Huge and exciting overtime win for the Devils to clinch the series against the Rangers. They’re off to face the Kings for the Cup starting Wednesday night, which would have given the Kings eight days off.

I think it’s too much time to “rest” and right where “rust” will set in.

The Devils, with the better regular season record, will have home ice advantage over the Kings in the series, which might be the edge needed to get the Devils over the line.

I went out on a limb to pick the Devils to win the Stanley Cup as part of the Dobber “Expert” Panel from the very beginning and copped a bit of flack, especially from Dobber. So far I’m looking like a genius! I also told him that if the Devils win, I’d fly to his house ring his doorbell to point and laugh. Dobber Nation want to sponsor me a plane ticket so I can rub it in his face?

Here’s how I broke down the series.

One of the differences for me heading into the series was that the Rangers had the edge on the blue-line. However, Marek Zidlicky and Bryce Salvador really stepped up and held their own as they both averaged 23:09 and 21:49 in ice-time respectively during the series. Del Zotto had a great first three games, but both he and Marc Staal were virtually non-existent in the final three contests.
 

With the superstar power status of Ilya Kovalchuk, Zach Parise, Patrik Elias, Travis Zajac and Bryce Salvador, Adam Henrique has been the most “clutch” player for the Devils. He’s registered two series clinching goals (one last night and one against the Panthers) this post-season.

Dominek Hasek, 47-years young, is planning a return to the NHL. As great of a goalie he is, are there going to be any teams willing to give him another shot? Is there even any room for him anymore? There would certainly be a few people out there that would condemn Martin Brodeur for returning back next season even if he wins the cup, what would they think of a Hasek return?

With a decent amount of “youngsters” ready to challenge for a full-time NHL gig, plus Tomas Vokoun, Cristobal Huet, Dwayne Roloson, Antero Niittymaki, Chris Mason, Michael Leighton, Dan Ellis, Jonas Gustavsson, Johan Hedberg, Scott Clemmensen, Alex Auld, Martin Biron, Ty Conklin, Cedrick Desjardins, Andrew Raycroft, Al Montoya, Brent Johnson, Marty Turco, Justin Peters and Brodeur all under UFA status in the off-season, does Hasek even stand a chance given that he couldn’t even land a KHL gig last season?

When teams decided to circumvent the CBA by completing a plethora of popular long-term (10-15 year) contracts to reduce salary cap hit, I was quite indifferent. On one hand, I thought it was an ingenious plan, but on the other I was quite skeptical because they were giving players such a giant “free pass”. The plan looks inventive if things are “going well”, but when things turn sour like a “Jeff Carter, Rick DiPietro or even Roberto Luongo” situation it becomes a massive headache in order to offload such an albatross of a contract. This stickler is exactly the roadblock that’s preventing TB from acquiring Luongo. TB doesn’t need a goalie to hold the fort for the next 10-years, especially one that is as volatile as Luongo. So what does Vancouver do if it can’t find a suitor? Do they bite the bullet a la Dany Heatley and just get whatever they can for him and move on? Or do they hold onto him and hope that he regains his form? Or do they pay him $6.714 mil to play backup to Cory Schneider? What about trading Schneider instead and giving Luongo what he wants? Either way they’re in quite the pickle.

According to the column, it appears that Steve Yzerman is after a “younger” goalie like a Jon Bernier or Anders Lindback instead.

Lots of news regarding the Justin Schultz situation, I echo what Chris Nichols said yesterday, basically best plan of option for him is to wait till July 1 and test the free agency market to see which teams are willing to make him the best offer. Why short change yourself and just take only what Anaheim is willing to offer?

Rick Dudley joins the Habs as an assistant GM to Marc Bergevin. If you look at his previous track record with the Lightning, Panthers and Thrashers, it’s probably not a good sign for Hab fans moving forward.

