Devils love New York-All Hockey Edition

Or at least their teams as the Devils clicked up back to back wins over the Gotham squads and lengthened their lead in the Atlantic Division.
Scott Clemmensen defeated the Rangers with his first shutout of the season on Monday 3-0,while Kevin Weekes KOed the Islanders last night 4-2.

Bobby Holik's second period goal(4) was all the Devils needed against the Rangers,but Zach Parise would score a minute and a half later on the power play to salt the game away and would add an empty netter to end any Ranger hopes and finish with a two goal night (31 and 32).

The Devils had to battle back from deficits twice against the Islanders,but two goals in the 3rd period put the game away.
Zach Parise scored two more goals (33 and 34) to pair with two assists and Jamie Langenbrunner popped in the remaining two goals as well (16 and 17) to pace the New Jersey offense.

Hell Raisers-Combined Edition

1) The Ranger win was one of total defensive control of the game.
Scott Clemmensen was outstanding,but the Rangers seem to be a team spiralling out of the playoff picture.
At the same time,that should take nothing away from the performance of Clemmensen....

2) Zach Parise continues to be on a roll and has a chance to score 50 goals for the season.
The Devils have never had a 50 goal scorer,which tells you one of two things.
The commitment to team play is commendable and one player doesn't overshadow this team or
The Devils have just rarely had a player with the offensive talent of Zach Parise.

3) Jamie Langenbrunner just keeps on his crazy run of goal scoring.
Hard to believe that this is the same guy that had 6 goals just a few weeks ago.

4) About the only thing that the Rangers had going for them was Colton Orr's one punch demolition of Mike Rupp.
The fight was pretty even until the one punch and brought two memories to mind.
One was the 1980 WBA Heavyweight title miracle with 45 seconds to go in the 15th (yes 15th) and final round,when Mike Weaver ruined the career of Big John Tate.
The other?
I will keep it to myself,but a few readers remember that night about 22 years ago!


5) Nice to see the Rangers getting so much use out of Wade Redden.
That signing is looking like an albatross already,as Redden was either lacking in effort or his ability was decreased significantly over the last few years.
Hard to believe that Ottawa once kept Redden over Zdeno Chara.
Think the Canadian Capital would want a re-do of that one???

6) The Islanders are not very good,but they always show up to play against the Devils and despite their talent issues,Scott Gordon looks to be a keeper on the Island as coach and injuries havent helped them either.

7) The goal by Kyle Okposo in the second period was about as dazzling an effort as you'll see.
The youngster has arguably been rushed this season,but this kid is a real player and could turn out to make quite the impact in Long Island,Kansas City,Winnipeg or wherever the Islanders turn up.


8) Kevin Weekes was good enough to win against the Islanders,but not outstanding.
Weeks had no chance on the Okposo goal and was hung out to dry by the defense on the first goal,but I got the feeling that against a better team,Weekes would been beaten by his occasional poor positioning....

9) Jay Pandolfo returned to the ice after a stretch of scratches.
Pando replaced Mike Rupp in the lineup.
Could Brent Sutter have a "Cowboy Bill Watts" rule in his mind?
Watts was famous for firing wrestlers in the old Mid-South promotion,if they lost a fight outside of the ring,perhaps Rupp's loss to Orr cost him a lineup spot for a while.

10) FIFTY shots against Joey McDonald?
That many shots should have sent him from the ice in a daze,but a nice effort from a fellow that has been pretty decent in his first real shot in the league....

I had to work yesterday,so that kept me from blogging,so I will return later today with thoughts on issues that I missed....

Photo Credits
Clemmensen:Al Bello-Getty Images
Parise:AP Photo

Darchinyan pounds Arce,Devils flat in defeat

The New Jersey Devils appeared to be off on the right foot in Saturday's game against the Los Angeles Kings as Dainius Zubrus looked to have given the Devils the early lead.
However,video review overturned it as it was ruled to have entered the net due to an unintentional kick and the game went downhill from there as the Kings beat Scott Clemmensen three times in the second period in a 3-1 Los Angeles win.Dainius Zubrus (13) scored the Devils only goal in the third period to avoid the shutout.
The Devils host the hated Rangers tonight at 7 in a crucial divisional matchup.

