The Fifth Liners

This week it was out with the old and in with the new this week in the state of Springsteen as New Jersey Devils sacked head coach Peter DeBoer and swiftly replaced with him former Capitals coach Adam Oates and former captain Scott Stevens . A storm of controversy soon followed as the Caps protested that NJ should have asked permission first, but the matter was quickly settled with the minimum of fuss. After leading the Devils to an unlikely Stanley Cup final appearence in 2012, DeBoer has struggled to bring consistency to his aging side and has left his side seventh overall in the Eastern Conference and over nine points adrift from the wild card slot! In his four years as coach, De Boer only registered a solitary playoff appearance. But his sacking doesn't appear to be been solely based on results. Since the departure of stars Zach Parise and Ilya Kovalchuk , New Jersey has failed to replacement them with a consistent goal scorer. This season in particular has been a pretty...

Ever since Brett Hull's controversial goal to win the 1999 Stanley Cup against the Buffalo Sabres, fans in Texas have had a very up and down ride supporting the Dallas Stars ! But this season has held an even bigger shock, a rebuilt team that looks like it has the potential to shape into something special! Last years performance was neither glorious nor disastrous as Dallas came home 11th in the Western Conference and 5th in the Pacific Division, but their season was disrupted by the trade of Captain Brenden Morrow to Pittsburgh and Jaromir Jagr to Boston which deprived the team of their two biggest scorers and ensured they limped home to the finish! Tired with the lack of progress, former Stars hall of famer Joe Nieuwendyk was given the boot as GM and replaced by Jim Nill. But the off season however gave this team a major shot in the arm as Canadian National Team coach Lindy Ruff took control and offensively a well played out trade got many critics interested in this team as T...

At 41 years old, NHL great Jaromir Jagr shows no signs of slowing down and his selection in the Czech Republic Olympic team just demonstrates his versatility and after leading his side to the gold medal in the 1998 Nagano Olympics, you can count chickens that he will be one leading stars in this tournament proving that age comes before beauty! Recently while playing for New Jersey, Jagr has now surpassed Steve Yzerman to go seventh overall in the all time goals scored within incredible an 687, his plus his 1391 NHL games played for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals, New York Rangers, Dallas Stars, Philadelphia Flyers, Boston Bruins and recently New Jersey Devils make him the face of modern experience ! At this rate it wouldn't be a shock to see him included in 2018 Olympics in Pyeongchang, Korea! Here is tribute to the great man!

The great state of New Jersey maybe have brought us the music of Bruce Springsteen but right now the New Jersey Devils are starting to dwindle! After a glorious period from 1995 to 2003 which included 3 cup wins, the Devils have only been the finals once since in 2012 when they lost in six games to the LA Kings. Last season they finished only 11th in the Eastern conference and the seasons only real highlight was Martin Brodeur being selected for the new NHL 14 cover! Problem with this team is the key elements that them such a threat are either long gone or about to leave, missing are the days of the tough defensive pair of Scott Stevens and Scott Neidermeyer. Right now NJ doesn't have that back line that makes a difference and with Brodeur now 40 and seemingly on the verge of ending his great career, it seems that their fail safe options are thinning out! So should this team look to the future? Well right those options are looking scarce, kid wonder Zach Parise bolted to Minnes...

All eyes were on Cory Schneider last night as he made his hotly anticipated return to the Rogers Arena with his new side the New Jersey Devils against the team that traded him the Vancouver Canucks . But it was the British Columbia side who got the last laugh as the secured a 3-2 overtime win to push their current purple patch under John Tortorella to 3 wins in a row! NHL veteran Jaromir Jagr got the ball rolling for the visitors with just over a minute remaining in the first period with a shot which deflected past Roberto Luongo to put the Devils 1-0 up. Patrick Elias then doubled their advantage seven minutes into the second before Daniel Sedin scored past old team mate Schneider to give Vancouver a lifeline at 2-1. But Alex Edler then capped a remarkable comeback as be brought the scores to a tie game at 2-2 after 14 minutes played. After a scoreless third period, things were pushed to overtime- Canucks fans didnt have to wait long for the result they desired as Mike Santorell...