Last week, I came up with of an alternative to get NHL players “interested” in the WC. The WJHC generated at least $22 mil in profit. We are a nation that lives and breathes hockey! However, what grounds would we stand on if we finish seventh in the Olympics, or continue to careless about the WC tournament? Surely landing gold at the Sochi Olympics which leads into being able to host an Olympic event down the road would generate 10 times that amount in terms of tourism and infrastructure. Vancouverites, did the Olympics make your city better?

The Oilers’ head coach gig is still up in the air. Many think that Brent Sutter is the likely target, while Oilers Nation throws their hat in the ring to nominate Ralph Krueger, and others are recommending Todd Nelson.

I probably wouldn’t recommend the last option. If you look at the recent list of AHL to NHL coaching transitions comparing them to their successes, it doesn’t paint a rosy picture.

At best, you’re essentially 50/50 in landing a coach that will be effective at translating success from the AHL level into the NHL level.

I’d go with someone with tons of experience who has been there and done it before. Jacques Martin (613 career wins), Mike Keenan (672), Marc Crawford (549), Paul Maurice (460) and Ron Wilson (648) would be the guys on the top of my list.

Seems like there is a bit of a power struggle between club president John Davidson and GM Doug Armstrong in St. Louis with the owner stuck in the middle of it. If the Blues’ owner decides to let him go, the Oilers could certainly use someone of his mindset in upper management.

Scott Mellanby is “moving on” to “explore other career opportunities”. He’s always been a favorite of mine, who has always demonstrated strong leadership skills along with a solid work ethic. If he lands a coaching gig in the AHL he could become a Dan Bylsma in a couple of years’ time.

The Wild signed Mikael Granlund to an entry level contract the other day, Mike Russo debates whether Granlund or Charlie Coyle is the Wild’s top prospect. Either way with Granlund, Coyle, Jason Zucker, Jonas Brodin and this year’s seventh overall pick at the entry draft, the Wild could be a very solid team in two year’s time.

Should you be so inclined, follow me on Twitter if you think that my article/tweets are useful.

Henrique's Overtime Scramble goal. 

Beautiful tick-tack-toe passing from the Devils on the PP!

Comments (28)

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messierforlife said:

Hasek Hasek actually was not unsuccessful at landing a KHL gig this past season. He merely engaged in his latest retirement session. In terms of him wanting back in the NHL amongst a litany of other youthful options & UFAs; The Dominator at this stage would not be expecting a guaranteed starters gig. He’d likely settle with the backup role. Recall the 2008 playoffs, when he happily raised the cup over his head as a ‘team guy’ despite being supplanted by Ozzie as the #1 guy well earlier, during the Nashville series. I’m sure that by next fall, now 5 seasons removed from that cup triumph, that he would not have ‘raised’ expectations. He would simply be a complimentary option—and who’s to say that the legend himself could not outduel Joey Mac/Conklyn for the #2 role. I wouldn’t put it past him.

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June 01, 2012
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Rollie1967 said:

Tampa goalies Both Tokarski and Janus will be 23 this Sept.while goalies take longer to develop- the fact they havent had a shot yet, when Roloson and Garon both struggled makes you wonder if Tampa management has much faith in them. Yzerman has even talked about bringing Helenius back to NA. Both goalies are listed at 5ft11, going against the trend of bigger goalies, personally I dont see either as much more than a decent backup, but either way- their window is closing fast- ideally they both would want 15+ games in the NHL next season (and play decently) or theyll be seen as more suspect than prospect. I dont think Tampa wants to take that risk. Id think theyre looking for a goalie capable of playing 50+ games with Garon as the backup for 1 more year- then sliding one of Tokarski/Janus/Helenius as the backup the next year.They could include Garon in a trade- but again only if theyre getting a Luongo. As much as i like Lindback and Bernier- there is still some risk as to whether or not theyre ready to be #1's. If saving $2-3mil is worth that risk (vs Luongo at 5.3) and you have time to possibly allow them a year to really grow into the top spot- then theyre the wiser choice. To a certain extent 2 teams are under the gun- Tampa: because theyre only a few pieces away from contending now,before a good portion of their players get much older. Toronto: getting a proven goalie might save Burke (i dont see him lasting if they dont make the playoffs). whether Luongo has the right mental makeup to survive in Toronto is big ? for me- but younger goalies can be just as suspect. Out of curiosity....if Luongo was a UFA this year- what do you think he would command? I would think he would get more than his current 5.3 caphit- and 7-8yrs wouldnt be out of the question. One thing that may determine where he goes..the capfloor will be rising and there isnt much out there UFA wise, so Im sure there will be some large overpays.

