Fri 6 Jul 2007
UPDATE: [9:01 PM ET, JULY 9] I would like to apologize to Jason at the NHL Line for my comments on his site. I mistook something I thought he had written in his comments section, bashing the fans and readers of his site as “having no life” and “wasting their time by sitting in front of a computer all day.”
Turns out, well, that wasn’t Jason.
Yes, I am woman enough to admit my mistake, (and not many of us are willing to admit any fault whatsoever!) so, well, again…sorry.
As for the Souray rumors — who the heck knows what’s going on. I’ll sit patiently and wait to see where he signs. If it’s New Jersey — cool. Not New Jersey? So be it.
I will, like I previously wrote, not be continuing the Souray Saga.
Rest in Peace, Souray Saga. You shall not be missed.
[6:45 PM ET, DAY 3] Oh-kay, still no word here. NHL Line (link opens in new window) is reporting that Sheldon Souray has finally reached an agreement with the Devils. That was a couple hours ago. We’re still waiting.
I’m going to go until midnight on this one. If we still don’t hear a formal announcement, I’m dismissing this report and will stop updating The Souray Saga.
Stay tuned…until midnight, at least.
[2:31 PM ET, DAY 3] Now we’re hearing that if there is no announcement today, we are to assume Souray will sign with the Islanders. Wow. This sounds, uh, kind of hard to believe at this point.
[2:10 PM ET, DAY 3] NHL Line (link opens in new window) says Souray-to-Devils is all but done now as Andy Sutton appears to be off to the Island.
[11:34 PM ET, DAY 2] NHL Line (link opens in new window) is now reporting that Souray should sign a contract on Friday. We’ll see. I’ll keep on this story, but it’s quite tiresome trying to sift through the facts and truths from the make-believe and rumors. Hopefully we’ll get an answer tomorrow — I sure as heck am ready for this saga to be over.
[9:35 PM ET, DAY 2] Yeah, so, this so-called report suggested Souray would be a Devil within 4-5 hours.
That was at about 2:30.
It’s been over seven hours now.
I’m calling bull-poopy on this report, folks. I’d love to be proven wrong, but I fear it shall not happen.
Thoughts?
FOR OLDER UPDATES, CLICK MORE:
[12:32 PM ET, DAY 2] We’re now in Day 2 of the Souray Saga. This same “report” is now speculating that Louie Lams is trying to lower the financial terms of the contract, producing a hold up in negotiations. The end product? Supposedly, Souray wants to play in New Jersey, but could easily go to another team if he doesn’t get the terms he wants.
Translation: More than likely an embellished or outright fake report. I wouldn’t hold my breath on this one folks, but as promised, we shall keep on this story as long as it takes.
[10:50 PM ET] According to an updated report, the Devils are set to announce the signing of Souray tomorrow, after Louie Lams and Sheldon hammer out some minor details in the contract. Now, I don’t mean to be negative here, but, well, this “report” sounds kind of poopy to me. I guess we shall see…
Reports have been flying around the internet today about the likelihood of defenseman Sheldon Souray signing with the Devils.
Now, folks, this is unconfirmed, but there is one particular report suggesting the former Devil has already inked a deal with New Jersey.
Why are we reporting this if it is unconfirmed?
Hey, it’s a slow day. Can you blame us? Plus, if the terms are right, I wouldn’t exactly mind Souray back in black and red.
Alas, keep it with 2MA for any breaking news on this story.
July 4th, 2007 at 5:23 pm
WE LOST RAFFI AND LUKOWICH, SURELY SIGNING RACHUNEK ISNT ENOUGH OF A REPLACEMENT, WE NEED ANOTHER D-MAN. THIS SHOULD BE DONE
July 4th, 2007 at 5:40 pm
the supposed terms are 4-6 year 5-5.5 mill a season…plzzz be true!!!
July 4th, 2007 at 5:41 pm
http://www.nhlline.ca/
there’s teh article for anyone whose’s looking
July 4th, 2007 at 6:05 pm
HEY THE DEVILS WERE A SMALL TEAM LAST SEASON, KEPT GETTING PUSHED OFF THE PUCK, WE NEED SOME BIG GUYS LIKE SOURAY, ZUBRUS, AND MORE LIKE THAT.
