In Lou We Trust

I just came back from the first hockey game of the 2008 preseason at The Rock against the Rangers; a 3-2 win. This should provide a good boost after a 4-1 loss to Philadelphia the other night. Now, to be honest as much as it is great to see a win - especially over the rangers - I can't place a lot of value in the result. It's preseason. These games don't count and both sides aren't featuring their best available. So let's look at is how the teams did. However, it's preseason. It's important to also keep in mind that not everyone is "there."

The big differences between the two games were the first two forward lines, two thirds of the fourth line, and the defense. The Philly game featured the potential first line of Patrik Elias, Brian Rolston, and Brian Gionta along with a big line of Bobby Holik, Dainius Zubrus, and Mike Rupp. The Rangers game saw Zach Parise reunite with Travis Zajac and David Clarkson; with the expected third line of John Madden, Jay Pandolfo, and Jamie Langenbrunner. The fourth line's only consistency was Pierre-Luc Leblond-Letourneau. The defense against the Flyers featured Johnny Oduya, Colin White, Mike Mottau, Sheldon Brookbank, Matthew Corrente, and Tyler Eckford. Against the Rangers there was Bryce Salvador with Paul Martin, Anssi Salmela and Andy Greene, and Jay Leach with Matthew Spiller (an admittedly weaker defense).

Despite the line-up changes, it's fair to say that the Devils didn't exactly shine in either contest. Moreso in the Flyer game, the Devils were all over the place from being pressured to applying pressure. But the finishing wasn't there (not a great start for Elias, Rolston, and Gionta) and the Flyers truly capitalized on the Devils' mistakes (e.g. Corrente's giveaway), leading to the result. Against the Rangers tonight, the Devils looked solid for the first half; the Rangers surged in the second half of the second period; and both teams looked absolutely inept on offense - the Devils not being able to generate a rush, the Rangers not being able to aim a shot against the mighty Scott Clemmensen - until the last 5 minutes or so.

So what does this tell us? Well, the Devils still have some rust to get rid of. It is worrisome that the team can go through long stretches where they generate nothing on offense. Games will have such lulls, but not for 7+ minutes without a shot or much possession on the attack. Between the two games the competition has changed, Corrente didn't really impress against the Flyers whereas Salmela looked OK against the Rangers. Among the consistent forwards between the two games - Fedor Fedorov, Nicklas Bergfors, and Petr Vrana - those three looked particularly lively in both games. Namely because they are all looking for spots on this team and are giving what they can. It's hard to say who sticks out the most. Fedorov showed he can take the body tonight; Bergfors picked up 2 assists across both games; and Vrana got the one goal against Philly. There's plenty more preseason left, so I wouldn't expect much to be determined right now.

Oh yeah, the best Devil overall has to be Zach Parise. He scored a brace tonight . The first on a heads up play from a missed (deflected?) Bryce Salvador shot where he potted it past Henrik Lundqvist and trickled in. The second was an amazing put-back. Backup goaltender Antoine LaFluer stopped the initial Paul Martin shot and before it hit the ground, Parise swooped in and smacked it into the corner of the net. I'm sure there will be some video of it soon. Anyway, Parise clearly showed that he's ready for the season; I hope he keeps that same drive to make goals happen for this season.

Lastly, read Tom Gulitti's Fire & Ice. He's got all the impressions, quotes, and thoughts about the pre-season games. He's got way more information of interest than I will and you'll get a better feel for how things are going. Then again, if you're a Devil fan, you should be reading Gulitti anyway.

The New Jersey Devils played in another preseason game last night against the New York Islanders. How did they do? They won 6-1. I'm glad the incredibly brief AP summary of the game noted who scored for the Devils; otherwise I would have been more in the dark about it than I originally was. Martin Brodeur played two periods, Brian Gionta got a hat trick, John Madden got a brace (2 goals), and Travis Zajac got one.

You know, I'm a big Devils fan, I generally know what's going on. But so far could have hurt someone in the organization to figure out a way for some of the fans who do care about preseason to follow the games? I'm not asking for full TV coverage featuring Doc and Chico; even a radio or internet only feed would suffice. With the season coming up, the lineup is taking more shape, and I want to see who's really making some of that proverbial noise on the ice so far. Instead, I rely on after-the-fact accounts of what happened, who did well, who did poorly, and etcetera and so forth.

While I'm on this subject, has anyone noticed the Devils being proactive in terms of promotion for this coming season? Any ads on TV that aren't during Devils games? Any print ads in the newspapers or in other media? Any billboards somewhere? While the Devils organization has been excellent in so many aspects of running the team and the on-ice product, I constantly feel like they're lacking in selling the team. It doesn't have to be star-based; the Devils have been a very successful team with 3 Stanley Cups in the last 12-13 years and many other accolades (e.g. division championships). That's certainly worth pointing out to non-hockey fans and hockey fans of other teams. It couldn't hurt to promote the team beyond tiny print ads and ads during their own games. I would think most the people who are watching Devils games on TV are already Devils fans. Is this a crisis? Well, no. And I do understand that advertising in this market is considerably expensive. All I'm saying there isn't anything wrong with spreading the word and I wish the Devils organization would do more of that.

