It seems like only yesterday that the New Jersey Devils were a model organization. Between 1994 and 2003, the team went to five conference finals, four Stanley Cup finals and won three titles.
While the championships faded, the tremendous regular seasons did not; the Devils had seven seasons with at least 99 points between 2003-04 and 2011-12
But if you look closely, the current downtrodden state of this once great franchise has been in the works for years.
The 2012 Cup Final is looking more and more like a fluke, as the Devils appear to be on their way to a third straight season without a postseason berth. They didn't get out of the first round in 2008, 2009 or 2010 and missed altogether in 2011 before the out-of-nowhere run in 2012. What's followed is miss, miss and now a season in which the formerly homegrown Devils are a collection of store-bought veterans sitting at 11-15-6.
It seems like this happened overnight, but when you put this franchise under a microscope, this has been coming down the pike for at least a decade.
Before we begin, a tip of the hat to the person who asked abo ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Dave Lozo
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