July 4th, 2007 at 6:35 pm
I like Souray and think he will help our team, but 5.5-6 mil a year. I’m not criticizing Lou, but next year the Free Agent Maret will be huge. I’d rather save the money for Heatley, Marian Hossa, or Dion Phaneuf. Out of all of these Free Agents I would love to have Phaneuf. Phaneuf is only 22 years old and has averaged 50 points per year, he’s 6′3 215, amzing fighter, and can flat out HIT.( Just ask Dennis Hamel). With all of the guys Calgary has to re-sign (Kipper, Lombardi, and Phaneuf and they just signed Regehr and Iginla)how are they going to stay under the cap. They just signed Nolan and Sarich and traded for Aucoin.
Just want to here anybodys thoughts about Souray or next years Free Agents.
July 4th, 2007 at 6:42 pm
When Sheldon was with The Dev’s the 1st time in the beginning He was better on the O then the D, then they worked with Him and reminded Him of His Defensive responsibility, and He was a really solid D man with a great offensive upside, the Habs wanted more offense from Him so He talored His game to that need, the Dev’s (if this is true) will get Him back on track. and things will be sweet, I really hope this is true, and finally We get some size with this latest group of signings. Gomez who?
July 4th, 2007 at 6:49 pm
ITS BEEN 4 HOURS OR SO SINCE THIS “SIGNING” WAS HAPPENING, I AM STARTING TO DOUBT ITS GONNA HAPPEN, AND I HOPE SOURAY DIDNT GET PISSED OFF AND NOW IS TALKING TO THE RANGERS, AS I HEARD THEY WERE IN THE MIX TO GET HIM ALSO.
July 4th, 2007 at 6:49 pm
Some of next years group are too big for Lou, what I mean is, these are the type of guys that are too well known and will be the focus of everything, Lou will not sign a player if He feels that the individual player will become more important then the Team as a whole, He has never gone after too big a player because of that reason, I think that Phaneuf is part of the Calgary franchise like Iginla and Calgary will do everything to keep Him. Of course this is all just My opinion.
July 4th, 2007 at 6:53 pm
hmmm yeah i wish he’d only sign him for one year for now, but ya know lou and those habs, and you know how he just loves to bring old dudes back. I was suprised he didn’t try harder to grab guerin. but yeah, i’d much rather wait til next year to start makin these huge commitments but then again, i don’t wanna just waste a year in hopes of an optomistic future.
July 4th, 2007 at 8:07 pm
Just yesterday I thought he was close to signing with Dallas or the rags?
July 4th, 2007 at 8:10 pm
I don’t think that Lou will ever get Guerin back, He went to arbitration every year that He was eligible and was constantly complaining about money, and how the “system” is choking His true talent, and got to be pretty toxic in the locker room with His negative attitide.
July 4th, 2007 at 9:15 pm
Longer and longer the wait is getting for the confirmation of this sign.. im kind of worried
July 4th, 2007 at 10:16 pm
Part of me wants to see Souray signed, and part of me doesn’t.
I miss Brian already.
July 4th, 2007 at 10:24 pm
I, uh, think I want Sheldon on the team.
…for the right financial terms/years.
July 5th, 2007 at 5:27 am
This should be done by midday, there is an obvious reason this wasn’t finalized yesterday.
July 5th, 2007 at 8:59 am
Here is the latest rumor on the coaching situation, Johnny Mac is the head coach with Big Bird coming back into the fold as His wing man.
July 5th, 2007 at 9:13 am
I’m glad Raffi is gone. He was a defensive liability who was just getting worse under the tender ministrations of Mr. Feel-good Claude Julien. He needed a boot in his ass. Let him be Detroit’s problem.
I’m sorry Lukowich is gone. He wasn’t the best D man out there, certainly, but he understood his role and he made more good plays than bad. He was also a quality Team guy and that kind of personality is needed on a “Team First” club like the Devils.