Anyway, back to what's interesting:

Tom Gulitti's blog Fire & Ice has stated that head coach Brent Sutter was pleased with the team's performance - one without Patrik Elias and Paul Martin in addition to all the other Devils who are injured. Elias and Martin should be fine for Saturday's game and Kevin Weekes should also dress, but Gulitti has stated that Colin White will definitely miss the season opener against Tampa Bay in addition to Saturday's final preseason game.

I will say this: Tom Gulitti has provided the best coverage of the Devils in preseason so far. Much thanks for his efforts. Not that Rich Chere has nothing: his article from today's Star Ledger focuses on how Dainius Zubrus has been adjusting to the team and the recent additions of big players to the lineup.

But Gulitti has a big article from today's Bergen Record about how Sutter's changing the way the Devils play hockey. Here's the important quote:

Did you get that? Turning pucks over. A majority of teams in this league have the following set up: their first and second lines are for scoring, their third line is a defensive/checking line, and their fourth line is for physical presence, utility players, and youth. Do I expect Sutter to change this classification? No, not really What I do expect - and what has been going on in preseason - is Sutter getting the Devils to battle for the puck. That's not just forcing turnovers, but also a committed effort to forechecking. Such an effort wasn't there last season (or the season before that, now that I think about it), but it's there so far this preseason.

I think this is a grand idea because the Devils have done this before. I don't know what Gulitti meant when he talked about this idea being a shock. The Devils played like this in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The Devils were feared by opposing offenses in the past because they were so good at being patient, waiting for the offense to make a mistake, and force the turnover while transitioning from defense to offense. And even when the offense wasn't attacking, the Devils were going after the puck-handler either to make him make a bad decision or to make him cough it up. Guys like Randy McKay, Jason Arnott, Bobby Holik, and even a young John Madden did all this (yes, I know Madden isn't physical, you don't have to be). Given the recent additions of larger, more physical players; even if forechecking doesn't yield a turnover, the Devils will at least wear down the opposition in the process. Not to mention that some of the veterans - John Madden and Jay Pandolfo in particular - are familiar with this style given prior seasons. Maybe we'll see a boost in their production because they won't be as passive as they were in the last few seasons. Not a large boost - Jay Pandolfo still sometimes seemingly has the goal scoring skill of, say, Ken Daneyko, after all. However, by being aggressive going for the puck, the Devils will get more opportunities on offense which can't hurt the already-low goal production the Devils have had last season.

Will it turn them into offensive dynamos? No, but I think it will help the team because Sutter has the players and so far they're buying into his system. At least, I believe they are - if I could see these games, I'd know for sure and be in a better position to agree or disagree. I would really like to see how it's working before Tampa Bay next week, guys.

The New Jersey Devils played the Philadelphia Flyers for a second time and came away winners by a score of 3-1. NHL.com has the official score sheet and official super stats from that game, linked respectively. The game was notable for being the first game Martin Brodeur played in so far this preseason. The best recap of the game is over at 2 Man Advantage, wherein Patricia live-blogged all of the key moments. (Aside: The Flyers wearing plain white t-shirts, huh? Delilah can't help them win any cups.) The most professional and brief recap of the game is at Fire & Ice by Tom Gulitti, where he notes Nicklas Bergfors doing well to score two goals (or as they say among the soccer fans, a brace) in the contest. Gulitti's recap is also notable for noting how Brodeur will ease into game action this preseason over the next two contests against the Islanders.

Incidentally, I've heard that Rod Pelley did quite well in this game and has been making a real case for a roster spot. Apologies to Jari Viuhkola if this is true. Not that I think the Devils will give up on him, but it has to be disapointing coming from the Finnish Elite League and not being the guy making a push for that fourth line spot. It could be far too early to make this claim, given that Viuhkola has only played 10 minutes of preseason action so far.

The game was not without incident: Gulitti has learned that Jay Pandolfo's hip tightened in the game and had to leave. I'm glad the second half of that first sentence reads, "but he said it is nothing to be concerned about," because the Devils really don't need any more regular players injured. Especially defensive forwards who have been crucial to the Devils' style of play over the last seven years. Hopefully, Pandolfo will be fine after some rest.

The Devils lost Kevin Weekes and lost to the Rangers at Madison Square Garden 3-4 this night in a preseason game. This time, NHL.com does have an official score sheet and official super stats of the game.

If you want complete, right-then comments about the game: Patricia Greuter (and friends) live-blogged tonight's game. I shouldn't have to tell you to go read it - there's no time like now.