Hell Raisers

1) I dont know if it was dead legs from playing the night before,looking forward to the Rangers or taking the Kings lightly,but I do know this-Everything after the called back goal was downhill.
They just seemed flat.

2) Scott Clemmensen allowed three goals for the second start in a row,but other than the penalty shot from Patrick O'Sullivan,was not really to blame.

3) The defense was pretty sloppy in front of Clemmensen.
The loss of Colin White likely didn't help,but it could not be the entire reason for such a poor performance.

4) Not much else that I can say,but even though Clemmensen has been beyond expectations all season,maybe not is the time for Kevin Weekes to take his turn.
Weekes has been the better goaltender over the last two weeks.

5) The Rangers are sputtering themselves and appear to be ready to turn to Sean Avery as the savior?
As if the retiring of Adam Graves number wasn't dumb enough??

Bullpen Notes

Vic Darchinyan hammered Jorge Arce from pillar to post and retained his World Jr.Bantamweight title when the doctor refused to allow Arce to leave his corner for the 12th and final round.
The battered and bloodied Arce won only one round on two judges cards and two on the other.
We had Darchinyan ahead 108-101 at the time of the stoppage.

Darchinyan holds all three major belts and has beaten two of the divisions top four fighters in his last two bouts.
So why doesn't the supposedly fair and impartial Ring Magazine regard him as champ?
Maybe it could be because new Ring owner Golden Boy Promotions doesn't have a stake in Darchinyan???

Sorry to Showtime jettison longtime blow by blow announcer Steve Albert in favor of one of our least favorite in "Screamin" Gus Johnson.
We have written in the past about Johnson's over the top calls/Vince McMahonesque pro wrestling style commentary in football and basketball for CBS and he pretty much lived up to our low expectations.

Boxing and Horse Racing seems to attract every announcer that thinks that they can just show up and slide by without really knowing the sport.
It usually is apparent by the end of the show just how ill prepared and how little they actually know about the sport.

Enjoyed watching C-SPAN's Q and A with Brian Lamb last night as it featured one of my favorite left wing pundits in Stephanie Miller for the hour.
I have always been a mark for Miller since her mid 90's TV show that lasted about 12 days!
I only wish her show started a little earlier or later as I am usually in bed when her radio show is on.
The picture of the lefty talker is (of course) with blog favorite and (should already be) Senator Al Franken.

Photo Credits
Penalty Shot:Jim McIssac-Getty Images
Boxing:AP Photo
Miller/Franken:StephanieMiller.com

Thrashed!

The New Jersey Devils showed few effects from their loss to Washington as they traveled to Atlanta in front of a gathering that seemed to be about 45, jumped on the Thrashers early and cruised to an easy 5-1 win.
Three goals in the first 12 minutes tend to put you in good shape to win and when your special teams produce three goals (two shorthanded),it usually is a pretty good night.
Devils goals to Zach Parise (power play 30),Travis Zajac (16),Brian Gionta (shorthanded 12),David Clarkson (11) and John Madden (shorthanded 6).
Kevin Weekes picked up the win in net.
The Devils are back at the Rock tonight against the visiting Los Angeles Kings at 7:00.

Hell Raisers

1) The Devils win combined with the Ranger loss moved them six points ahead of the Rangers in the Atlantic Division race.
Bet it is about time that the Rangers go out and obtain some overpriced/big name/washed up player for their playoff run...

2) I was glad to see Kevin Weekes get the start in goal.
Weekes had played well in his two road starts (both wins) and Scott Clemmensen played awfully soft against Washington.
Perhaps this outing by Weekes can get Clemmensen moving again.

3) Brian Gionta's goal came off the faceoff where he won the draw against Rich Peverley,pushed the puck through Peverley's legs and then shot the puck by Kari Lehtonen.
Not sure which was more shocked by the move-Peverley or Lehtonen.