Souray is more in the mold of a Rafalski than Lukowich. He is an offensive threat who too easily forgets his defensive responsibilities. I’m not eager to see this deal get made and I’m wondering what Lou is smoking when he knew - he KNEW - Rafalski and Gomer were leaving, and didn’t make any deals until they were long gone. He was never a player for Smyth or Drury to replace Gomer and he ignored some of the prime defensive talent on the board in day one until Raffi was in a red wing sweater.
We were left with table scraps. Zubrus is a good player. But he doesn’t have Gomer’s speed through center ice and he isn’t as dangerous as Smyth or Drury or Briere. We had the money to play with, what with Gomer taking his “show me the money” act across the river, but Lou didn’t want to spend it. Perhaps it is because a true offensive playmaker would feel too constricted in the Devils system that he goes after second tier talent… I confess to feeling disappointed.
On the defensive side, Lou doesn’t have that excuse. If I were to go shopping for new D-men, I wouldn’t start in Manhattan. Karel Rachunich (whose name I won’t spell correctly for some time) will not fit our system well and will remain a serious defensive liability for at least next season - possibly beyond. Sheldon Souray…man, does Lou love his re-treads or what? He is known for pinching in without point coverage and getting burned at the worst times.
In short, I don’t know how I feel about this. I don’t think we have lost too much in the translation. My real concern is in how much the Rangers and the Flyers have improved themselves with this market. I don’t think Lou has kept pace with the competition this season, and that has me worried…
July 5th, 2007 at 9:57 am
Obviously no other teams are willing to give Sheldon his terms or he’d be signed. Something’s gotta give.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:25 am
Sorry about the constant posts but I have the work week off for vaca, I don’t know if this Sheldon thing is happening because the Dev’s are also supposed to be in the running for Andy Sutton on D and Sheldon, 7 D men? not sure, Johnny O got 2 yrs for 600,000 just like Andy Green.
July 5th, 2007 at 11:53 am
I think that My eyes are betraying Me The Dev’s just signed Weeks as Marty’s backup? sorry Patricia looks like Your beloved Parrot head is s goner.
July 5th, 2007 at 11:55 am
Shari, can you source that?
July 5th, 2007 at 12:01 pm
The Fire & Ice site, I just saw it there and went right here to You.
July 5th, 2007 at 2:49 pm
IF we get Souray, and that’s a big IF, we’d have a great power play. Langs and Souray on the power play? 1-2-3 punch with Gionta putting it away.
I really don’t want to see the ZZ Pop line get broken up. Anyone else feel the same?
July 5th, 2007 at 2:51 pm
NHLLINE.ca (as of a few hrs ago):
UPDATE: A SIGNING IS EXPECTED SOON AT MOST WITHIN THE NEXT 4-5 HOURS. THE HOLD UP? THE HOLD UP IS ANOTHER TEAM OUT OF DESPERATION TRYING TO TALK TO SOURAY. BUT A SOURCE SAYS NO MATTER WHAT, SOURAY WILL SIGN IN A “NEW YORK BASED TEAM” THE ISLANDERS, AS IT APPEARS, IS TRYING TO OUTBID THE DEVILS BUT SNOW ISN’T PREPARED TO GO OVER $6 MILLION.
“AT THIS POINT LOU IS VERY CONFIDENT HE WILL BE ADDING SOME EXCELLENT OFFENSE TO HIS POWERPLAY BY THE END OF THE DAY” (which means he is confident in signing Souray).
July 5th, 2007 at 3:54 pm
the report i read ( which is where i’m guessing this rumor is from) is saying it’s taking so long because lou wants to pay him a little less. the isles are also in the running but snow won’t pay him more than 6 mil. i say, sign him…when he was with the devs before he wasn’t a bad offender, i think when he went to montreal they told him to be more offensive than defensive and he ultimatly focused on offense, but back with the devs, i’m sure tehy can mold him back into an offensive defenseman that isn’t a defensive reliability…point is..our power play sure could use the leading defensive scorer..
oh, and souray said he’s definatly going to a new york based team
Source: nhlline.ca
July 5th, 2007 at 6:16 pm
The Islanders just spent 4.5 for Guerin, so they may not be able to afford Sheldon now, and The Rangers probably can’t either since they spent way too much on the over priced,little mexican missle.