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May 27, 2012
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letnry said:

	... Active, I said active! Haha.
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May 27, 2012
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Gotlaid said:

Recent choices Yeah definitely get where you're coming from. Crawford has only been out a year. Maurice still coached this year... Martin still coached this year, Wilson also coached this year, so these guys haven't been "out of it" for long periods. You might nix Keenan off the list... I would be very annoyed if they went with a Nelson or Krueger and the Oilers still played disorganized hockey for another season and had to replace them during/after next season... and we'd get back to square one.

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May 26, 2012
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repenttokyo said:

	i like the chances of more recent choices i just don't like the ones that have sat on the shelf for a long time, you know?
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May 26, 2012
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Ryan Ma said:

Old coaches Definitely, but is it any worst than going with an young inexperienced AHL coach? I've seen a lot of Paul MacLean, Scotty Arniel and Scott Gordon... who have come in and just get absolutely destroyed... I am cherry picking my coaches, but I mean you look at the recycled coaches like Hitchcock, Boudreau, Laviolette, Sutter, DeBeor, Babcock, Carlyle, aren't they experiencing a bit more success than an AHL coach coming in and taking over the reigns of an NHL club? You look at Phoenix, they'd be relocated if it wasn't for Tippett, IMO. Everyone said, oh the Hitchcock and Tippett are dinosaurs in a computer age, they have no place in this "new" NHL anymore... well what can we say about them now? I'm not saying Crawford, Maurice, Martin, Keenan, Wilson will be as effective as Tippet or Hitch... but what I'm saying is I don't think they're a worst option if they were selected over a Krueger or Nelson. Yes old hands might not necessarily repeat what they have done in the past, but why not give them a shot and see what happens. I mean the Blues gave Hitch a shot... The Coyotes gave Tippett a shot, the Kings gave Sutter a shot... why not the Oilers?

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May 26, 2012
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Ryan Ma said:

Luongo Rollie, You've also got to look at the flip side too, he's got a massive 10-year contract. That's what's the kicker. If it's for 2-3 years, teams would be jumping left right and center for his services, but for 10 that's when teams will shy away. How good will he be when he's 35+? Brodeur has had tons of accolades, but at 35+ a lot of people are questioning his ability... Imagine Luongo making $6.7 mil and he still hasn't won a cup... You also have to keep in mind that $6.7 is about 10% of the cap too... If you can get someone cheapish $2 or 1 mil to hold down the fort and get the exact same job done you're in much better financial position than if you spent 10% of the cap on your goalie. Look at Nsh, Rinne cost them $3.4 mil, which gave them much more flexibility to spend the money elsewhere. He jumps to $7 mil then season, and the sacrifice will be Suter... Wsh is another example, none of their goalies made more than $1.5 mil, which meant they could spend their money beefing up the rest of the team... LA as well... You invest too much in your goalie and the rest of the team will suffer. It's not that I don't like Luongo, he's a great goalie, but when you said he's less riskier than going with a young guy I would argue that tooth and nail... With those young guys, if they flop you have an out clause in 2-3 years. You look for plan B. If you happen to strike gold then your set. However if you take a leap of faith in Luongo you take a 10-year leap of faith on him... Also I think you're short changing Tokarski a bit. He's 8-2-0 with a 1.65 GAA and .939 SP in the AHL playoffs this year. Janus is 3-1-0 with a 1.69 and .937. Tokarski reminds me a lot of the Cam Ward, Braden Holtby mould and could very well be an impact goalie fairly soon. You go after Luongo and you're essentially saying we don't need you any more to Tokarski. Or you could get into the exact same situation in Vancouver where you get a Schneider/Luongo showdown once again... What do you do then? Deal Tokarski? Move Luongo who's a year or two older, but still has a 8 year contract remaining? Schultz - agreed... he gets to pick and choose his destination so the Ducks better wow the crap outta him if they want to keep him. Oilers - Just tossing names out there, I don't know if they'd be worst off if they went with one of those guys than a rookie coach with minimal experience... #justsaying Davidson - From that article it appears that Davidson is the one out... But you are right he can essentially pick and choose where to go and he'd do a great job with it. I respect guys with great minds and great decision making processes. I would love to see him in Edmonton, but you're right Tambo would essentially be stepping aside and handing him the job if he did. But that would depend on Katz on whether he could convince Davidson to join the Oil.