4) Colin White was hit in the hand by a Matthew Schneider shot in the first period and skipped the final two periods of play.
The Devils did not comment on how serious the injury was....

5) Atlanta's defense is a joke.
I have never seen so many guys playing such poor and dumb hockey.
Either they are poorly coached,giving half speed efforts or this team is really awful.
It is no wonder that no one comes to see them play....

Bonus Rounds

Doc Emrick came up with an interesting point on the Thrashers less than stellar play.
Emrick commented that perhaps the Thrashers can get away with that more in the tepid market of Atlanta and their fans aren't quite as discerning as fans in the more rabid towns.
Could be,Doc......

Brendan Shanahan might have just turned 40,but that doesn't mean that he turned into a Washington Capital as he took on Atlanta brawler Eric Boulton and acquitted himself quite well in the battle.


Bullpen Notes

The little guys take center stage tonight as the World Jr Bantamweight title (115 lb limit and all three world belts) is on the line as champion Vic Darchinyan defends against Jorge Arce in a long awaited fight.
This one should be an explosive war for as long as it lasts.
You can catch it on Showtime.

We enter this fight with a 0-1 record for 2009.
The record will be simply right or wrong selections.
When I get a few wins,I will be adding bonus points for winning picks,if I am correct in picking the type of win (decision or KO) correctly will be one point and if I am dead on correct( Exact round of KO or type of decision) will be worth two points.

Tonight's pick:Darchinyan KO 6.

The Frederick Keys announced that they will have a new state of the art (aren't they all?) scoreboard in place for the 2009 season.
This was about time,the main problem that I had at Harry Grove Stadium (besides the bad theme song,LOL) was the scoreboard with so many permanent problems that it made hard to follow the game.
Kudos to both the Keys and whoever else paid for this.

And if the state of Maryland kicked in,how about something for the aging Muni?????

Photo Credits
Zajac:Bruce Bennett-Getty Images
Darchinyan:Unknown

Naming heir apparents years in advance???

Maryland Football today announced that James Franklin will be the successor to Ralph Friedgen whenever the "Fridge" decides that it is time to leave coaching and it got me thinking a bit.

Is the current trend of naming your next coach years in advance a good one?
Or is having an idea of the succession order,but still going through the hiring process a better idea?
The argument behind selecting your successor in advance is that it promotes continuity in the program,keeps players in the same system that they were recruited for and helps recruiting as players that were more interested in playing for a particular coach than attending a certain school would not be as likely to change their commitments after the change in head coaches.
It also enables you to keep your hot,young assistant before they go to a smaller Division I school and establish themselves further as a desirable coach for other larger (BCS) school openings.

The argument against naming new coaches in advance are these-you usually wind up with a head coach without head coaching experience and sometimes the advance appointment looks like a better idea than it turns out to be.
For example,Florida State had Jeff Bowden as the successor to Bobby Bowden years in advance and wound up with egg on its face when the Seminole offense began to sputter and the decision was made to have someone else to pick up the Bowden mantle.

What also happens often is this scenario-the new coach seems to fit in without a bump for the first two seasons when he is able to basically use the talent in place,then the slide (if there is one) begins in season three when most of the upperclassmen begin to be "your" recruits and by the end of year four or five,the hot seat is getting awfully warm.
Ask Ryan as Bret Bielema is beginning to show exactly that time line at Wisconsin.

I have always thought that head coaching experience was the most important thing to have when you are taking a major conference job in football or basketball as I think that having gone through the grind of running things at your program can be such a help when you take over at a big school,even if it is on a smaller level.
Moving your way up the ladder makes such a difference in your outlook.
Does anyone think that Brian Kelly is less ready to be a major school head coach because he moved up through Grand Valley State,Central Michigan and Cincinnati than Franklin or Bielema because they were the hot young assistant at the time?
To me,it is such a benefit to go through the small schools for two reasons.
One is that you learn where to find players that larger schools miss and therefore create more connections to help your future recruiting endeavors.
The other is that you learn to "game coach" in front of smaller crowds instead of the larger eye of television every week and the pressure that entails.
The pressure to win is everywhere,but it seems to be accelerated on a coach when they have never had the background to deal the adversities of being the head man.