July 5th, 2007 at 8:47 pm
Once I found the “source”, I knew not to put any stock in it. My guess is if there were any negotiations, Sheldon is asking way too much for Lou.
July 5th, 2007 at 9:59 pm
and what is that source?
July 5th, 2007 at 11:20 pm
I have no source and I am not an insider, but I know the Devils have already signed Souray because it makes too much sense and we are one of the few teams that have a tremdnous need for Souray plus cap space.
July 6th, 2007 at 8:06 am
The Souray deal only makes sense if you believe we lost a key piece with the departure of Rafalski. I don’t beleive that’s true.
I think Rafalski was a net liability and I think Souray will be more of the same. I’m all for offensive defensemen, but they can’t forget their primary responsibilities. They can’t be sloppy on the puck in their own end. They can’t be poor passers, offering the opposition 1-2 chances per game at transition goals.
That’s what we lost with Rafalski and that’s what we’ll be picking up with Souray. We don’t need another defensement who can’t play defense.
July 6th, 2007 at 12:31 pm
THE FOURTH PERIOD.COM, SAYS THE DAILY NEWS LEARNED THAT SOURAY IS VERY INTERESTED IN PLAYING FOR THE…SIT DOWN…YUP THE RANGERS, WOW, HOW WOULD HE AND MARTY REMAIN FRIENDS IF THAT HAPPENED
July 6th, 2007 at 1:00 pm
I’ve kept my hopes up for the last few days, but I’m throwing in the towel. nhlline.ca now reports that the Rangers were trying to free up cap space to land Souray.
Here’s a short list of issues regarding the report:
1) The Rangers already have $40 mil of the cap used, leaving them $10 mil to sign Lundqvist (who’s due for at least $3mil), Shanahan (barring an act of God, no less than $4 mil), and Avery (who could easily command $2.5). How can they make room for a $5-6mil cap hit?
2) Why would the Rangers push so hard for another defenseman when they’re short on forwards even with Hossa, Shanahan, and Avery? A look at their salary commitments has them with 5 centers, 5 right wings, 2 left wings, and 7 defensemen (hockeyanalysis.com).
3) Even if the Rangers could clear up space, it wouldn’t be enough to make room for $5 mil.
I’d love to believe the report’s true, but this is becoming difficult.
July 6th, 2007 at 1:02 pm
i heard that the rangers is his desired spot to be but they couldn’t clear enough cap space. And more so that it was for sure between the devs and islanders and lou is “putting the final touches in” as we speak. supposedly there’s gonna be a 5 year deal worth any where from 5.5 mil to 6.5 per year. but this is all from a web suorce.
July 6th, 2007 at 1:36 pm
Screw Souray and Sutton, we need to get Parise and Martin signed before some Vanek type BS happens.
July 6th, 2007 at 1:47 pm
THE RANGERS HAVE AN ACE UP THEIR SLEEVE, BECAUSE SHANAHAN IS OVER 35, HIS CONTRACT COULD BE A MILLION A YEAR AND THE REST IN INCENTIVES, SO ONLY A MILLION COUNTS AGAINST THE CAP, AND HE COULD GET $500,000 FOR EVERY GOAL HE SCORES (THIS IS JUST AN EXAMPLE)SOMETHING LIKE THAT
July 6th, 2007 at 2:04 pm
I agree now is the time to lock down Zach Attack for the long term, as far as Martin goes, he did not file for arbitration which is a good sign (niether did Zach) so both Guys are willing to work something out, as far as Sheldon goes, as much as I would not mind seeing Him back in the colors, and as much I do appreciate all of the update reports, this is getting old, either sign or don’t but geeze make a descision I’m starting to not care whether He comes here or not.
July 6th, 2007 at 2:21 pm
I agree with MrFrisby, whats to stop the Oilers from pulling that on us, Lou needs to get this done and turn his attention to those two. I’d hate to lose Parise and/or Martin because Lou was too busy trying to save a couple pennies on Souray.
July 6th, 2007 at 2:23 pm
This entire rumor by that bs site is cracking me up. Its nice to have something related to hockey to stay occupied with in the offseason.
