FanPost

Meta: Why is In Lou We Trust?

I don't like navel gazing all that much. Yet, after about eight and a half years of existence (it started in October 2006), I figure a better explanation is needed as to why is In Lou We Trust is exactly In Lou We Trust. If only to clear it up for me. Perhaps you'll get something out of what will be a whole lot of reminiscing, recalling, and rambling.

The direct answer is simple. Despite how you feel about the team these days, Lou Lamoriello remains the architect of this franchise being anywhere close to relevant whatsoever. It appears that the days of "reload, not rebuild" are over and done with. A function of pursuing free agents and deals in the hopes of succeeding in the present combined with signings and deals gone wrong, and drafting that has been less than ideal. Before you write missives about how any one of those things isn't quite so, consider the situation the team is now in. They didn't get to missing the playoffs three times in a row and picking in the top-ten two out of the last three seasons because a lot of decisions went well.

In any case, in light of continued stumbles and a lack of team success, I can understand why Devils fans increasingly aren't happy with Lou. That's fine. That doesn't erase a torrid run of success from the late 1980s where the Devils actually made the playoffs for the first time ever to contending for Stanley Cups and becoming one of the more respected franchises in the league in terms of how business is done. Therefore, I'm loathe to consider alternatives - especially within the organization. I'd rather stick with the Devil GM I know than the potential GM I don't. Therefore, the site is what it is called. It's not going to change unless I demand it. And, no, I'm not looking for suggestions for a new name.

Of course, why bring this up now? I started the site when I was 26. For perspective's sake, I've been a fan ever since I was 10 or so and I'm now 32. I've been a Devils fan for the majority of my life. On top of that, I've spent the better part of my last eight and a half years of life doing something for this blog called In Lou We Trust. My only regret is that I never started it sooner. That's as good of a reason as any to ask the question. It's been bouncing around in my head for a few days and I figure it worth typing it out. I'm making it a FanPost as it's about the site more so than the Devils. It will probably as long and ramble-on like a regular post of mine, though.

That's also where it really starts and ends with the site: the Devils. It's a blog. It's about the Devils. Sure, there's the occasional site-related matter. Yes, I rarely (not enough?) write about matters beyond the Devils. And every May and June, the focus of the site turns to 17 and 18 year old prospective hockey players that could become Devils draft picks but often are not. However, I cannot stress enough those first two points. This is a Devils blog.

I know that may seem strange to some of you, but this is not the early 2000s where blogs were burgeoning online as a way to provide reaction, opinion, and analysis to news from all kinds of perspectives on all kinds of topics. Is blogging even a thing to do these days? We're in the age of Facebook pages, Tumblr posts which is micro-blogging, Twitter for social media reactions, video blogging via Youtube and other sites, and all kinds of newer ways to provide expression. And there will be more. And it's all great. However, I think medium has faded. It's to a point where anything written in depth and at length is called a "longread," as if the norm is short in the length and content. Sadly, it is the norm. Just look at NJ.com's Devils page. Lament the use of click-baiting headlines and morsels of information spread across multiple posts as much as you'd like. It must be working, otherwise Rich Chere's bosses wouldn't have him keep on like he has been.

To that end, there are some who consider this not to be a blog but a "community." This is the ILWT "community." This is the site for a community to form. It's all about building "community." We must grow the "community." And so forth with synonyms like forums and such. I'm certainly appreciative of those who regularly read and comment on the subjects of the posts that I and the other writers here have made. I am especially proud that the writers were all readers of the site and most of them were members prior to getting sweet writer powers. (And I think I might do it again this summer, I'm not sure). I've written posts driven by those discussions before and I like to do so provided they are interesting. There is clearly a community here and I'm touched that there is one after so many years of writing far too many words about the Devils, sometimes on subjects that aren't necessarily mainstream in appeal, presentation, or form. And it's a community that will point out errors - I've been wrong before and will likely be wrong again in the future - and debate matters relevant to the team. It's not a cesspool of comments like Fire & Ice used to be (hence, the rules and my iron-fisted ways of moderation). It's also not a safespace, a synonym of a criticism-free area; which is an awesome feature of the community. It is a place where reading the comments may actually be worth your while after reading a lot of words about the Devils.

However, I must be clear in light of all of that. This is a blog. And it's about the Devils. A community has formed from the Devils blog, it is not the actual goal of the blog itself. Do not let others dissuade you of those facts.

The strength of the Internet is being able to express whatever you'd like about, well, whatever you'd like and find others who are into that. As the writer, I have control over the former. I have a lot of thoughts and opinion about the Devils from their games to their players to their coaches to their management to their history to their future and everything else in between. And the others who have been and are currently writers here are similarly filled with content. For example, those who recall the Incredibly Stupid Lockout of 2012 that this site was not fully dormant in light of a lack of New Jersey Devils hockey. While we make the content, we do not really control who reads it. This is a point of contention for those who prefer to refer to sites like this as a community as opposed to what it is, which is a blog.

