Post by flojo888 (Devils GM) on Aug 14, 2011 22:59:52 GMT -5
With some furious trading since GM FloJo took the reins in New Jersey, the Devils now have a new set of forwards to pin their offensive hopes on. Roster players that were traded include:
Loui Eriksson
Mike Ribiero
Dainius Zubrus
Paul Gaustad
Zach Hamill
Rod Pelley
Chris Phillips
Jared Cowen
Martin Brodeur
With their replacements being:
Rick Nash
Pierre-Marc Bouchard
Jussi Jokinen
Evgeni Dadonov
Alexei Loktionov
Ales Kotalik
Jochen Hecht
Niklas Kronwall
Roman Polak
It's clear that there was a new agenda, once there was a new boss. The top 6 became younger, the defence sacrificed youth for current talent, and the Devils have elected to make Ilya Bryzgalov their un-chellenged starter.
First, the forwards. The trade sending first line fowards Eriksson and Ribiero out of town was one that brought in elite talent Rick Nash. One of the most powerful goal scorers, Rick Nash is the league's premier power forward and holds a style of play that the new boss wanted to see more of on the top line. To complement Nash, and recover for the loss of Ribiero, the team then traded pencilled-in second line center Dainius Zubrus to Colorado for playmaker Pierre-Marc Bouchard. While not of the talent level of Ribiero, Bouchard should make for a capable replacement that can swap throughout the top 6. Seemingly the only top 6 forward remaining is Martin Havlat, who's skills seem to be a good mesh on the top line.
The secondary scoring will be completely new though, with the new GM turning a Gaustad-Zubrus-Huselius line into a Jokinen-Loktionov-Dadonov line. Two balanced forwards and a stickhandling stud will look to help Rick Nash replace the Eriksson-Ribiero duo that looked promising.
As for the third and fourth lines, David Clarkson remains the ideal crash and banging third liner and will have rookie Joe Colborne on his left and veteran Jochen Hecht on his far left. Responsible, gritty, yet skilled seems to be the general hope for this line. On the fourth, newly acquired Travis Moen will be on the left with re-signed Jiri Novotny on the right. Devils seem to be searching the free agency pools for a centerman.
On defence, the Devils still pin their hopes on future franchise defencemen Adam Larsson and Victor Hedman. However, to help develop these two Swedish powerhouses, the Devils brought in fellow heavy-hitting Swede Niklas Kronwall. On a team that now boasts two future franchise defenceman and a top pairing defenceman, the team feels incredibly fortunate on the defensive aspect and will be using that depth as the strength of their team.
In goal, Ilya Byzgalov will be the starter and although some consider him elite, he will need to improve to maintain that status. The backup battle will involve Robin Lehner and Johan Hedberg.
It will be an interesting season for the Devils who, while knowing that their strength will be the Swedish trio of Larsson, Hedman, and Kronwall in a few seasons, also want to compete now and plan on doing so successfully.
The line-up expected is:
Nash (7.8) - Bouchard (4.08) - Havlat (5)
Jokinen (2.5) - Loktionov (1.5) - Dadonov (.875)
Hecht (3.525) - Colborne (.45) - Clarkson (2.66)
Moen (1.5) - ? - Novotny (.75)
Hedman (.9) - Kronwall (3)
Larsson (.65) - Greene (3)
Polak (2.75) - Salvador (2.9)
White (3)
Bryzgalov (5.666667)
Lehner (.65)/Hedberg (1.0875)
Total cap hit: 53.156667 or 53.594167
Loui Eriksson
Mike Ribiero
Dainius Zubrus
Paul Gaustad
Zach Hamill
Rod Pelley
Chris Phillips
Jared Cowen
Martin Brodeur
With their replacements being:
Rick Nash
Pierre-Marc Bouchard
Jussi Jokinen
Evgeni Dadonov
Alexei Loktionov
Ales Kotalik
Jochen Hecht
Niklas Kronwall
Roman Polak
It's clear that there was a new agenda, once there was a new boss. The top 6 became younger, the defence sacrificed youth for current talent, and the Devils have elected to make Ilya Bryzgalov their un-chellenged starter.
First, the forwards. The trade sending first line fowards Eriksson and Ribiero out of town was one that brought in elite talent Rick Nash. One of the most powerful goal scorers, Rick Nash is the league's premier power forward and holds a style of play that the new boss wanted to see more of on the top line. To complement Nash, and recover for the loss of Ribiero, the team then traded pencilled-in second line center Dainius Zubrus to Colorado for playmaker Pierre-Marc Bouchard. While not of the talent level of Ribiero, Bouchard should make for a capable replacement that can swap throughout the top 6. Seemingly the only top 6 forward remaining is Martin Havlat, who's skills seem to be a good mesh on the top line.
The secondary scoring will be completely new though, with the new GM turning a Gaustad-Zubrus-Huselius line into a Jokinen-Loktionov-Dadonov line. Two balanced forwards and a stickhandling stud will look to help Rick Nash replace the Eriksson-Ribiero duo that looked promising.
As for the third and fourth lines, David Clarkson remains the ideal crash and banging third liner and will have rookie Joe Colborne on his left and veteran Jochen Hecht on his far left. Responsible, gritty, yet skilled seems to be the general hope for this line. On the fourth, newly acquired Travis Moen will be on the left with re-signed Jiri Novotny on the right. Devils seem to be searching the free agency pools for a centerman.
On defence, the Devils still pin their hopes on future franchise defencemen Adam Larsson and Victor Hedman. However, to help develop these two Swedish powerhouses, the Devils brought in fellow heavy-hitting Swede Niklas Kronwall. On a team that now boasts two future franchise defenceman and a top pairing defenceman, the team feels incredibly fortunate on the defensive aspect and will be using that depth as the strength of their team.
In goal, Ilya Byzgalov will be the starter and although some consider him elite, he will need to improve to maintain that status. The backup battle will involve Robin Lehner and Johan Hedberg.
It will be an interesting season for the Devils who, while knowing that their strength will be the Swedish trio of Larsson, Hedman, and Kronwall in a few seasons, also want to compete now and plan on doing so successfully.
The line-up expected is:
Nash (7.8) - Bouchard (4.08) - Havlat (5)
Jokinen (2.5) - Loktionov (1.5) - Dadonov (.875)
Hecht (3.525) - Colborne (.45) - Clarkson (2.66)
Moen (1.5) - ? - Novotny (.75)
Hedman (.9) - Kronwall (3)
Larsson (.65) - Greene (3)
Polak (2.75) - Salvador (2.9)
White (3)
Bryzgalov (5.666667)
Lehner (.65)/Hedberg (1.0875)
Total cap hit: 53.156667 or 53.594167