July 6th, 2007 at 3:11 pm
zach is second on kevin lowe’s list of RFA after vanek..so i say..sign souray then give zach a call…but do it in the next hour..
July 6th, 2007 at 3:24 pm
NEW POST ON NHLLINE.CA:
The first saga of the free agent frenzy may have finally come to an end. Sources tell The NHL Line, that New Jersey Devils General Manger Lou Lamoirello is about to put the final touches on a deal with Unrestricted Free Agent defenceman Sheldon Souray. Souray will agree to a contract worth within the range of $5.5 million to $6.5 million. The length of the contract is still a little blurry but it appears to be a 5-year deal.
Goalie Martin Brodeur played a huge role in encouraging the former Hab to come to New Jersey. As Brodeur co-owns an italian restaurant with Souray in Montreal.
Sheldon had an outbreak season last year, registering 26 goals and 38 assists in 81 games played with the Canadiens last season. Despite a good offensive outbreak, Souray held a dissapointing -28 rating. The Devils defensive skills may not improve with this acquisition but the teams offense and powerplay will.
More to come.
TNL NOTE: Once again be patient with the announcement, when they will announce it is up to them not us. Details to follow.
July 6th, 2007 at 3:38 pm
All But Announced
LATEST POST ON NHLLINE.CA:
Sources tell The NHL Line that defenceman Sheldon Souray has finally reached an agreement with New Jersey Devils’ GM Lou Lamoriello on roughly a 5-year deal. Stay calm and be paitent because the saga appears to be over, maybe not officially, but according to a source you can now breathe a little easier. Financial terms are not yet known.
July 6th, 2007 at 5:57 pm
Hey Patricia, Your Parrot head found a home with the Laughs, The fire & Ice site has it as a done deal, (The Bergen Record reporter)good for Clemmer, I hope He gets to play.
July 6th, 2007 at 6:01 pm
Shari, look one post below on the blog (=
July 6th, 2007 at 6:15 pm
Oh crap sorry, I was so tied up with the Sheldon situation, before it, I pretty much stopped there.
July 6th, 2007 at 7:54 pm
For the record, NHLline is really not a reliable source. The Souray signing is likey but who knows when it will be done at this point.
NHLline reported Briere to the Habs for quite awhile before it finally came out he wasn’t even close.
July 6th, 2007 at 8:04 pm
Laura,
I know about the history with NHL Line, but on a slow day, what else is there to talk about?
July 6th, 2007 at 8:07 pm
I went to the restaurant owned by Brodeur and Souray and let me tell you after looking at all the pictures of them in the restaurant, he looks much better in a Devils uniform than a habs one…or any other teams for that matter.(I didn’t become a die-hard fanatic until this year so I never saw Souray in a Devils uniform… but what I wouldn’t do to see him on the Devs now.)
Please Sheldon, come back to the NJ!
Don’t go Rasmussen!
Stay put Jim Dowd!
Clemm, Lukowich; you will be missed.
Gomez, Rafalski; YOU GUYS JUST SUCK. Thanks 4 nothing. >:P
And I agree with Kelly - DO NOT MESS WITH ZZPOP!
July 6th, 2007 at 8:22 pm
Eh, not very much. Nonetheless though, they’ve been reporting it for 2 days now. I wish Souray would just sign and get it announced already. Enough is enough with this guy.
July 6th, 2007 at 8:24 pm
If the Rangers stole another player from us I think I’ll explode.
Scott Gomez…When I went to my first devils game, you were the only player I cared about. 9 years later, though Jamie Langenbrunner took your place as my favorite player (since the first time I saw him in a devils uniform), you destroy any and all respect I had for you. And I’m sure for all your other FORMER [devils] fans
Thanks alot, Poo-mez.
Thats what they ought to call him from now on, good one, patricia.
July 6th, 2007 at 9:57 pm
Rags can’t afford Souray, thank god. lol
July 6th, 2007 at 9:59 pm
whoa i saw this pic of souray fighting with darren macarty and it looks like he lost an eye, it’s crazy—> http://www.nypost.com/news/2006photos/photo41.jpg
July 6th, 2007 at 10:13 pm
that’d be funny if Souray was trying to convince lou that he should wear 25 instead of cam, and that’s why it’s so hard for them to agree.
