we should have beat them. Do i think we would have beat either or both flyers or rangers...no. I hope we get some more respect we were BY FAR the devils most formidable opponent heretofore.
That's the first thought that went through my head knowing that we went to 7 games and double overtime against the Eastern Conference Champions. I can't help but be damn proud of the Panthers now knowing that. Some people are still extremely bitter against the Devils thinking "That should be us!," but I really did not see us beating the Flyers or Rangers. I think the Devils are a better team than we saw in that 1st round and with them reaching the Cup now shows it.
not to rain on any parades but the devils are playing better hockey right now than most of the 1st round. that 1st series was just wonky. without great goaltending and nearly unbelievable PP success, we'd have been destroyed. they were the better team in that series and they were just getting their footing. so while i too have mentioned this to my wife, it doesn't really give me a warm fuzzy feeling.
this series felt much more like playoff hockey and i'd bet anything most of the players wouldn't hesitate to say it was the more difficult series.
not to rain on any parades but the devils are playing better hockey right now than most of the 1st round. that 1st series was just wonky. without great goaltending and nearly unbelievable PP success, we'd have been destroyed. they were the better team in that series and they were just getting their footing. so while i too have mentioned this to my wife, it doesn't really give me a warm fuzzy feeling.
this series felt much more like playoff hockey and i'd bet anything most of the players wouldn't hesitate to say it was the more difficult series.
There are quotes from DeBoer and Brodeur in the playoff thread about how they thought we were a really tough team to play against, for what it's worth.
we should have beat them. Do i think we would have beat either or both flyers or rangers...no. I hope we get some more respect we were BY FAR the devils most formidable opponent heretofore.
This. The Devils is a great team, but we could and should have finished them off when we were up 3-2 in games. Losing twice in OT hurt, and just think of what could have happened if we beat them.
Henrique is so clutch, game 7 double OT and now this. Pretty amazing for a 22 year old.
Not sure who to cheer for in the final, I might actually cheer for the Devils, even though I despise their fans with all my heart.
FWIW, honestly in a weird sort of way, I dont think the Devils would be where they are if not for the Florida Panthers.
Sort of one of those "dont know what you've got till' it's gone" sort of things, but I dont think the Devils appreciated how special the playoffs are until Florida nearly killed their season. But once the Devils survived not one, but two, elimination games, I really think that that JARRED them into realizing how special the NHL postseason is. Since then, they've been killers, 3-0 when given the chance to end a team's season.
Also, yesterday Martin Brodeur had some pretty glowing comments for the Panthers' organization (on the F&I blog if you care to read it).
We went 7 with the Devils because the Cats are a good team. Not to mention, the Devils are also always the luckiest team in the league. Ive never seen so many posts at big times, someone swiping at the puck to an empty night and missing the puck completely, so many non-calls and so many blind saves. Its been this way for a long time with the Devils but no one realizes it. If you dont believe me, just pay extra attention those things while watching them and you'll see. They are just a slightly above average team who plays with a 10 minute spurt where they get some goals and then get outplayed the rest of the game.
I am sick to my stomach that bum Deboer and that ********* Kovalchuk are in the Cup Finals. The Kings need to continue to stay red hot for one more series, but because the Devils always have so much luck on their side, I guarantee they get a Kings team who plays and looks like an 8 seed and they make the Devils look good. Lets go Kings!!
Last edited by NJ_CATS_FAN: 05-26-2012 at 03:30 PM.
We went 7 with the Devils because the Cats are a good team. Not to mention, the Devils are also always the luckiest team in the league. Ive never seen so many posts at big times, someone swiping at the puck to an empty night and missing the puck completely, so many non-calls and so many blind saves. Its been this way for a long time with the Devils but no one realizes it. If you dont believe me, just pay extra attention those things while watching them and you'll see. They are just a slightly above average team who plays with a 10 minute spurt where they get some goals and then get outplayed the rest of the game.
I am sick to my stomach that bum Deboer and that doucheback Kovalchuk are in the Cup Finals. The Kings need to continue to stay red hot for one more series, but because the Devils always have so much luck on their side, I guarantee they get a Kings team who plays and looks like an 8 seed and they make the Devils look good. Lets go Kings!!
Not to be confrontational, but why do you hate Kovy so much? Is it dating back to the ATL days?
