s10 - What's that smell in the Swamp? (®)

East Rutherford, NJ – There’s something going on in the swamps of Jersey but no one can figure out what it is and what is smells like.  Let’s recap the season so far…

• In Free Agency the Devils sign Ron Francis to a massive contract thus putting them up against the salary cap
• They have needed to alter their roster just keep Francis in the lineup
• They trade potential UFAs and long-time Devil Mike Ridley and Gilbert Dionne to Milwaukee to get cap relief and bring back New Jersey favorite John Maclean
• Now within 1 week, they trade for potential veteran defenseman Paul Coffey and increase the salary

During the presser announcing the acquisition of Coffey, the GM stated the following.

“We’re pleased to announce the acquisition of Paul Coffey and Craig Billington from the St. Louis Blues. This transaction happened quickly as we were able to agree on the deal only after about an hour.  I know some of you are thinking why would we do this deal, well we’ve been looking to improve our blue line and, in the process, take some ice time from Bruce (Driver) and Scottie (Niedermayer).  They are logging a lot of ice time and we need to keep them fresh so we can challenge for a post season run.  It’s really that simple, getting Billington helps secure a solid backup for Marty for the next few seasons.  We wish Bates and Darryl well in St. Louis and thank them for their contributions.”

When asked if there might be more deals coming…..”I am always looking to improve the team so I will pick up the phone if it rings.”

WC : 275