I suppose I am more in favor of waiting to hire the new coach until there is an actual vacancy,with the caveat of telling the coach that you may want to hire that he might want to stick around as being the leading candidate for whenever that opening may arise.
I have seen too many assistants flame out under the pressure that head coaching provides.
Both young assistants and veteran one waiting for the job of their dreams have cracked under such pressure without the background to withstand it.
The problem with hiring the assistant is that you just never know who can handle it and the cost is usually years of your program backsliding......

Bullpen Notes

I know very little about James Franklin,so my wondering about this hire is mainly because of his lack of coaching experience,but I do wonder what the rush was to lock him up long term.
Was there teams already interested in taking him away and this was a preventive measure??
I don't follow Maryland football like I used to,so I don't want to comment on his term as offensive coordinator,but I will be paying more attention in 2009.
The Terps now have me intrigued.

Franklin will be the second African-American coach in ACC history.
The First?
Jim Caldwell at Wake Forest from 1993-2000 was the first and that is the same Caldwell that will be the new head coach with the Indianapolis Colts.
Caldwell went 26-63 in his tenure in Winston-Salem.

The Pirates die roll of releasing T.J. Beam failed when Beam was claimed by Toronto.
Beam is nothing to cry about losing,but there are others on the Pirate roster that I might have tried to get through the wire instead...

One new arrival on the signing front as former Sabre (and Colorado Rockie) Rene Robert signed through the mail.
This completes the French Connection line for the collection..

Photo Credits
Franklin;Kansas State University
Robert:Unknown

What If:The Cleveland Browns-1999

Imagine that the Cleveland Browns had been run correctly since their return to the NFL in 1999.
Imagine a world without Carmen Policy bringing every washed up and overpaid former Forty Niner to town,Butch Davis drafting players that played outside the state of Florida and Phil Savage spending money and picks on players that rarely seemed to make sense.

Hindsight is almost 20/20 and some of the players that are discussed were players that I both did and didn't discuss at the time of the draft.
Some of these cases,I take personally-I would have gotten it right,but others were not guys that I particularly wanted at the time.
Full Disclosure.

Let's start in 1999.
Most expansion teams always want a QB first and the reasoning is usually along these lines.
"Pick a passer that can grow as the team grows".
The flaw to that thinking is this-by the time that your team gets reasonably good (all things considered),the years behind bad offensive lines have often broken both the players physical ability and his confidence.
Take a look at the last team to follow this philosophy-the Houston Texans and David Carr and see how that turned out.

All that said,I agreed at the time with the Browns taking Tim Couch.
Quarterback was a high depth spot in the 1999 draft and no one was chomping at the bit to move up,so the Browns were kinda stuck.
I didn't like Donovan McNabb then,but considering how the career of the two went,McNabb would have been the better choice,although I am convinced that has Couch went elsewhere,he would have had a better career as he would not have taken the shots that he did in Cleveland.
The best players is this draft loomed in the 4-7 spots as Edgerrin James,Ricky Williams,Torry Holt and Champ Bailey came off the board.
A corner has never been the top overall pick in the draft and the Browns likely never even considered him,but with 10 years behind him,Bailey is still a Pro Bowl level player and although James and Williams would have been solid picks,it is possible both would have been far less successful with the Browns.
Since hindsight is perfect,we will go with Bailey.
I wont fault Cleveland for missing though,this was not a great draft.
I mean Pittsburgh took Troy Edwards over Jevon Kearse in this draft.
Can you imagine Kearse in his first few years as a Steeler????

