Lamoriello Asleep at the Wheel?

This was a thread posted on ESPN.com's New Jersey Devils message board last Friday. The contents of the thread are not as important as the title, but a few points within there make sense.

On Friday, the Devils made two trade and not one player was involved. First, the Devils traded their 1st round, 21st overall draft pick to the Washington Capitals for their 1st round pick, 23rd overall, and a 2nd round pick, 54th overall. Lou Lamoriello then took his new spot in the first round and shipped it to the Wild for their pick, 24th overall and a 3rd round selection in next year's draft. Two moves made and the Devils managed to get an extra two draft picks out of making it.

To some, this may seem like a great decision. I see this, however, as being an early indication of our team's complete lack of a true game plan. Now I do not know when the trades were mead in relation to the actual time in the draft, but it feels like Lamoriello was just trying to buy himself more time because he did not know who to go after in the Draft.

Their first selection, Mattias Tedenby, is a Swedish born player who was ranked third among European born players, according to newjerseydevils.com. The 5'10" 176 pound Tedenby has drawn comparisons to Montreal Canadiens captain Saku Koivu because of his ability to take a hit and keep on going. The Devils needed a goaltending prospect badly to begin grooming to take over Martin Brodeur's role when he hangs up his skates in the [hopefully not too near] future. They made two trades, not one of which addressed this need, nor put them in a position to address the need.

Also, a few decent players were available through trades, and neither avenue were pursued. Olli Jokinen, for example, was acquired for a 2nd line player, a 3rd-4th defenseman and a draft pick. Are you trying to tell me that Lamoriello, who has dangled Brian Gionta's name like a pinata at a birthday party, could not come up with a viable trade? I find this concerning because five years ago, he was able to pull off a deal with the Anahiem Ducks that by acquiring Jeff Freisen and Oleg Tverdovsky, helped deliver the Devils their third cup.

Thefourthperiod.com is reporting the the Devils are STILL undecided about what to do with veteran winger Sergei Brylin. The Devils' season ended almost two months ago, and Brylin is not the only veteran who should be returning who has not been re-signed. Jay Pandolfo is also without a contract as are many of the Devils' free agents except for little-used defensemen Mike Mottau and Sheldon Brookbank. Its not Brookbank that bothers me as much as Mottau. The former Rangers castoff had a mediocre season with the Devils last year. In the few games I was able to see him play in, he looked lost and opposing teams took advantage of it.

The Devils traditionally run a tight ship, so to hear few rumors about their potential moves is not something new. But to have them stall and delay because of a lack of a clean cut game plan is completely new. I hope that these blips on the radar are simply being over analyzed and that they are not a clear indicator of the off season to come. July 1st is rapidly approaching, offers have not been made to key veterans who need to be retained. They messed up at the trading deadling by not addressing the Devils' glaring need for a scorer, they in my opinion, messed up the Draft by not acquiring a goaltending prospect or an NHL ready scorer. If nothing significant is done this off season, that would be strike three in my book and I truly will have lost faith in our once great leader.

Bye-Bye Brylin?

According to the Newark Star Ledger, the Devils and Sergei Brylin have hit an impasse in contract talks. Brylin, who has been a member of the Devils since being drafted in the 2nd round in 1992, has a player option for next season but would like a multi-year extension for job security.

However, at 34, it will be a risky move to guarantee a lengthy contract to him, even though he is one of the two remaining players to have won 3 cups with the Devils [Martin Brodeur being the other].

During the 1994-95 season while the NHL was in their first major lockout, Brylin got is first work in America, playing with the Devils former affiliate, Albany River Rats, logging 63 games before playing the remaining 26 regular season games with the Devils. He played 12 of the Devils’ 20 playoff games before hoisting his and the team’s first Stanley Cup. Ever since that first season, Brylin has given the devils a reliable two-way forward, excelling more at the defensive aspect than offensive.

For the past 4 seasons, Brylin has not missed a single regular season game. Last season, Brylin saw his point total fall to over half is 06-07 total of 40. Scoring only 6 goals and having 10 assists, it is not difficult to understand why Brylin was relegated to the 4th line towards the endpoint of the 07-08 season. His place on the checking line was taken over by emerging forward David Clarkson.

Brylin, who is one of the smallest forwards on the Devils, listed at 5’10” he is taller than only Brian Gionta who stands at 5’7” - 5’9”, depending on which resource you look at. His heart can never be questioned as he continuously shadowed some of the league’s best alongside Jay Pandolfo and John Madden. Brylin also gave the Devils a quiet, yet focused leader. His experienced is rivaled only by Brodeur, as the two have seen the team’s rise to success and maintaining the pinnacle of their performance for nearly a decade, achieving 3 Stanley Cups in 4 appearances in the finals.

If Brylin elects to not exercise his player option for next season, I do not know if he would be able to find work elsewhere in the NHL.

I, for one, would be sad to see Brylin leave, as he has been with the team for almost as long as I have been following the Devils and hockey. I wish him nothing but the best, and hope for at least one more year.