From what I saw, there's not a whole lot to worry about in this game because it's preseason. We're not going to see Matthew Corrente and Nick Palmeri on defense in regular duty. Grant Marshall will not play with Patrik Elias and Brian Gionta. Lines and pairings will change. However, the biggest flaw for the Devils seemed to be two-horse race between sloppy defending and a lack of discipline. Weekes - who got hurt in the first period when Sean Avery chucked Johnny Oduya into him with a shove - and Jordan Parise were hung out to dry at times which, of course, led to Ranger goals. By the third period, the Devils found their bearings on defense to some degree. Discipline was all over the place as the Devils and Rangers threw plenty of hits, with extra shoves, elbows, etc. during and after the play. Even so, the teams combined for 13 penalties - with the Devils committing 6 infractions and giving the Rangers two two-man advantages (and 2 power play goals).

Again, it's preseason, so harping on these particular problems shouldn't be a cause for concern until it starts occurring in games that count. Nonetheless, I'm sure Sutter will address these problems in practice. Not to mention the power play - which went 1 for 7. Sutter will definitely address that part of special teams.

But enough criticism, what was good about the Devils? They didn't give up after being down by 2 goals early, they didn't give up after being down by 2 again later in the second period, and they kept pushing for the win. Coming back to end the game 4-3 was heartening. Seeing the offense come from the top lines was also good: Elias-Zubrus-Gionta looked all right, and Parise-Zajac-Clarkson looked good as well. While I liked Clarkson in this game, I thought Gionta was the best Devil on the ice in the game. The stats help back me up as he has a goal and an assist. Clearly, the Devils played their best hockey in the third period. If they done better defensively earlier in the game; perhaps the Devils would have won this one.

All the same, it's preseason - now is the time to get the kinks straightened out, fill in the cracks, and get everything in order.

ONE OTHER THING: I just realized that the Devils did one thing tonight they didn't do a lot of last season - forechecking. There were 2, 3, and in a couple cases 4 Devils fighting for the puck in the Rangers' zone. Good to know Sutter is a believer that an effective forecheck effort benefits the team as a whole.

He is, and if you really want the most up-to-date preseason coverage, he's blogging like a storm at Fire & Ice.

The Devils lost last night's preseason game to the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 in Trenton. Tom Gulitti has coverage on this here and the initial aftermath here. Pookie and Schnookie at Interchangeable Parts also saw the game and weren't so pleased. Not that a loss to the Flyers can directly cause anything remotely known as being pleased. That said, it's a preseason game, and the first one, so I wouldn't put a whole lot of stock into how well the team has played. Lines, styles, plays, and so much more will change between now and the start of the season in October. I mean, check out the opening lineup, per Gulitti's blog (see, told you he was on fire). Martin Brodeur, Patrik Elias, Brian Gionta, Paul Martin, and Dainius Zubrus didn't even go to the game; and the lines are experimental at best. Nice to see Petr Vrana and Rod Pelley get time at center, though. The Devils practicing with Clarkson on the second line and a more skilled fourth line (Rupp-Brylin-Bergfors) is interesting.

Cam Janssen did get injured in the preseason game last night with a shoulder separation. Gulitti's blog notes that perhaps this was partially caused by the new jersey design, as Janssen's was torn twice. I don't know, Aaron Asham's jersey was also torn in a fight and Asham's shoulder wasn't separated. I suspect the fight itself may be the root cause of the injury. In either case, Janssen is now injured. In 2 Man Advantage's recap of the game, Patricia Greuter notes that Janssen had this injury once before and missed 11 games as a result. Who knows whether he'll be out for a similar amount of time, more time, or less time?

More importantly, why were there five fights in a preseason game? It's preseason. There really shouldn't be any reason for dropping gloves and throwing haymakers. Can someone explain this to me?

On a broadcasting note, Gulitti is also reporting that the radio color commentator for Devils games for this coming season will be former Devils beat writer, Sherry Ross. Congratulations to Ross for her new position (even if it isn't official yet).

The 2006-2007 season ended last night with a 3-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils by the hands of the Ottawa Senators. As always, NHL.com has the official score sheet and the official super stats of the game, linked respectively.

I apologize for the delay in this recap as I actually went to Game 5 and saw it all live and in person. If you heard someone yelling rather loudly in section 236 around row 21, congratulations, you heard my increasingly hoarse voice. Not that it means much now, it's over. The playoffs for the Devils, the Devils' season, and professional hockey at the Continental Airlines Arena. Good on the folks of Interchangeable Parts for live-blogging Game 5, by the way.

The loss was disappointing to say the least. The first period displayed the Devils doing everything that I and probably you wanted them to do. They skated hard, they took it to the Ottawa defense on offense, they scored first, they were aggressive on defense, and they played better than Ottawa in those first 20 minutes. They even exploited Ray Emery's penchant for rebounds, with Scott Gomez powering one home for the early 1-0 lead. Only downside would be the poor power play. But that's OK considering they did so well after two poor performances in Game 3 and Game 4. I was pleased, you - the Devil fan - was also likely pleased.