July 6th, 2007 at 10:54 pm
You know I’ve just about had it
July 7th, 2007 at 6:39 am
Dang it Lou, how about some answers?!
July 7th, 2007 at 6:43 am
A coach would be nice right about now, Lou.
July 7th, 2007 at 9:24 am
seriously..i’ve been hopefull…i got home at 12:30 last ngith and was positive he was signed already…nut HELLO??? he was supposed to be signed thursday..then yesterday..and now..there’s nothing new..but who else is he gonna go to? he said he wants to go to a NY based team. the isles juts spent all theri money on guerin and comrie..the rags are gonna have a hard enough time keeping their players..so..the devs..or the sabreS??? some places have san jose as well
July 7th, 2007 at 9:49 am
I just got an e-mail back from Spector, where i asked him about the rumours of Souray and the “proposed” trading of Elias and/Gionta.
He informed me that Souray is most likely to become a Devil BUT!!! he would like to play for the Rags who ARE trying to free up cap space for him and he’s waiting in the hopes of some team giving him more money, if not he’ll settle for NJ! WHOW…. CAN YOU FEEL THE LUV OR WHAT?
Now, the trade rumours revolving around Elias to Vancouver for Ohlund, Morrison and a 1 RD Pick( reported by XM radio(EKLUND WORKS FOR XM) and Team 1040) he says are BULL! plain and simple. Same to be said of Gionta to Buffalo, which is another popular rumour making rounds! While teams such as EDM,MTL,VAN and T.O(YUCK) have made inquires to Lou for Elais and Gionta, at this point Lou has not and will not make them available…..
Hope that sheds some light on the goings on.
DEVILS FAN FOR LIFE,IN THE HEART OF LEAF NATION!
July 7th, 2007 at 11:18 am
I never put much stock in the Elias or Gio rumors, besides Patty’s no move clause, Lou would not have given Him or Gio long term deals,just to trade them. Besides the zz pop’s line they are pretty much all that We have left to put the puck in the net.As far as settling for NJ I hope that is just talk becuase I would hate to think that Lou would pay alot of money for a player that would rather be a Rag, and to be here is just settling, who would want a Guy like that to wear the colors? it’s nice to know there are Dev’s fans in The Heart of Leaf Nation.
July 7th, 2007 at 12:11 pm
What day of the saga are we on? Will this rumor turn into a pumpkin or Souray in a Devils uni? (morph courtesy of Patricia)
July 7th, 2007 at 12:38 pm
Shari i agree with you 1000%, i was excited to hear the Souray could be a Devil, back home where he belongs…. but the longer it takes for him to sign, really is starting to make me wonder if he’s TRUELY a Devil worthy player. Players know you make some cash exceptions to make the whole better than it’s parts. If he’s about the green, he’s not about the BLACK, RED AND WHITE!
As far as Elias goes i know he’s got a no-movement clause, Ohlund has a NTC, but you almost wonder if Elias would want out after losing Raf and Going, Going, Gone GOMEZ! I think Elias wouldn’t, heck not many teams would pony up for a guy with Hep A like Lou did, you’d hope for some loyalty!
So, if you look at the cap situation with the Devil’s sitting @ $41 746 407 and add Souray 5.6, Parise 3.5 and Martin 3.5 you’re @ 54 346 407 million or 4 and change OVER the cap! http://www.nhlscap.com for cap figures!
Who’s the trade bait…..
1.Brylin 1.52
2.Matvichuk 1.368
3.Madden 2.938
4.Gionta 4
5.Elias 6
6.?????
Lou definetly has something on the his mind as he and Jeff(the owner) have said a couple of trades are very likley on top of free agents.
My 2007-08 Devils Line up(barring trades)
1.Elias-Zubrus-Gionta (Langenbrunner-Gionta)
2.Parise-Zajac-Langenbrunner (Bergfors-Langs)
3.Clarkson-Madden-Pandolfo (Viuhkola-Madden)
4.Brylin-Rupp-Tallackson (Pelley-Brylin)
1.Souray-White
2.Rachunek-Martin
3.Greene-Matvichuk (Fraser-Matvichuk)
4.Oduya
1.Brodeur
2.Weekes
Ok, i’m sure if left something to talk about in there, so lets talk!
