[Signing] Devils re-sign Henrique - $24 mil/6 years

[Displaced Flames fan]

New Jerseys best player in the playoffs two years ago. Bargain.

[ricardodw]

Originally Posted by Vinny01

Did the Devils get smaller? They replaced Clarkson with Clowe and Kovy with Jagr. They got worse and are an old team that traded away the 9th pick for a 28 year old and do not have a first in the upcoming draft but they are still a decent team and will surprise people who say they are destined for last in the East

rather than getting smaller (like the Flames did as soon as Feaster took over) the Devils are getting older. Maybe having a team of veterans with the average age well over 30 will work better for the Devils than going small did for the Flames.

[moon]

That is a ton of money for a guy with one decent (not great) season and a whole lot of okay seasons in junior, the AHL and last year.

They better hope that he improves over the next few years and fast or that is going to be a lot of money going to a 3rd line center.

[Jake]

I think it is a good deal. Good young, two-way centre that the Devil's need to hold on to. They are actually pretty good down the middle with Henrique, Zajac, and Loktionov.

The Devil's aren't that old... Tedenby, Josefson, Fayne, and Larsson should all be on the team this year, so when considering that, along their three young C's, and their fairly young goalie, the future may not be as bleak in NJ as some are making it out to be.

[foshizzle11]

Originally Posted by Jake

I think it is a good deal. Good young, two-way centre that the Devil's need to hold on to. They are actually pretty good down the middle with Henrique, Zajac, and Loktionov.

The Devil's aren't that old... Tedenby, Josefson, Fayne, and Larsson should all be on the team this year, so when considering that, along their three young C's, and their fairly young goalie, the future may not be as bleak in NJ as some are making it out to be.

ya, I agree with this. I don't think they will be last at all. It will be interesting to see what happens in the east with these guys. I see Florida, Tampa, Buffalo, and possibly Carolina down at the bottom, below New Jersey IMO.

[Oling_Roachinen]

Originally Posted by Jake

I think it is a good deal. Good young, two-way centre that the Devil's need to hold on to. They are actually pretty good down the middle with Henrique, Zajac, and Loktionov.

The Devil's aren't that old... Tedenby, Josefson, Fayne, and Larsson should all be on the team this year, so when considering that, along their three young C's, and their fairly young goalie, the future may not be as bleak in NJ as some are making it out to be.

I'm firmly in the camp that the Devil's future looks bleak. They've got a new owner, they have Lou, that might be enough to keep them competitive but on the surface:

Their franchise player is 41.
Their captain is 37.
Their leading scorer is 37.
Their big UFA signing is 41.
Their best player is in Russia.

For next season they replaced Kovalchuk and Clarkson with Jagr, Clowe and Ryder and upgraded their goalie situation with Schneider. Zajac rebounding, Larson breaking out and Schneider providing quality goaltending could improve them for this year, but in the next 2 or 3 years when Elias is gone, Brodeur's gone, Zubrus' gone, Zidlicky's gone, Salvador's gone, Green is reaching 34 and Zajac is over 30? These aren't complimentary players, that's a big chunk of their core along with Kovalchuk last year.

They've got, like every team, some decent young players (Henrique etc.) and solid veterans (Clowe etc.) as secondary players but only Larson and Schneider as X factors to become true players to really build around, in my opinion, and they still have a ton to prove. And worst of all they have one of the worst prospect pools in the league with no first the previous or next draft. If there's a GM in the league could make me look like an idiot for saying this it's Lou. But I feel this is shaping up to be a team created through UFA as they try to stay fighting for that bubble playoff spot which sounds familiar.