There are quotes from DeBoer and Brodeur in the playoff thread about how they thought we were a really tough team to play against, for what it's worth.
what would you expect them to say? teams say that at the end of every series. the truth is their biggest foe in that first series was the NJ devils. do you think, honestly, we looked like a tough team to play against? i don't. they pushed us around most of the time 5v5. and that wasn't saying much - we were slow, sloppy and unassertive. i didn't feel like i was watching playoff hockey until the 3rd period of game 7. and that's a comment on both team's play. granted, that 3rd period and 2 OTs were special. you just have to wonder where that compete level was most of the season and series.
Quote:
Originally Posted by BenedictGomez
FWIW, honestly in a weird sort of way, I dont think the Devils would be where they are if not for the Florida Panthers.
Sort of one of those "dont know what you've got till' it's gone" sort of things, but I dont think the Devils appreciated how special the playoffs are until Florida nearly killed their season. But once the Devils survived not one, but two, elimination games, I really think that that JARRED them into realizing how special the NHL postseason is. Since then, they've been killers, 3-0 when given the chance to end a team's season.
Also, yesterday Martin Brodeur had some pretty glowing comments for the Panthers' organization (on the F&I blog if you care to read it).
i do agree with this. i think the FL series was just hard enough. even down 3-2 i didn't feel like the devils were sweating much. they knew they stood a good chance if they could just put together a couple of games without all of the penalties and a slightly more cohesive team effort. and they did. still, like in many series, the difference between winning and losing isn't all that much and, given their play, they were certainly lucky to get through to the 2nd round. it seemed like after they finished that series their confidence spiked and they also realized they could make things a lot easier on themselves.
There is so much parity in the NHL now, thanks salary cap, that teams that make the playoffs are always going to be competitive. LA just beat the 1,2 and 3 seed. It's great for hockey.
We probably should have won that series but we were done in by injuries. We had two chances to close that series out on one shot and we couldn't.
We would have lost to Philly and had no chance with Flash, Bergie, and Versteeg hurt to make any type of run. And to be fair, Kovy was definitely playing hurt. You can see how much more jump he has now.
If somehow we could have gotten off to better starts in games and the beginnings of periods we would have won that series. The Devils now how to start periods.
what would you expect them to say? teams say that at the end of every series.
Except that the Devils are still saying it now.
For whatever reason, we were a much bigger test for them than the Flyers. And we took them farther than the Rangers.
You can say the PP #'s were an anamoly (and really, to be fair, they were), but you can't fully discredit our execution on those PP's either that kept us in games and in the series.
We gave them a series. 7 games and it took 2 OT's in the 7th game to beat us.
If it was simply the Devils beating themselves, they sure did do a good job considering they very well could've lost that series. It actually took a fluke goal in double OT of game 7 to win it.
Their hall of fame goalie and their coach don't seem to think what you think.
It's one thing to say "hey, good series but you still lost" right after a series; it's another thing to say it months later. We clearly earned their respect, whether you agree with it or not.
There is so much parity in the NHL now, thanks salary cap, that teams that make the playoffs are always going to be competitive. LA just beat the 1,2 and 3 seed. It's great for hockey.
We probably should have won that series but we were done in by injuries. We had two chances to close that series out on one shot and we couldn't.
We would have lost to Philly and had no chance with Flash, Bergie, and Versteeg hurt to make any type of run. And to be fair, Kovy was definitely playing hurt. You can see how much more jump he has now.
If somehow we could have gotten off to better starts in games and the beginnings of periods we would have won that series. The Devils now how to start periods.
I don't see how that can be proven, honestly.
If there's one thing these playoffs have proven, it's what I said before they started when everyone wanted the Devils instead of the Rangers.
The NHL playoffs are unpredictable.
The Stanley Cup Finals = 6th seed in the East against 8th seed in the West.
Not to be confrontational, but why do you hate Kovy so much? Is it dating back to the ATL days?
Ive just never liked him. Hes a one way player, a puck hog, a floater, I just dont like him, even back in the Atlanta days. There is just an aura around him that I just cant stand.
Ive just never liked him. Hes a one way player, a puck hog, a floater, I just dont like him, even back in the Atlanta days. There is just an aura around him that I just cant stand.