DEVILS FAN FOR LIFE,IN THE HEART OF LEAF NATION!
July 7th, 2007 at 1:24 pm
Here we go again, Eklund just updated @1:37 pm today.
According to him Souray to SJ is really hot and heavy right now but not to count out MTL or NYI!
He also said that the Vancouver trade with NJ is growing very fast and it now looks like Morrison and Ohlund + other(s) for Elias and White + other(s)!!!!!!
That would suck to lose Elias but to gain Ohlund especially if Souray dosen’t sign would be sweet. I think this is Lou’s fall back in case Souray don’t sign…. honestly Ohlund is better all round than Souray and would make a better Devil!
July 7th, 2007 at 7:27 pm
I can’t believe all the BS about Souray and Elias. There is no way Elias will be traded and I would love to see Souray back in black (and red and white.) Who says nhlline.com is any type of authority or Ecklund or buzzline for that matter? Who are these people. There has been ZERO reported by tsn.ca, the most reliable website for hockey fans (right after 2MA of course!) When tsn has something about Souray going > then I’ll get excited.
July 7th, 2007 at 9:05 pm
Never say never when it comes to trading a player…. if Gretzky can be traded ANYONE can be traded! Regardless of Elias and a no-movement clause IF the player wants to go he’ll go. I agree nhlline.ca is full of it, Ecklund can be iffy and TSN is usually pretty good at reporting although sometimes Sportsnet or The Score will beat them to it!
Personally, i think Souray is just using the NY teams to drive up his price and has no intention of signing with anyone but SJ… unless they back out at the last minute! Sopel would be a good fit here and like i said in my previous post IF we could land Ohlund that would be awesome! Lou also said he will sign @least one more d-man from UFA and then pursue possible trades!
Either way, Lou said a “major shake up” was coming and so far so good! It is fun to speculate what your favorite team might or should do.. don’t you agree?
July 7th, 2007 at 9:45 pm
i don’t know if patty would want to leave..i mean, he just became captain..if he left..who weould wear the C. madden?
July 8th, 2007 at 10:05 am
I don’t remember Lou saying a major shakeup was coming, He said that He would make a move picking up another D man on the market, thru UFA or possibly a trade, but the word shakeup was not used,that I can recall. Whatever happens Your right it is fun speculating on what might happen, and chatting on this site with other hockey lovers does make the off season more fun, and helps get thru the time while we wait for the season to start next season will be interesting to say the least, especially since The Dev’s have to start on the road.
July 8th, 2007 at 7:46 pm
I agree it’s fun to speculate and talk about the Devs. I love watching all the movement in the off season and trying to evaluate which teams will do better next year. I would love to see Souray come back to NJ and I would love to see a number of other players in red and black. The most difficult part of this is that Lou never tips his hand so I think most of these Souray rumours are flat wrong.
July 9th, 2007 at 9:49 am
One thing that we do know is that the Devils will be a different team next season. Although I do not believe the trade speculation about Elias/White, it would not be a bad idea to bring in some younger and newer faces. Hey, everyone loves Elias, but he is injury prone and not getting any younger. Maybe it is time for this change. For a team that is very defensive, I think we should put some serious focus on building that D. Adding some size, defensive ability, and some scoring threat to the D will take more pressure off the O as noted in a previous post. Hey, if a trade is going to take place, it isn’t going to be small name players. You will most likely see Elias or Gionta in the mix. Risk management. If we want some big results we need to take some big risk this offseason. When it is in Lou’s hands you know that it will be well planned, for the betterment of organization, and financially smart. I think I can live with that regardless of who comes and goes.
July 9th, 2007 at 12:14 pm
Forget about Sheldon for the moment…. Lou will get something done.
Our main focus needs to be Parise!!!!!!
