This was one rough week to be a Devils fan.  Halfway to my preseason goal of seeing eight games in person already, with an away game the night before Thanksgiving to come, I’d like to say I’m happy with my team.  I’d also like to say that I’m dating a Playboy centerfold.  Neither statement would be anywhere near the truth of the matter.  The real truth is that for the first time in many years, I’ve had the displeasure of watching the team play horribly with no real confidence that it’s going to get better.  If someone were to make a movie of the games I saw in person this week, the consecutive losses to the hated Rangers and the annoying Islanders would be titled “The Apathy and the Incompetence”.

It is bad enough to lose to the Rangers at home or any other time for that matter.  Rangers fans tend to be among the most obnoxious fans to be found of any team in any sport.  And that’s when their team isn’t very good.  But for the Devils to play with such apathy, such an utter lack of urgency, is beyond forgiveness.  A goal by the returning Jamie Langenbrunner, seemingly right after the puck dropped, gave a promising portent for the night that was to come.  Four Rangers goals later, it was simply a distant memory.  The Devils were out-hustled, out-hit, out-played, and out of excuses.  For some reason beyond my understanding, they showed zero signs of life until after the fourth Rangers goal.  By that time, there was more fight in the stands than any displayed on the ice.  Sadly, that was also between Devils fans.

Follow that game up with Friday’s game against the Islanders where the Devils showed much more energy but also a startling amount of incompetence and you have a miserable end to a week that began with a win on the road in Pittsburgh.  That win had me hopeful for the game I’ll be seeing in person on Wednesday, also in Pittsburgh.  After the final buzzer had sounded last night, hope was gone.  The only saving grace after the 1-0 final was that the Islanders fans were a heck of a lot more interested in simply cheering their team and gawking in awe at the Rock than causing trouble.  I guess years of also playing second fiddle to the Rangers made them conscious of our pain.  Maybe not, but I’ll go with it anyway.

Now, I’m nobody’s idea of a hockey genius.  I’ve never played on game on ice or even roller skates.  I’ve played some fraternity league floor hockey and some goalie in a roller league where I didn’t have to skate.  Heck, it wasn’t until my college years that I got to watch hockey regularly on TV as I didn’t have cable growing up.  That being said, there’s a number things I was pretty sure I knew about hockey.

1. I’m pretty damn sure that you need to be able to skate without falling down.

2. I’m also pretty damn sure that you need to actually have the hockey stick in your hands to be able to use it.

3. As a wise man once said, “Statistically 100% of the shots you don’t take don’t go in”.  That wise man would be Wayne Gretzky, the greatest goal scorer the game has ever known.

4. It does help when those shots are actually on goal.

5. The other team as a general rule are not going to check themselves.

6. You can’t score through the back of the net.

7. Passing from behind the goal to someone in front is a heck of a lot easier when someone from your own team is actually there.

8. The smallest guy on your team, someone I’d look down at even while he’s on skates and I’m in sneakers, shouldn’t be the only guy willing to be the one in front of the goal.

9. Crashing the net tends to lead to goals, not moving violations.

10. Your goalie being the best passer in evidence is a very bad thing.

Am I being unnecessarily harsh on my own team?  Given that I’m an optimist by nature, always wanting to find the best in everything, the silver lining in dark times, I’d say that their performance has warranted this harshness.

It’s a pretty sad thing that after attending four games, I have enjoyed a larger number of distinct beers at the Rock (8) than I’ve seen Devils goals (6).  Given that there are still a number of premium beers at the Rock that I haven’t yet had, the Devils are going to need to score quite a bit in my next couple of games to catch up.

Maybe they’ll turn it around with a win against the Flyers tonight.  Maybe they’ll continue it with a win in Pittsburgh on Wednesday while I’m in attendance.  It’s even possible that should they do so, I’ll forgive them for the mostly putrid performances I’ve been subjected to thus far.

If not, I do believe I have found the silver lining.  I’ll be sitting in the first row on Wednesday in Pittsburgh.  Plenty close enough to make sure they hear my displeasure.

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