be called in to testify. The left-winger had planned to go back to Russia to meet with his trainer and begin preparing for the upcoming season.

It seems as if the arbitrator will only rule whether or not the rejection of the contract should be upheld. Earlier this week, I wrote about the possible repercussions the NHL could level against the Devils and Kovalchuk if the arbitrator’s decision favored the league. At this point, it seems like the league is only interested in whether or not the deal will be approved.

It seems like this situation is finally beginning to reach its climax. Next week will be crucial, and it’ll be interesting to see if any testimony, etc. is leaked to the press. Now, we all get one week to anxiously wait and see whether or not Kovalchuk will be a Devil.

The offseason continues to slog on, and while the NHL and NHLPA are fighting over Ilya Kovalchuk’s contract, the Devils are preparing for the 2010-11 NHL season. The team, which has made the postseason 13 straight times and won the Atlantic Division last season, will look to finish the regular season near the top of the Eastern Conference. Throughout the next month, I’ll preview each team on the Devils schedule this season, giving historical data and what the Devils can look forward to this season. Up first, the Dallas Stars.

Devils vs. Stars – Historical Data

The Devils are 12-9-1 all-time against Stars during regular season play. Last season, the team’s split the season series. On November 21, 2009, the Stars defeated the Devils, 5-3, in Dallas. Brian Rolston scored 55 seconds into the game to give the Devils an early lead. But Dallas responded with three unanswered goals in the period to take a 3-1 lead. After giving up three goals on nine shots, Yann Danis was pulled and Martin Brodeur played the rest of the game. Rolston scored again in the second, and Travis Zajac tied the game at 6:31 of the third. The Stars answered back, with Tom Wandell scoring the game-winning goal at 9:07 of the period. Stephane Robidas added insurance at 14:09 of the period.

The Devils won the second game of the series, 4-0, on January 5 at home. Patrik Elias started the scoring, tallying his first goal of the game at 18:02 of the first period. The Devils would explode for three goals in the second period, with Elias scoring his second goal of the game at 6:59 of the period. Brodeur made 28 saves for his third shutout in seven days.

The Devils are also 4-2 all-time against the Stars in the regular season. They defeated Dallas in six games to win their second Stanley Cup title, in 2000.

Devils vs. Stars – This Season’s Matchup

The Devils and the Stars will meet twice during the 2010-11 regular season. Both teams begin their season Friday, October 8 at the Prudential Center. They play their second game February 22, 2011 in Dallas.

The Stars enter this season missing two of the franchise’s most recognizable players. Goalie Marty Turco, who holds team records for most wins and shutouts in a season, wasn’t re-signed during the offseason. The team will look to replace his production with Kari Lehtonen and Andrew Raycroft. The franchise also moves on without their all-time scoring leader Mike Modano. Modano holds all-time franchise records for goals (557) and assists (802). The team will return leading scorer Loui Eriksson and points leader Brad Richards.

Other Notable Information:

The Stars missed the playoffs and finished 12th in the Western Conference last season. Along with signing Raycroft, the Stars added Stanley Cup winner Adam Burish and former-Devil Brad Lukowich. Last season, the Stars allowed more goals against (254) than goals for (237).

Throughout the process of signing Ilya Kovalchuk, a new theme arose not usually seen within the organization. Jeff Vanderbeek, the Devils’ owner, seemed to be intimately involved in the process. It’s something fans of the organization aren’t used to seeing, and this involvement could become a more aggressive trend in the coming years.

The Devils have had three owners in their history, each with varying levels on involvement with the team. The first, Dr. John J. McMullen, purchased the Devils in 1982. He was responsible for moving the team from Colorado to New Jersey, where they settled in the Meadowlands. He also brought in president and general manager Lou Lamoriello during the 1987-88 season. No one can doubt McMullen’s involvement in getting New Jersey a professional sports franchise and making them competitve. However, in my research, it never appeared that McMullen dealt with signing players. While he was involved, he didn’t seem to participate in the on-ice aspect of the team.

Shortly before winning the 2000 Stanley Cup championship, McMullen sold the team to Puck Holdings, a subdivision of YankeeNets. YankeeNets, a joint venture of the Yankees and Nets, wanted to create a regional sports network to cover their teams. They purchased the Devils for $175 million in an effort to cover the major league sports market in the tri-state area. Puck Holdings also thought it would increase the chances of getting a new stadium in Newark for the Nets.

But it wouldn’t work. Reports leaked that the Yankees and Nets had internal disagreements, with the Yankees believing both teams were money-losers. There was no interest in building a new stadium for the teams. During their ownership, Puck Holdings remained largely out of the picture, making Lamoriello CEO of the Devils. Lamoriello ran the day-to-day operations of the organization. Clearly, Puck Holdings was far from an involved ownership group.

Vanderbeek, a minority owner when Puck Holdings ran the Devils, purchased the team in 2004. He became a proponent in getting the Devils their own arena, and helped to get the Prudential Center built. Unlike the other two owners, Vanderbeek brought a fan’s perspective to ownership. The former executive vice president of Lehman Brothers was also a Devils’ season-ticket holder and a New Jersey native. It’s this perspective which could change the owner dynamic within the organization.

Continue reading after the jump for my reasoning why Vanderbeek might be bucking the “hands-off” ownership trend.

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