And we were both pleased how the Devils started the second period. They forechecked the Senators defense so well, forcing turnovers in their own end. If it wasn't for some unfortunate bounces and last-ditch defensive work, the Devils could have easily extended their lead. However, Ottawa decided to wake up in this period and the whole game changed with their game-tying goal. Tom Preissing took advantage of a terrible clearance (I believe by Brad Lukowich) that was thrown behind the net and bounced to the other side. Preissing was wide open and figures that he should shoot it in the traffic that has gathered in front of Brodeur. Antoine Vermette tips it in for the game tying goal and the entire game took a 180 spin. As the period went on, the Devils played worse and worse with the Senators moving from strength to strength. The Senators capitalized on a rare Jay Pandolfo call (goaltender interference) with Jason Spezza making good use of a screen for the leading goal. Things did not improve at all for the Devils. Before the period was over, the Devils defensemen resembled moving cones and Daniel Alfredsson walked right in and beat Brodeur for a back-breaking third goal.

The Devils started by continuing the good work they did in period 1 and collectively forgot what they did earlier after 5:19 into the second period. The defense being the most exposed, with the Senators putting 19 shots in that period alone. 19! In a period! Horrible, just horrible - it reminded me of Game 3. As did most of the crowd, booing heavily at the end of the period. The third period was equally frustrating. OK, the Senators did not play as heavily on offense, looking to protect their lead. The defense wasn't so miserable, but the forwards (and the defense on the point) needed at least 5 minutes for a shot on goal in the third. I understand that rushing the offense could lead to costly turnovers, but when you're down by 2 with time running out - urgency is not only expected, it is necessary. The Devils did not take advantage of their speed and the Senators defense had no trouble setting up to clog passing and shooting lanes. The effort finally broke through at the end when Gomez put home a rebound near the end of the game and kept possibilities of a miracle last-minute comeback alove. It was too little, too late, unfortunately.

I spent a lot of words getting to my overall summary of the team's performance in Game 5: It is as exactly as I described in the game preview, the Devils needed to step up collectively and give a strong performance and they only did that for one period and a 3 minutes into the second. They went up early and looked good early due to the fact they played like a team that wanted to win and was willing to work as hard as possible to do so. After Vermette's tip-in goal, the Devils looked listless as they did in the last two games and the ultimate result reflects that: a loss.

I must echo the thoughts of Patricia at 2 Man Advantage. The Ottawa Senators are a very good team with depth and talent in all four key areas: offense, defense, goaltending, and special teams. The Senators played very well and took it to the Devils for the majority of the series. Obviously, their four wins were all deserved and I congratulate them for moving on into the Eastern Conference Finals.

It'll be an important off season of change. First and foremost, as stated in Tom Gulitti's initial post after the loss: the Devils are on their way to Newark to a brand new arena. A new home, a new start, and a new city (and an actual city) for the Devils. There's more to it than that. As Gulitti notes in an earlier post two days ago, Lou Lamoriello will not be the coach of the team next season. At the least, there will be a brand new head coach. A number of key Devils like Scott Gomez and Brian Rafalski will enter unrestricted free agency; while Zach Parise will enter restricted free agency. Given that situation in conjunction with the salary cap (which has been an issue at times this past season), this off season will clearly be crucial in terms of who to keep and who to sign. Given that the Devils are moving to a new home, the Devils clearly want to have their first season be as successful as possible. The off season will obviously have a big impact on that. Throw in the NHL entry draft and there's plenty to do for the Devils to re-load for next season.

I wish the Devils won last night, obviously. Even if they lost Game 6, the East Ruthersford era would have ended on a high note. As I stated earlier though, the Devils did not do enough as a team do it and the Senators deservedly got the win they wanted. Now the Devils have to move on without playing until preseason begins in September.

The New Jersey Devils tried a little harder in Game 4 but could not complete the comeback in a 3-2 loss to the Ottawa Senators. As always, NHL.com has the official scoresheet and official super stats of the game, linked respectively.

The Devils played like garbage for the first half of the game. The second half was better, but the offense was still lacking, the defense was still too passive, and Brodeur being beaten by a fluke goal from Dany Heatley to break the tie halfway through the period didn't help. Neither did the four guys in Devils jerseys not closing down Mike Fisher prior to his long shot beating Brodeur (a weak one, admittedly). Richard Matvichuk did play, but wasn't a major factor. David Clarkson replaced Mike Rupp on the fourth line, but that didn't mean much in the big picture. The second line was invisible for this game, the checking unit did not shutdown many Senators (though Lou Lamoriello eventually stopped trying to match lines at points, which was wise, I think). At least the EGG unit showed up with a power play goal (the first goal) and a strong flurry in an attempt for an equalizer. Good on the Devils' Paul Martin for his slap shot and Jay Pandolfo for his tip. Nevertheless, it was too little, too late by then.

