The Calm Before the Storm
Published: April 9, 2007
The NHL’s Regular Season has ended, and 16 proven teams will spend these next 2 days with a ripe harvest of ice bags and Advil. 6 months & 82 games worth of action has earned these teams a well-deserved calm before the storm. Our New Jersey Devils will open up the 2007 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The series kicks off on Thursday, April 12th @ 7:30 in New Jersey.
For a FULL schedule of the series CLICK HERE « C’mon, ya know ya want to. I made it all pretty-like!
Despite this being a #2 vs. #7 matchup, this is one of the more even playoff series planned for Round 1 in the Eastern Conference. The Devils did not fare very well against Tampa during the season, posting a 1-2-1 record, but the playoffs are a brand new page. (See: 2006 Edmonton Oilers) The Devils will no longer have to deal with the swagger of the NHL’s Salary Cap, a parasite that, in my eyes, kept the team from showcasing it’s true talent all season long.
The on-ice product for this series will be quite an exciting one, as it features superstars such as Martin St. Louis, Vinny Lecavalier and 2004 Conn Smythe Winner, Brad Richards. That tandem will have the monumental task of besting the league’s best goaltender, Martin Brodeur. Tampa’s inexperienced netminder will have to deal with the likes of Zach Parise, Jamie Langenbrunner, and Travis Zajac – a line that has given the opposition nightmares all season long. Like I said, the matchup is a lot more evenly set than most think.
The only thing left to do is stock up on beer and your favorite drive-thru combination meal for the next few months. The Yanks can wait – the NHL Playoffs are just about to start.
17 Comments on "The Calm Before the Storm"
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NJDevil on Mon, 9th Apr 2007 1:33 pm
Devils in 6. Why? Because St. Louis and Lecavalier are too good not to help their team win one or two games. I believe Madden and Pando will shut them down, but the rest of the Devils need to put the puck in the back of net. As with any other playoffs, special teams will win it for the Devils. But Tampa is a very dangerous team. Devils need to be technically sound.
Shari on Mon, 9th Apr 2007 4:07 pm
It’s funny how the Dev’s have 3 cups and They are going in as the underdogs, the media is already picking Tampa in 6. I would LOVE to see Grant come up for the playoffs, I miss Him in NJ.Or maybe we will see Clarkson.
Joe Bechtel on Mon, 9th Apr 2007 4:10 pm
I called NJ in 6 as well, but I wouldn’t be that surprised if it went the distance. Great point about special teams… staying out of the box is virtually a pre-req for this series if the Devils want to move on. That means you, Oduya!!
John F on Mon, 9th Apr 2007 6:39 pm
Joe, I agree with your prediction and the necesity of staying out of the penalty box.
But, uh, I think there’s a man in from Nova Scotia who deserves a better reminder of “staying out of the penalty box” than Oduya.
Patricia Greuter on Mon, 9th Apr 2007 9:54 pm
It’s true, he needs Anger Management.
…but it’s also true, Mr. Oduya has no concept of actually keeping the puck in play.
Joe Bechtel on Mon, 9th Apr 2007 10:35 pm
Haha, nice pickup there, John! But I think Patricia nailed what I was trying to say with Mr. Skyrocket – Johnny Oduya.
Aaron on Tue, 10th Apr 2007 8:29 am
I never really got the Oduya-Delay of Game link. He’s exceeded even my expectations from when I saw him rack up 3 assists on the Bruins in the preseason. He hasn’t taken a Delay of Game penalty since December 17. Throughout the entire season he’s only taken 3 DoG penalties and only one resulted in a PPG. He hasn’t taken a penalty in 10 games and hasn’t put the Devs shorthanded in 11. He’s done a great job of staying out of the penalty box, unlike some other defensemen.
beej on Tue, 10th Apr 2007 1:47 pm
Actually, he got I think 2 delay of game penalties in the past 3 months. But I really did like Greene better, as a player. He has 6 points (1g, 5a) in 23 games to Oduya’s 11 points (2g, 9a) in 76 games. Don’t get me wrong, I like Oduya, but I tihnk Greene’s a better player.
