But there are enough assets on the roster to sort of hide that oldness. Like, Cory Schneider is really, really good. If he ever gets the chance to take on a 1A goaltender’s workload, he’ll be a superstar – and also, he’s definitely going to get that chance this season.

For the Devils this upcoming season, he’s basically like the equivalent of a submarine movie for an aging star, in Connery’s case the Hunt for Red October. Schneider has the ability to bail the Devils out in a midseason game where their old legs won’t get going, just like how a submarine allows a 70 year old action star to be in tense, high-stakes situations without you noticing their greying hair or things like “how can a guy with a fake hip jump off of a moving train?”

The Devils also have an impressive stable of young defenders, although one of the most promising of those defenders (Jon Merrill) appeared to sustain a head injury during camp on Saturday. Reportedly and thankfully, Merrill’s injury doesn’t appear to be serious.

Aside from Merrill though, the Devils still have Eric Gelinas – who was such a ridiculously good fantasy player last season, and could be one of the most productive fantasy defenders in the entire league if Pete DeBoer would play him more consistently. Adam Larsson too, though I’m still not convinced he can skate at an NHL level.

The Devils’ stable of good, young defenders are basically like The Rock for Connery’s career. They’re like a burst of creative energy for an old-as-dirt side, like a script with an ingenious construct (old man knows obsolete building where the hostages are being kept better than anyone!) that permits us too more easily suspend our disbelief about a really, really old action star. If Merrill and Larsson continue to improve, it won’t matter if the Devils just go rolling through the furnace room, their season could still own.

Putting aside the Connery analogy for a bit, I’m really high on the Devils this season. It’s not just that they’re likely to incur some positive regression after posting some of the best underlying numbers in the league and still missing the postseason in 2013-14, but it’s also just the extreme discipline they play with. DeBoer has everyone buying into their oddly aggressive 1-2-2, and takes events out of the game better than anybody. Playing in front of Schneider rather than Martin Brodeur this year will make a huge difference, and I seriously expect the Devils to push for the top spot in the Metro.

Oh and, by the way, playing Brodeur as often as Schneider last season was like Connery starring in Entrapment.

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The Toronto Maple Leafs might have a new look first line this season, which actually isn’t as crazy as it sounds. Joffrey Lupul and Phil Kessel have had enormous success with one another in the past, and obviously it’s worth it for a team that struggled as much as Toronto did last season, to experiment with tactics and personnel that ‘fatten’ the lineup.

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Finally the NHL preseason begins this afternoon at 1:30 EST when the Columbus Blue Jackets (split squad version) face the Carolina Hurricanes! In total there are four games on the docket (a split squad game between the Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames, and two afternoon games between the St. Louis Blues and Columbus Blue Jackets (split squad version), and the Washington Capitals and the Buffalo Sabres. Sam Reinhart is going to play! 

Obviously no one is going to watch split squad games on a football Sunday, but still, the summer is over!

Thomas Drance is a news editor at theScore.