New Jersey Devils veteran player Jaromir Jagr has today implied that the 2013-14 season may will bring his glittering career to a close. In a post on his official facebook page, Jagr has stated ""It looks like it will be my last season, so I can't be too risky," If indeed this is true then many hockey fans will be sad to see the 41 year old hang up his skates on a career which has included 1,391 games for Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals, New York Rangers, Dallas Stars, Philadelphia Flyers and more recently the Boston Bruins. His career also included a three year stint in the KHL playing for Avangard Omsk before returning to the NHL in 2011. Currently Jagr is 34th on the list of all time games played, 10 in goals and ranks 12th in assists. If at least one team doesnt retire this mans number 68 jersey- there will be widespread shock! Let's make this a fine last year Jaromir- and lets hope this season brings you a third Stanley Cup ring!

As I awoke from my slumber on this cloudy and possibly rainsoaked Manchester morning, I found Mike's question of the week sitting in my phone, which read thusly, "Imagine if you will, a Seven Days In Hockey Hall Of Fame. Sounds like plan. But there's a catch. You can only have one player of each nationality.Which do you pick and why?" This will be quite possibly the toughest question I have ever faced! So as always, let's go to war!! To the other talent players left out of this list- its not a personal, I just didnt have space! Seven Days in Hockey Hall of Fame Canada Wayne Gretzky : We'll start with the most obvious candidate in our hall of fame- The Great One's achievements are the ones that we mere mortals only dream about and during his glorious 21 Year career which took in four Stanley Cups with the Edmonton Oilers, LA Kings , St Louis Blues and the New York Rangers , he held over 60 hockey records at the time of his retirement, including...

Alex's question this week is: 'Dallas may have a cool new logo, but what do they need to make next year a success?' My default answer is always 'score more goals'. But that doesn't seem to be the Stars' problem. In the Western Conference last season, the Stars were unable to grab a playoff place. Finishing 11th in the conference. Annoyingly for Stars fans, if the playoff places were decided by goals for, the Stars would have finished seventh. As they outscored the Detroit Red Wings and the Minnesota Wild.  Jamie Benn, Ray Whitney, Jaromir Jagr and Loui Eriksson all scored in double figures, although goal leader Jagr is now plying his trade for the New Jersey Devils.  So what's the answer? Well, Tomas Kaberle is. Not just Kaberle but a few other defensemen too. The Stars finished the season having conceded 12 more goals than they'd scored.  Kaberle is now on the market as an unrestricted free agent and there's plenty more experienced skaters lo...

41 year old veteran Jaromir Jagr will continue in the NHL for at least another season as yesterday he signed a one year deal with the New Jersey Devils . Last season Jagr played for both the Dallas Stars and the Boston Bruins , whom he helped reach the Stanley Cup final and was considered by many to be one of their best players during the play offs. Even in his ageing years, Jagr continues to be an assets to the teams he turns out for and ever since being drafted 5th overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1990 he has scored over 1,688 points in over 1,391 regular season games in a career spanning 19 years for over six differents teams. During his career he has also won back to back Stanley Cups with Pittsburgh in 1991 and 1992. The Devils should feel fortunate to have this man to boost their attack.

Dallas Stars have announced that veteran right winger Jaromir Jagr has been traded to the Boston Bruins in exchange for a conditional second round pick and two prospects. The 41 year old has been Dallas top point scorer this year with 14 goals and 26 points and his advancing years dont seem to have held him back just yet. With the Bruins pushing for a playoff spot and a chance to win back their 2011 Stanley Cup, Jagr will bring great experience and his impressive play off record in years gone by will aid the Bruins cause dearly as Head Coach Claude Julien says "There's no doubt he's coming to help us, and I think that's the key word!" The Bruins management will no doubt be delighted to add Jagr to their already impressive forward line and although they missed out on Jarome Iginla- this trade could prove just as beneficial! The face of experience