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May 26, 2012
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repenttokyo said:

	the thing is.... those coaches are unemployed / have been unemployed for a long time for various reasons. past success is not a guarantee of future results particularly as the league moves forward and evolves. old hands aren't necessarily going to be able to repeat their past performances.
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May 26, 2012
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Ryan Ma said:

	Lentry Most attractive as it I'm the best looking? Well you're pitting me up against Dobber... That's not stiff competition to be honest... But thanks for the positive comments, I appreciate it!
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May 26, 2012
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Ryan Ma said:

AHL to NHL coaches I was just making a general statement in which most NHL teams try to attempt, but what I'm arguing is that it's a flawed system to begin with. Most NHL teams bank on changing the coach to solve all of their problems, but it's as you highlighted that in many cases it's actually the players that need changing not the coach... It's generally not the players that get the chopping block it's the coaches. If you look at the Oilers situation, Renney is the one that got the chop not Hall, not Eberle, not Hemsky, not Horcoff, not Smyth... Renney. So when you say AHL coaches are brought into losing franchises, I would argue isn't Edmonton a losing franchise? When would an AHL coach be brought into a winning franchise? It just doesn't happen... What I'm saying is that most teams adopt a change by progression... assistant coach somewhere, go and head coach the minor team, then when there is a vacancy they get promoted to the big league job... There have been quite a few examples of this exact same scenario. The problem for me is that rarely has it turned into gold. For every 1 success there has been 10 failures... Yet teams will go to the well time after time trying to hit gold. What I don't understand is why not go with a coach that's been there done it before. I mean you look at your Keenan, Crawford, Martin, Maurice... they have the pedigree of winning tons of hockey games, so why roll the dice with someone who doesn't have the same pedigree. I can understand maybe an AHL coach that's coached for 10+ years, but going with a freshy that's coached maybe 1 or 2 seasons in the AHL then putting them into an NHL situation is almost setting them up for failure isn't it? You could argue that my analysis is flawed or needs to contain a more factors in order to draw conclusive findings... but at the end of the day, there isn't a lot of evidence to show me that going down the AHL route is the most effective way of turning around a franchise.

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May 26, 2012
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Gotlaid said:

	Hasek Yeah I dunno what he's thinking... There's just too much competition these days. There so many younger and more athletic guys available that I don't think Hasek will have a shot at all.
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May 26, 2012
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Gotlaid said:

	Philips Yeah after looking at hockeysfuture his name did look attractive. The only thing is with Koivu, Heatley, Seto, plus Granlund and Coyle... I don't know where Philips would fit in the top-six... But definitely could be an impact player a couple of years down the road.
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May 26, 2012
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Rollie1967 said:

... Luongo has to regain his form? if a .919 SP is a bad year- than Id take the risk! Thats a smaller risk than saying Harding will stay healthy, that Lindback will be a true #1 without Suter/Weber infront of him, or that Bernier is ready. With Vinnie,Marty,Malone,Brewer all on the wrong side of 30, winning now is their best option. Luongo gives them the best shot at that, and his contract is really only for 7 years- as the last 3 are very small dollars. His cap hit is the 8th highest for goalies, and could drop further when Price resigns. The only way they trade Schneider is if his salary demands skyrocket or he refuses to sign with them. For Tampa- anything is better than Roloson, even trying Hasek for a year at minimal cost would be better.Not sure why you said that Tampa doesnt need a goalie for 10yrs though- even if they draft a future #1 star this year- most likely theyre going to be 3yrs minimum away from starting (more likely 4/5). Their current goalie prospects arent considered top notch (Helenius,Tokarski,Janus) Justin Schultz as others pointed out, only gets to chose who he plays for- the $ is limited by the CBA, not sure why he doesnt like Anaheim- but its his choice. Sucks for the Ducks though. I cant see the Oil hiring any of Crawford,Keenan,Wilson ever! none exactly known for working well with young players. As for the power struggle in St.Louis- which one is more likely to lose out? Davidson? If so, I would think he could pick/chose who/where he ends up- but I doubt he would play 2nd fiddle to Tambellini- and Tambs would be a fool to hire him- unless he wants to give the owner an easy decision to replace him.

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May 26, 2012
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letnry said:

	... Ryan, you are easily the most active writer here that follows up extensively in the comments. I for one, really appreciate that!! I obviously enjoy your ramblings as well. Keep it up.
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May 26, 2012
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repenttokyo said:

flawed analysis on AHL to NHL coaching success what you didn't mention was that coaching changes do not occur with successful teams. AHL coaches are almost always brought in because the NHL franchise is losing. Sometimes, the coaching change has no effect because it's the players, not the coach, that was the problem. I think a more in-depth look at the success rate of AHL coaches that controls for more factors is in order before any conclusions are drawn.

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May 26, 2012
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bullwinkle said:

	Hasek Is this guy suffering from Alzheimer's already? He wants to play for Buffalo, Detroit, or Tampa Bay. Good luck with that. Call me crazy, but somehow I think that guys like Miller, Howard, and even Roloson are preferable.
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May 26, 2012
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shovelguy said:

Schultz While Justin Schultz is making himself a UFA, he will still be limitted to how much money he can make. I believe the best offer he can sign is 2 years at $900,000 no matter what and his bonuses are limited to as well. The only advantage he is edging towards is signing in a city he wants to play in. And any one of us would do the same. As for the Oiler head coach, it's a four man race between Sutter, Krueger, Nelson, and Maurice. Forget everyone else.

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May 26, 2012
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mabus said:

	... Awesome ramblings again Ryan. Keep up the good work.
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May 26, 2012
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Southpaw20 said:

Minny in 2 Years Don't forget to give some love to Minny's second 1st rounder last year Zack Phillips (good ol New Brunswick boy). Looked good at times during the Mem Cup action this past week. Great vision and seemed to be the only guy that could deal with Chaput (Shawinigan) at the draws last night. But yes getting him there in 2 years could be a stretch compared to the arsenal of prospects coming through the system. Great read today Ma!

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May 26, 2012
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Ryan Ma said:

Oilers Coach Just tossing a few names out there... I'm not a fan of Sutter just cause I haven't seen a lot of success from him. He had a decent team with the Flames and missed the playoffs for 3 consecutive seasons. I dunno if any other coach would have got them in instead, but still to me a good coach gets their team in no matter what situation... Also I don't know why there's so much fanfare with the Sutter's to begin with. I think it's mainly because of the Alberta-Red Deer factor, but other than that there isn't really a solid basis to say that he's a better candidate than any of the other coaches I listed. Martin - I'm indifferent about... He's the type of guy that if he has the right young pieces can get them into the playoffs, but I dunno if he's a Stanley Cup winning type of coach... He had the young kids of Spezz, Alfy, Heater and couldn't get it done, which kinda scares me what he would do with Eberle, RNH, Hall and probably Yakupov... He completely flopped with a young Panthers team. He got a young Habs team into the playoffs, and had a bit of a run, but I dunno if he could have won a cup... Maurice - same type of deal. He seems like a coach that's very player friendly, but I don't know if he holds them with enough accountability. He'd be very similar to Renney IMO. To be fair I don't think anyone of those guys would give me complete confidence at the moment. They're almost better off finding a stopgap and waiting for a Trotz/Ruff to be fired then snagging them up.