And it's a blog about the Devils. That is my audience: Devils fans. Much to chagrin of others, one can't control who reads a site or a Facebook post or a tweet or whatever. It's out in the public, for all intents and purposes, and so the public online can certainly respond as they see fit. I wonder if that disappoints some people. That they may find it to be problematic for one reason or another. I never did. I learned very quickly that really only Devils fans and those interested in the Devils would find In Lou We Trust worth reading. Consider the posts. They're often in-depth, they're not often short, they're not at all flashy, and they're about the New Jersey Devils. The older I get, the more I'm just pleased with the fact that people are reading it. So if they're Devils fans or at least interested in the Devils, that's good enough . Whatever the demographics or spending power or education levels or browser usage of that audience is what it is. I cannot control that. Further, I don't even care as long as they're reading things that they want to read. Life's too short to worry about that, people who can't behave in the comments, overly negative people, and et cetera.

I will admit that how I write is based on what I think I would I want to read. I don't want a short preview that tells me little about the opponent. I want to know how they're doing, who their best players, and what the Devils may do against them. If that takes 2,000 words instead of 500, then so be it. I don't want a short recap that recounts the boxscore. I want a game recap that goes tries to put events in a larger context; a recap that touches on other aspects of the game such a player returning from injury, a special team unit's performance, or even just a notable match-up with or without a goal. I don't want bland, short pieces on players that took the writer all of fifteen minutes to think about it. I want something with actual depth and insight, backed-up by the facts even if the conclusion is "this guy sucks." That's how I went about it back in the days of the blogspot site and it continues to this very day and beyond. That thousands of you read it everyday justifies how it's done.

Could I make changes? I can always make changes. But that would get away from what the site has been about. If I was all about pageviews, hits, and clicks, I wouldn't be writing a Devils blog. It would be an E/N site (that's everything/nothing for those of you who weren't Internet users back in the early part of last decade) with some Devils stuff in it. It could have other interesting topics and such and maybe I'd even be good at some of it. Maybe better than some of the people trying to be everything to everyone and continuing to miss the mark. Except I have no interest in doing something like that; I created and continue to provide content for a Devils blog. Since Tom Gulitti, Rich Chere, and others provide the news, I and the other writers would rather provide the reactions, the opinions, and the analysis. It fills a niche. Does this primarily appeal to hardcore Devils fans? Of course, I am a hardcore Devils fan. I'd wager the other writers past and present (and future?) are too since they've spent so much time and energy writing about the Devils.

It's more than just traffic, though. It's certainly well-respected to the point that I get random compliments from strangers about it, the Devils absolutely know about the site (my "inside sources" tell me it's monitored), I've been invited to work on books (yes, there will be a Hockey Prospectus 2015-16 and I'll be contributing to it again), and recently I was even on Hockey Primetime with Conor McKenna. Outside of me, look at Ryan. He's presenting his work at conferences; and that's due in small part of his efforts appearing here. It's mostly due to Ryan putting a ton of work digging deeper as to figure out how the great game of hockey functions and what we can learn from it. Most of all, when I ask the larger community for help; I get overwhelmed with offers. Overall, the site keeps growing and opportunities keep happening, if you can believe it. For a Devils-specific site, that's nothing to sneeze at - and is therefore a reason to not really change all that much.

There remains one other "Why?" in this onion-like layer of introspection. Why do I do this? Simply, I love the Devils, I have a lot of thoughts on them to share, and I want to share them. I don't even take notes at games - though the tweets kind of help - as I can recall quite a bit as it all happens. I started the blog to get those thoughts out and went on from there for about eight and a half years or so. To me, it's easy. Maybe not to others. But it's possible. And because I wanted to do so. There are no other incentives. While I stress putting my name on what I write and I'm proud of it, I never started ILWT to get famous. As appreciative I am of the community and random compliments (they seriously make my day), ILWT wasn't done to meet people. Believe it or not, ILWT does not get me more interest from women. And while I treat it like a job, ILWT absolutely does not get me a lot of money. So until I can't or I just lose total interest in writing and/or the Devils, I will still do this. Even if Vox/SB Nation doesn't want me, there's a pretty good chance I'll just start another site. Or be a part of one elsewhere. And I'll still be a fan as I do it, going to games as long I still can, hoping for Devils wins, wanting rivals to be crushed, and resorting to more sobering analysis outside of the games themselves.

So that's all why the site is what it is from the name to what it is and what it is not and the reasons behind why I do it the way I do it. Even the logo is explained in there, two paragraphs back. I don't like to navel gaze much, and there was no pressing reason to get it out there other than the timing of it. I hope it clears it up for you as much as it cleared it up for me.

(P.S. Yes, I know my editing skills are horrid. I'll try to be sharper or at least more responsive to writing gaffes. An separate editor would only increase the lead time of posts and put content at risk. I'd rather provide something not so well-written that's direct from me than something still not so well-written that went through someone else who may or may not see where I'm coming from.)

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