Of note, with respect to offense, I would like to point out that Ray Emery gives up rebounds like it's the hip new trend among goaltenders. Problem is that the Ottawa defense has been adept in getting to those loose pucks first. Especially Anton Volchenkov, who has also been adept at being in the right place and the right time to block shots from the Devils. They need to work harder for the puck. Not just in rebounds, but also along the boards on defense and in the neutral zone when a play breaks down. It's a desire issue as well as a bit of luck, from what I've seen so far this series. Ottawa wants those pucks more, and lo and behold, they get them.

Ottawa gifted the Devils plenty of power plays early, but they only threatened and converted on one (Elias driving to the net, and Gionta following him who put home a rebound) - that needs to improve. The Senators continue to out shoot and out skate the Devils in their own zone, and that clearly needs to happen less often. If you want to point out a particular player for this loss, fine; but I won't join you. The Devils didn't play as bad as they did in Game 3, but they were definitely not good enough to win this one.

Now they have to collectively raise their game to a new heights to simply survive. I certainly hope they do so on Saturday.

The Ottawa Senators soundly defeated the New Jersey Devils 2-0 in Game 3. As always, NHL.com has the official scoresheet and the official super stats of that game, linked respectively.

Where do I start here? OK, bright side: Martin Brodeur was excellent all game long and you can not blame him for the loss at all. If you do, it is evident that you did not see this game.

Not so bright side: Everything else. Before I get into the game, I'll admit my error in thinking both teams were tired: the Senators were definitely not tired in this one. Oh no, they did what they had to win - they earned this one. Not that it was much of a challenge from my vantage point (watching the game on TV). Let's start at a popular source of complaint: special teams. No, not the penalty killers; they did well, holding Ottawa 0 for 4 with the man advantage. Of course, I'm referring to the power play units. Five power plays for the Devils, all of them wasted. When the other team literally hands you two power plays in the third period and you're down by one, show some urgency and fire the puck on net! I must say, though, Ottawa did a great job on the penalty kill. Makes me wonder whether it was the Devils doing so poor on attack with the man advantage or whether Ottawa was so good: likely both.

More worryingly was that was also the offense for most of the game. Very unaggressive, and the Devils had trouble getting into their zone all night long with very few sustained offensive possessions. They really didn't get Ray Emery working, the Devils tried too many blind passes and shots with Senators right in front. The Senators defense, Anton Volchenkov in particular with his eight blocked shots, performed very well tonight - they did well. The Devils offense was very nonthreatening both as a result of the Senators' defense and their own inaction and lack of energy.

Even worse was the defense. It's been a while since I've seen the Devils play so passively. OK, they were in position, I'll give them that. But most of the time, they had no issue with Ottawa moving the puck around both with passes and possession - seemingly standing around as if they were waiting for a turnover to present itself. This resulted in Martin Brodeur facing a barrage of shots and scoring chances. Again, Brodeur showed up, but the defense certainly did not.

Nothing is over with respect to this series. The Devils didn't do well in Game 3 in Round 1 against Tampa Bay and they managed to win three straight to win the series. Will they do it again? I hope so, but I'm not confident right at this moment.

The New Jersey Devils and the Ottawa Senators went the distance and the Devils ultimately won in double overtime. As always, NHL.com has the official scoresheet and official super stats of the game, linked respectively.

The Devils did exactly what I wanted in the first period. They came out strong, the return of Patrik Elias really energized the EGG unit (they were flying all night), they scored first, Brian Gionta scored on the Devils' first shot on goal in the game on a power play, and the Devils kept pressing the Senators all period long. 16 shots for the Devils and the Senators were too busy playing defense, only managing 5 shots. Sergei Brylin made the game 2-0 literally less than a second before the end of the first period when he got a loose puck off the faceoff and pounded it home off the post and in to convert on the power play there. The Devils were looking good, playing well, and I was feeling good.

But the Devils did not maintain. I wish I could take a picture of an entire period (or two periods in this case) to show clearly and concisely show that hanging back, playing primarly defensively, "turtling" on a lead for over a period against Ottawa is a bad idea. The Devils put 8 shots on net in both the second and third periods and what I'm talking about is more than just shots. The team's mentality was too defensive and too passive. When the Devils did have an offensive rush, the players made too many passes. I understand why the forwards did so, had some of those passes connected to the intended Devil, the receiver of the pass would have an excellent chance to score. But the Senators stopped the pass, or the pass bounced over the stick or it didn't go all the way through or something else. Often times a good shooting opportunity was literally passed up - to make one more pass.