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May 26, 2012
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Ryan Ma said:

Dudley The thing is he won't have full control cause he'll be working under Bergevin. The question is how much does he influence the decision-making processes that goes on in Montreal. Keep in mind when he was with Atlanta he was under Don Waddell as well, so we don't really know if it was Waddell that selected those guys or was it Dudley. Same could be said with Toews and Kane. Was that Tallon or Dudley? The positive is that in the article they did mention how hard of a worker he was and how much hockey Dudley watches, so I guess we'll just have to wait to see how effective the team of Bergevin and Dudley are in the hockey hotbed of Montreal.

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May 26, 2012
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Ryan Ma said:

Krueger His pedigree could be interesting but I'm a bread and butter type of guy. I like guys who have done it in the past and I know could do a good job if given the reigns. If you kinda look at the Blues with Hitch, Kings with Sutter, Devils with DeBeor, Leafs with Carlyle, Ducks with Boudreau, you're kinda looking at a recycling of coaches now rather than freshies out of the AHL. I just think if you go with an unknown quantity, who knows what you're going to get? Are you gonna get a Arniel or do you land a Bylsma? Just too 50/50 for me.

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May 26, 2012
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Gotlaid said:

Kreider I think he goes to the Jackets to be honest... I'll have more in tomorrow's ramblings. I think he goes to Clb with Dubinsky and a first for Nash... Kreider is a big boy and those guys generally take a few years to develop properly... I could see him stagnate for the next couple of years then get better when he hits 25ish... Keep in mind we haven't really seen a whole lot of Kreider at the moment, and I'm only basing my judgement on these playoffs... I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing, but he reminds me a lot of a younger Penner when he was with the Ducks. Getting in on the play every once in a while, but in other games he completely disappears. I don't see him as a anything more than a 65 pointer. With that said I'm not the best at looking to prospects. I generally just go by what's being done on a fantasy level and reading trends that way. From what I've seen these playoffs, I'd move him since his fantasy value is sky-high at the moment. I'd cash in if you have a great deal on the table.

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May 26, 2012
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Jethro said:

	Justin Schultz I don't understand how he is getting away with this. He gets drafted, goes off to school and gets an education, becomes a UFA, and then sign for the most money or with any team he wants. What's stopping every kid out there from doing the same?
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May 26, 2012
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slufoot said:

	Oilers coach There should only be 3 candidates: Sutter, Martin, Maurice. In that order. Bringing back Renney would have been better than any other options.
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May 26, 2012
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slufoot said:

Dudley Not sure you can say his arrival is not a good sin for Habs fans. The last 4 1st round picks he's had input on were Burmistrov, E.Kane, P.Kane, Toews. He had a few bad darfts in TB when he was gambling on Russians - but he virtually stole Dan Boyle. And nobody in their right mind would have argued Bouwmeester was a bad top-3 pick at the time - that was as no-brainer as they come. Hindsight is 20-20. The Habs need some experienced, knowledgeable hockey people in charge for a change. Dudley is that.

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May 26, 2012
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Shoeless said:

	Profile of Ralph Krueger http://blogs.edmontonjournal.c...h-krueger/ At the bottome of this article are links to several other profiles of candidates for the job.
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May 26, 2012
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iggyformayor said:

	David Putty is painting his face for sure... Gotta support the team... Bad pinch by Callahan facilitated the beauty tic tac toe. Hey Ma Bear where do you see Kreider's upside for next year and in keeper leagues?
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May 26, 2012
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