The Browns used their second round pick(32) on Syracuse wideout Kevin Johnson and in a weak second round probably got their moneys worth,but in hindsight,Michigan tackle Jon Jansen (37) would have been the way to go.
Although Jansen has played just two games in the last two seasons,he was generally durable before that and was one of the better tackles in the league and would have been a big addition to what proved to be a weak line for years.

In Round 3,Cleveland took Daylon McCutcheon(62),who proved to be a journeyman corner and ended up being the player that lasted the longest in Cleveland from this draft.
But two players stand out as glaring examples of misses with this pick,both are still in the league and both are still top players.
Mike McKenzie went to Green Bay at 87 at McCutcheon's Position!
Nothing kills you more when you pick the wrong player at the position that are drafting at.
McKenzie is now a Saint and still starts for them,but since we took Champ Bailey first and are an expansion team,we will pass on him,but the other guy......
Pittsburgh takes a player at 73 that they have listed as a defensive end and will turn him into a linebacker that terrorizes passers for ten years,a fellow by the name of Porter.
Joey Porter!
We put Porter as a Brown with this pick.
Sidenote-I hate the Steelers,but there is not a team in the league that I have more respect for personnel evaluations wise than the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Browns traded their next pick (96) and moved down to 124 and took Wali Rainer.
Staying at 96 could have produced another decent lineman in John Welbourn,two linebackers that lasted longer than Rainer in Rosevelt Colvin and Warrick Holdman,a decent possession receiver in Brandon Stokely or a nice safety in Dexter Jackson.
Holdman would spend a year with the Browns after his prime years were finished.
All of these players would have been fine,so we take Colvin at the same position as Rainier.

The Browns trade down again in Round 5 moving from 134 to 148 and take Darrin Chiaverini,who was a reliable receiver for the first few crummy years and was a tough little bugger to boot.
Considering the rest of this round,Cleveland sticks with the actual selection for the first time.

The various trade downs leave the Browns with three picks in Round Six and true to form,they hit with none of them.Marcus Spriggs DT Troy State(174),Kendall Ogle,LB Maryland(187) and James Dearth TE Tarleton State(191) all swing and miss.
Again not a massive amount of talent available,but Desmond Clark is still in the league as a tight end and he was available at 174.
Martay Jenkins was an average wideout for a few years with the Cardinals and he was available at all of these picks.
The whole idea of trading down and accumulating picks is to give you more chances of doing well with shots in the dark,but when you miss on them all.......

Cleveland's final pick was at 207 and the first of the final round.
The Browns took Madre Hill,who was a talented runner from Arkansas that suffered a severe knee injury in his senior year.
I liked the gamble at the time and I still won't complain too much.The risk was lower than the possible reward,but at 213,Green Bay jumps on a little known pass catcher from Alcorn State,Donald Driver and he becomes the favorite target for Brett Favre for years....

Champ Bailey,Jon Jansen,Joey Porter,Rosevelt Colvin,Darrin Chiverini,Desmond Clark,Martay Jenkins,(Keep one of the Browns picks) and Donald Driver

OR

Tim Couch,Kevin Johnson,Daylon McCutcheon,Wali Rainer,Chiverini,Marcus Spriggs,Kendall Ogle,James Dearth and Madre Hill.

Coming soon What If-2000

Streak ends at eight,Trade following the game..

The New Jersey Devils winning streak ended at eight,as the Devils came out flat against the Washington Capitals and dropped a 5-2 decision.
Washington roared out to a 3-0 lead before the Devils trimmed the lead to 3-2 behind goals by Brian Rolston (Powerplay 9) and Jamie Langenbrunner (Shorthanded 15).
The Devils are off until Friday when they visit Atlanta to kick off a 3 games in 4 days swing.

Hell Raisers

1) The key play in this game was made by the striped shirts.
With the game at 3-2 and Washington on their heels,Mike Rupp charged the net with the puck for a one on one with Jose Theodore,who made the save.
Rupp was clearly tripped on the play,but instead of Washington being called for tripping,Rupp was called for interference.
Washington then scores on their undeserved powerplay-game over.