Overall, however, the Devils really should have pushed for a third goal instead of trying to defend the lead. Martin Brodeur was fantastic, literally robbing the Senators of goals several times; and the penalty killers did a great job holding Ottawa to only one power play goal. However, even Brodeur needs offensive help and as a result the Senators crashed the net late and were rewarded when Heatley pounded it in for the equalizer deep in the slot. Why Paul Martin or Sergei Brylin didn't stop Heatley is beyond me. I understand that taking a penalty is a bad idea, but if it's a one goal lead with less than 30 seconds left; take the penalty if it'll prevent a goal being scored. Naturally, after the equalizer, Gionta hooks somebody.

However, in overtime, the Devils decide that offense is a good idea and showed a lot more of it in the first overtime. While Brodeur was stoning Senators left and right, Ray Emery was showing a lot of net on his glove side - so the Devils forwards shot there. Unfortunately, Emery was up to the task with his fast glove hand so the Devils did not convert on a decent number of scoring chances the Devils actually pushed for. Especially on the Devils' power play in overtime. As an aside, I'd like to note how the Devils got their power plays. The Devils got an abbreviated one due to Ottawa putting too many men on the ice during their own power play. The second one was the result of defenseman Anton Volchenkov catching a puck in mid-air and closing his hand on it (and it's not the first time Volchenkov did that in this playoffs I believe). The Senators took two really dumb penalties in the first overtime and they should thank Ray Emery that the Devils didn't end it on those power plays.

Fortunately, the Devils caught a huge break when Jamie Langenbrunner found himself behind the Ottawa Senators defense at the blueline. He got the pass, he went in on a breakaway, Joe Corvo tried to hook him (he did, it would have been a penalty call), and Langenbrunner just puts it in past the post before Emery's left leg could stop it. Despite turtling for two periods, despite going 2 for 7 on the power play, and despite Emery getting hot in the first overtime, Jamie Langenbrunner was the hero and won the game with his breakaway goal. A great looking goal to end an up-and-down game by the Devils.

Glad that the return of Elias was good, Martin Brodeur is definitely in his groove, that the Devils responded in overtime - showing no signs of being disheartened by the late equalizer by Ottawa, and that Langenbrunner came through the clutch. I would really like to see the Devils cut down on the unnecessary passes and, more importantly, try not to sit on leads for extended periods of time (especially against a team like Ottawa). I'm telling you, the way the Devils played in the first period was great; if they are looking for what they should emulate to win this series, you can't do much better than that performance. That said, the Devils won an important Game 2 and the series now goes to Ottawa tied up at 1. Good job, overall.

COMMENTER UPDATE: Ethan notes in the comments that Barry Melrose has said that the Devils are fun to watch now. If you saw any pigs fly this morning, it probably had something to do with that.

The New Jersey Devils have battled back valiantly but ultimately lost Game 1 to the Ottawa Senators by a score of 5 to 4. As always, NHL.com has the official scoresheet and official super stats of that game, linked respectively.

To do something a little bit different (and something more like Tim Mo at RaReMaDev) I'd like to break this game down period-by-period.

Period 1: The Senators beat the Devils down. The Devils looked completely out of place, they gave up an early goal, they made crucial turnovers in their own end, Martin Brodeur was shaky, the Senators physically pounded the Devils, I saw Mike Rupp way too much for my liking, and the Devils were robbed of what few scoring chances (despite the number of shots they totalled) they had save for one. Travis Zajac's goal late in the period is the lone bright spot in what was an awful and brutal period played by the New Jersey Devils. Anytime you give up 4 goals to begin a game, you can bank on the team losing.

Period 2: And amazingly, the Devils nearly turn the game completely around. They outplayed the Senators. They got more quality scoring chances, they looked stronger in their own end, and they came close to tying it up after going down 4-1 after the first period. The PZL unit started looking really good, Brian Gionta got revenge for being robbed by Ray Emery's skate and stick respectively in the first period with a goal, and Martin Brodeur made a big save. Things were looking bright for the Devils and I was confused: the first period even now left a bitter taste in my mouth, but this second period was great stuff for NJ. Unfortunately, Erik Rasmussen took a hooking call late in the period, leaving the Devils shorthanded at the end. But they killed off

Period 3: Unfortunately, the Senators took advantage of that call by scoring really early in the third period to make that shaky one-goal lead into a much more solid two-goal lead. This period played out more like what I expected to see all series long. Close, intense, and defensive hockey with both teams making sure they don't let the other get a lot of open ice when they have the puck. Good stuff, but unfortunately the Devils could not crack the Senators on defense nor Ray Emery late. Less than a minute left, Zach Parise put home a sweet pass while the Devils had the extra attacker. Heartening that the Devils didn't give up despite being down two goals with less than a minute left; but the Devils did not get lucky and score an equalizer afterwards.

Needless to say, the Senators were the stronger team overall. They were solid to a T in that first period and made the Devils pay dearly for the amazingly bad mistakes they made. 3 of their 5 goals were on special teams: 2 on the power play (Rupp and Rasmussen really shouldn't have taken their interference and hooking calls, respectively) and 1 shorthanded - which is always unacceptable, especially this one given that it doesn't happen had Rafalski not try to blindly clear it while skating away from the blueline. The Devils need to improve on their own power play and they need to improve how they start the game. They looked flat, they were bad, and it showed. The Devils cannot, in my opinion, afford to lose Game 2 and go to Ottawa down 2-0 in the series. Not in a close matchup like this.