Aaron on Tue, 10th Apr 2007 2:54 pm
Out of curiosity, I went through the trouble of checking all the games he had penalties on NHL.com and that’s the number I came up with. He’s a solid defenseman with the ability to move the puck; I’d trust him more than Greene in that department. I like Greene, but he still seems shaky on defense in my opinion. He’ll fit in well next year as he’s held his own this year. Points for defensemen isn’t as crucial as play in your own zone.
John F on Tue, 10th Apr 2007 3:13 pm
I know Greene is more offensively minded, but Oduya has been more than solid in his own end this season. He’s not afraid to step up to a player coming forward, he’ll work along the boards without complaint, and he can be used on the PK. Did pretty well on Sunday with time on the PK as well as hitting some Isles. When he had to play top 4 minutes earlier this season due to injuries, he did just that and he didn’t look out of place. He looked good with Paul Martin even when Martin started off the season slowly and poorly. Yes, Oduya’s shot from the point is bad; but I’d rather have that than the nervousness with the puck in the Devils’ own end that we sometimes see from Greene.
In any case, if Matvichuk plays, Greene’s likely to be sitting for him as we saw on Sunday.
Patricia Greuter on Tue, 10th Apr 2007 3:25 pm
I’d take Oduya over Greene, and Matvichuk over Oduya. At the end of the day, Oduya and Mattie in, Greene out. Come back next year when it’s a brand new season and we have time to mess around with developing players again. In all honesty, all three players need time to refine their skills — Matvichuk being the one who needs to just hone in on what he already has, Greene and Oduya time to adjust moreso to the speed of the game and get themselves into the action a bit better.
It’s a good problem to have. All three are capable.
Aaron on Tue, 10th Apr 2007 5:53 pm
My fear is that Matvichuk is going to look slow against teams that are offensively oriented. In the Canes series last year, he was taken advantage of in pretty much every game. I hope this doesn’t create a problem in the playoffs, but I can’t help but think a guy in his late 30s just getting over a back injury and playing only 1 game is able to pick it up right off the bat.
Patricia Greuter on Tue, 10th Apr 2007 6:16 pm
Aaron, I hear ya on your fears, but I just gotta believe Mattie can get the job done. In all fairness, I thought he looked pretty damn good for a guy who missed 81 games, and there’s only room for improvement. Sure, he had some breakdowns and did look flat footed at times, but for the most part, I thought he looked pretty okay. It definitely makes me nervous putting a guy who has only played ONE regular season game into the playoff lineup, but I think we gotta trust that his veteran experience will work out.
Playoffs are a tricky thing — it’s the time to gamble, but it’s also the time to be conservative. It’s a gamble letting Mattie play, but it’s a huge gamble letting Greene see what he can do as well…I guess Lou has to decide which is the lesser of the two gambles, eh?
Joe Bechtel on Tue, 10th Apr 2007 7:42 pm
Hidden fact: Matvichuk is much more of a physical presence than Greene. That could work to our advantage – he’ll make the dynamic duo look over their shoulders when they’re in our zone.
Patricia Greuter on Tue, 10th Apr 2007 7:49 pm
Eh, Joe, I’m not so sure that’s really a hidden fact. It was pretty much known that Mattie was a physical defenseman when we got him, but I think maybe a lot of people forgot what kind of player he really is because we haven’t seen him in so long. I watched him really closely on Sunday and I noticed a really nice hit he executed, which really excited me because that’s what he’s really going to do for us — be the big guy, not the offensive defenseman. Greene and Oduya are not physical performers, leave that to Colin White (sans Anger Management issues) and Richard Matvichuk…and occasionally, Brad Lukowich.
Shari on Wed, 11th Apr 2007 6:30 pm
Before Rich M went down His Old Dallas coach Hitch said that He could not believe that that was the same player that He had coached all of those years that He was playing the best that He has ever seen Him play, and I personally thought He was an excellent defensive d-man, He is a solid stay at Home type with some nasty to Him, not White nasty, but stay out of the box nasty. I read that Cam is back since the cap is not an issue, and Greene is also back but Lou has not decided whether He will start Him or Rich M in tomorrow nights game. WOO-HOO I Love Playoff time.
RJ on Thu, 12th Apr 2007 10:35 am
I stand by my boys. Bolts in 6. We will continue to own yous guys.