2) This game was important as the Devils battle for second place in the Eastern Conference and yet the Devils came up so listless and what is with Scott Clemmensen being so lazy with his puckhandling?
For the second time in three games,a Clemmensen miscue turned into an opponent goal....

3) Jamie Langenbrunner's shorthanded flip over Jose Theodore's shoulder was a pretty play,but other than that,there was little to like from the Devils first two periods of play.

4) Stat of the night?
Washington 4 power play opportunities,3 goals....

5) Sorry,if I still am not a Washington believer despite a great performance last night.
They still strike me as a soft team come playoff time.
Think the Ottawa Senators without the defensive depth-(Thanks Ryan)

Bullpen Notes

After the game,the Devils shipped seldom used defenseman Sheldon Brookbank to the Anaheim Ducks for the rights to Colgate center David McIntyre.
The Devils wanted to give Brookbank a shot at more playing time,which he wasn't getting as the 8th defenseman and the Devils would have likely lost him on the waiver wire,if they would have attempted to send him to Lowell.
McIntyre is leading Colgate in points with 30 and has scored 13 goals for the Red Raiders.
Best wishes to the always hustling Brookbank!

Two of my favorite college basketball teams have joined forces to honor one of my favorite coaches as Wake Forest and Xavier have agreed to a 10 year contract to meet in a home and home series to honor the late Skip Prosser.
The Skip Prosser Classic will begin next season at Lawrence Joel Coliseum in Winston-Salem.
Hopefully someone from the two areas will get together and create a unique trophy to passed between the schools..

On the signing front.
Just two additions,but one is huge to me.
Ebay adds "The Horse" Dan Issel to the collection in his Kentucky Colonels uniform!
The Colonels were my favorite team in the defunct ABA and Issel was my favorite player,so this is a big deal to me.
Issel only signed 70 Colonels cards for Upper Deck as the majority of the cards he signed was in his Denver Nugget togs.
Also Devils prospect Anssi Salmela signed through the mail.

I am hoping to be back later with the first installment of "What If".

Photo Credits
Hockey:AP Photo
Issel:Previous Owner,but its mine now!

Playin Catch Up

Missed a few days and I really am sorry about that because I missed blogging on one of the best Devil wins in quite a long time.
The 4-3 OT win over Pittsburgh was the polar opposite of the previous days win in Boston.
This time the Devils were the team dominated for most of the night,but then received the third period momentum behind goals by Brendan Shanahan (3) and with the net left vacant,Jamie Langenbrunner tied the game with his 13th goal with 31 seconds left to force overtime.
Langenbrunner would then win the game with one minute left in the extra period with goal number 14 on the year and SIXTH in three games.
The Devils first period goal went to Bobby Holik (3).

New Jersey takes on Washington tomorrow night at 7.
Joe Beninati and Craig Laughlin on the mic.-yay.

The game was also held on Doc Emrick night and featured pre game ceremonies that honored the Hall of Fame broadcaster.
The Devils always do such events very nicely and the honors are certainly deserved!

One good piece of news for you Steeler haters out there.
Looks like Mike Tomlin will be safe for years to come after the win and there is only so long that Tomlin (and Bill Cowher before him) can hide behind the brilliant (But 71 year old) Dick LeBeau.

Shane tells it like it is about the vaunted Steeler Nation over at our sister blog,where we are still waiting to be linked to! LOL!

The Hagerstown Suns are holding auditions for new Sunsations for this season.
Not that I am an expert,but please,for gods sake,pick some ladies that act like they want to be there!

Slow times,but watch for what I think should be interesting reading coming up with our new series "What if".
The first installment looks back with hindsight on what the Cleveland Browns could have in their lineup since the return to Lake Erie.

Two other upcoming posts are long overdue,but better late than never as we do our 2008 Minor League Awards (for playing and signing) and how some of the players that we follow performed in 08 and where they should start in 09.

Photo Credits
Celebration:AP Photo
Emrick:Jim McIssac-Getty Images