I'm glad that the Devils certainly did not give up on the game, but the main lesson is that they should have done better right from the start. Who knows, maybe they would have ultimately won the game had they done that. Would have, should have, could have, but they did not, so it's onto Game 2. Let's not dwell on this, hopefully the Devils will learn from the (many) errors made in Game 1 and come out as the better team on Saturday.

One final note: I really hope Patrik Elias is healthy for Game 2. I feel that things would have been different tonight had Elias play on the first line instead of Erik Rasmussen (not a decision I would have made, but I'm not the coach). The Devils could use - and may need - two full scoring lines instead of one and two-thirds.

The New Jersey Devils defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 to win Game 6 and the series between the two clubs. As always, NHL.com has the official score sheet and the official super stats of the game, linked respectively.

Tibbs at Beast of the East has links to updated news articles after the Devils triumph this afternoon. Tom Lycan at Devils Due has a recap of the last few games, noting that the Devils won three straight to win the series - an impressive effort indeed. Chris Wassel at The NHL Arena Program has live-blogged the game, check out the whole thing right here.

The New Jersey Devils did what a lot of what was necessary to win. They scored first, they were effective on the power play (2 for 4), Martin Brodeur played very well, they exploited the Tampa Bay defense and put quality shots on Johan Holmqvist, and the defense didn't make it easy for the Lightning to move about on offense (Martin St. Louis was held pointless, Vincent Lecavalier only had an assist). Not that the Devils were flawless. They took far too many penalties in the first two periods: a total of 9 in the first forty minutes - most of them being unnecessary calls (too many men on the ice, hooking, jaw-jacking to the refs resulting in unsportsmanlike conduct). Only the Zajac "dive" was a weak call on New Jersey. Tampa Bay scored both of their goals on the power play, so the Devils paid the price to a degree. Brad Richards fired both goals through screens, so there's another aspect of their game the defense improve on - clearing the front of the net. Brodeur's brilliant, but even he needs to see where the shot is coming from. However, the Devils did very well to win the game and the series on the road. Well done, Devils.

As an aside, I must say that NBC needs to improve their TV picture. Most of the Tampa Bay-Devils game here in NJ resulted in the audio going out from time to time and the picture being messed up on their HD and SD channel. Maybe it was just my own TV connection, but then again their commercials didn't have that problem. That said, I'm pretty sure it's just a problem I had and everyone else was fine - so feel free to ignore this gripe.

The Tampa Bay Lightning didn't make things easy for the Devils; they scored 3 goals in each of the first four games and were constantly attacking the Devils. Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis in particular were brilliant on offense. St. Louis compiled 3 goals and 5 assists, and Lecavalier had 5 goals and 2 assists. The two-some could not be contained for the first 5 games by the Madden unit or the defense despite the heavy minutes they picked up. Brad Richards also performed well with 3 goals and 5 assists, also giving the Devils problems. After Game 1, Johan Holmqvist played very well despite his poor regular season numbers - proving again that what's on paper might as well be ignored. The Tampa Bay defense did play well at times during the series, stopping Devils' breakouts and attempts at puck possession on offense; and their penalty killers did do well at times to make the Devils look incredibly inept with a man advantage. Tampa Bay is a good team and they gave the Devils a good challenge in an entertaining 6-game series. Thank you, Tampa Bay.

The Devils did turn it up and did win - even with offense - to ultimately win the whole series. They will move on to the second round, the Eastern Conference Semifinals. The second round for the East has been decided already. The Buffalo Sabres will take on the New York Rangers, and the Devils will get another tough opponent in the Ottawa Senators. I believe the second round starts later this week; so posts in the coming days will be a preview of that series. Great job Devils for clinching the series in well-played Game 6 and moving on towards the Stanley Cup.

The New Jersey Devils soundly defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning by a margin of 3-0. As always, NHL.com has the official score sheet and official super stats of that game, linked respectively.

Martin Brodeur stopped them all for what I believe his 22nd shutout in his playoff career. Obviously he played big and provided a boost for the Devils on his own. The Devils were solid in their own end, making sure the Lightning did not get many rebounds and coming up big at times when the Lightning looked particularly dangerous. Just as importantly, the Devils scored first, they capitalized on what few offensive chances they did get.