July 9th, 2007 at 4:58 pm
NHLline is not full of poo, and you’re an idiot for saying that. How can you discredit a website when nothing has officially been reported as of yet. I mean, your site is great don’t get me wrong on that but i’ve been following this site since they were a blog. Maybe they are backpeddling but c’mon how do you know forsure? They’re reporting what their sources say not what they say so just thought i’d throw this in there.
check these out for yourself:
thenhlline.blogspot.com
nhlline.wordpress.com
nhlrumors2.blogspot.com
and now nhlline.ca
They’ve always been credible to me, you just caught them at a bad time maybe.
July 9th, 2007 at 5:19 pm
I’m so glad that Sheldon is absolutely going to be a Devil, that I can’t contain My self, oh wait did I say Devil? I meant Islander, no I mean Ranger, sorry I meant to say Shark, oops My bad He’s going to play in the Slovakian elite league with Forsberg He will be His winger. Your right that site is poop. Bring on a 6yr Parise deal.
July 9th, 2007 at 6:18 pm
Kyle –
In all fairness, I do not appreciate the way the owner (or at least, Jason, not sure if he’s the owner or not) has been running the site in terms of his readers.
I logged on to see multiple comments by him telling his readers to “get a life” and to stop wasting their time refreshing the screen every five minutes to see if Souray (or any other FA signing for that matter) has signed.
Who is he to tell his readers to get a life? He should be happy that he’s getting tons of views and should embrace each and every one of his faithful readers (of course, discounting those coming merely to bash the site.) Rather, he tells them that they are wasting their time and should easily have better things to do?
That’s weak to me.
July 9th, 2007 at 7:36 pm
Woh, woh, woh, woh back that up. That wasn’t Jason posting that it was someone else pretending to be him. He made it clear to us! Why do you think he shut down the comments for a while, not only because of the immaturity but because people were immitating him. I can see how it gets frustrating and see people believed it was him, like you, that’s why he shut it down quickly.
I am only defending this website because I see it as a reliable one. Now I don’t think he’s the owner, I believe it’s Eric?
Like how professional would that be to say get a life???? No one would do that under their own name at least, lol, you know what I mean? He’s taken this very seriously since when I’ve started following his site.
But for someone like you who’s never followed it before OBVIOUSLY you’re not gonna consider it a credible source at first until they prove them so. And they proved it to me plenty of times. Any site who has something posted before TSN is considered reliable to me
July 9th, 2007 at 7:44 pm
Hey Patricia,
I just thought I’d clear things up. That wasn’t me who posted that comment about telling our viewers to get a life. I understand from your point of view how you may not have been able to tell that but I just thought i’d let you know.
I’m actually part owner of The NHL Line. Eric is founder and creator of it. And to build a decent webpage, we would never want to put down the readers by saying such idiotic immature things. So I did close down the comments temporarily but they re-opened now.
So I hope this doesn’t give you a bad look on our website anymore. Sorry for that.
If you don’t believe this is me i’ll gladly re post this in an email. Thanks.
P.S: What program do you use for all the designs you make in your pictures. Is it Adobe? Because you seem really good at that kind of stuff.
July 9th, 2007 at 8:01 pm
Kyle -
Point taken. I did think it was Jason, and my bad for mistaking the fake between the real. That’s why I moderate my comments — make sure the drivel doesn’t seep through into the actual conversation, you know?
I will post a retraction on 2MA then. Jason, my apologies. My biggest beef was the comments I thought you had made. Oops!
And Jason, I do use Adobe Photoshop. If you ever need any help with anything, feel free to contact me!
July 9th, 2007 at 9:33 pm
wow kyle it must feel great to trying to make other’s feel dumb for their oppinions. If patricia thinks it’s a bad source that doesn’t mean everyone’s gonna think it’s a bad source people do have oppoinions of their own. It’s one thing to defend the website but you sound kinda pompous with your attitude dude.
July 9th, 2007 at 10:55 pm
Patricia, if the Devils really do get Vishnevski (as report by hockeybuzz.com) the door for Souray would be officially closed! Plain and simple, my appologies for my source giving me such up beat information that looked so definite and for you as a Devils fan. They did say it was slowly falling through and it may have but my question to them is were they backpeddling as people say they are?
As much as i trusted this source obviously if the Devils don’t snatch souray my trust in them will decrease. Rumours are rumours though are they not?