While the Devils played a solid game, they were heavily out-shot. Just from what I saw in the third period, I felt that if the Devils put many more of their shots on net, it would not be so lopsided. The Devils, I think, were not outplayed; they just missed many shots and with 10 minutes left to play, the Devils reverted to a ultra-defensive style and settled for clears. In my opinion, the Devils really should have kept pressing the Lightning on offense as opposed to simply dumping it in. During their terrible fourth power play of the night, the Devils surrendered the puck to Vincent Lecavalier who hit the post. If Lecavalier had scored, the Lightning would have been the ones making NJ play for their reserved style. But he didn't, so it didn't cost the Devils here. I just think sitting back and just trying to defend against Tampa Bay is not a good idea if only because we have seen the Lightning score two goals quite quickly in this series before.

All the same, what the Devils did clearly worked tonight and all that would need improving is the power play and their shot accuracy from what I saw. Good on the Devils for their efforts and now they can clinch the series and move on in the playoffs on Sunday. Game 6 certainly won't be easy; expect Tampa Bay head coach John Tortorella to get his team extra-motivated for that one.

As a related aside, I would like to say that if you want a reason why fighting should be curbed from the sport of hockey, the end of tonight's game provides a good reason. The Devils clinch the win with an empty net goal so what does Tampa Bay do? What does Mr. Safe Is Death, John Tortorella decide now that his team is down 3-0 late in the third period? Put Brad Richards out there with Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis and let them bring massive offense? Does he put out the checking line and just end the game? Of course not, you put out the tough guys to salvage some "pride." Andre Roy and Nolan Pratt fought and in the latter case I imagine if Pratt gave more effort on defense as he does in his fighting, he'd be more than just a depth defenseman. The fights served no purpose and even if the Lightning players did win, they didn't win anything of actual value - the Lightning lost Game 5 and are down 3-2 in the series. Again, just stupid and unnecessary; and it shows that the Lightning are not committed to winning as they should be.

The New Jersey Devils tied up the series in a thrilling 4-3 OT victory. As always, NHL.com has the official scoresheet and official super stats for the game, linked respectively.

The Lightning struck back with a tip-in and a lucky break (in the sense that Vincent Lecavalier was completely wide open on Martin Brodeur's flank - YOU MISSED YOUR COVERAGE, LUKOWICH) to tie it up and it was bad.

Then the Devils started working, getting brilliant chances with Devils alone with the puck in front of Holmqvist. Bouncing pucks, missed shots, last-ditch saves and defensive blocks prevented at least 7 strong scoring stances. Johan Holmqvist was challenged constantly and he rose to the task.

In OT, power plays were blown by both sides, the Devils and Lightning were robbed of opportunities. But Cory Sarich made the problem of shooting into Scott Gomez' shin pads. The puck luckily bounced off the shins ahead of Gomez, and a two-on-one presented itself. Gomez had other opportunities this game, this series, this season where Gomez would pass it and the resulting shot would go wide or be robbed by the goalie or the defenseman would dive to block the pass - ultimately killing it.

The Tampa Bay Lightning evened up the series by winning tonight 3-2. As always, NHL.com has the official scoresheet and official super stats of the game, linked respectively.

I could go into depth about the game, discuss what the Devils did right (and they did some things right) and what they did wrong (obviously they did some things wrong). I could go into how much better Johnny Oduya was, their continued success on the power play, or how improved the Devils were on their discipline. I could go into how poor the Devils were on the first power play in giving up a shorthanded goal to start the game, how Martin Brodeur should have had that shot late in the second that tied it up at 2, or how the Devils really should have calmed down in the third period and focused on getting solid shots on Johan Holmqvist as opposed to rushing the puck up and getting a shot on Holmqvist's chest whenever they are not offsides. You may say that I already have done that; but I say I could elaborate further on all of those things. However, I will be brief for a change:

The New Jersey Devils played exactly one good period of hockey (the second). Teams who only play well for one period will not win in the playoffs.

Needless to say, the Devils need to play much better overall for the entire game for Game 3 on Monday. The series now goes to Tampa Bay, but unfortunately for the Lightning, the Devils are pretty good on the road (24-14-3 record this season, third most road wins in the NHL). Of course, if the Devils give a performance similar to this in Game 3, the chances of victory will be significantly lowered for New Jersey.

The New Jersey Devils win the first game of the first round of the 2007 Stanley Cup Playoffs with a 5-3 score against the Tampa Bay Lightning. As always, NHL.com has the official scoresheet and official super stats of that game, linked respectively.

Don't let the score fool you, the Devils were the better team in this one. I'm very happy with how the Devils played tonight with respect to offense. They scored first, they scored second, they scored twice on the power play (nearly three times), they pressured the porous Tampa Bay defense and Johan Holmqvist, and they took advantage of giveaways and loose pucks. The Devils scored 5 goals and I'm very happy and proud to say that tonight was all about the EGG line. Patrik Elias was hustling and bustling, moving and grooving, zigging and zagging, and showing that he is most definitely a good player. A goal and an assist, a sweet slapshot one-timer on the Devils' second power play that really put TB on edge early. Scott Gomez did very well, hustling as well, and making plays all game - he ended up with three assists. Brian Gionta put the nail in the coffin with the Devils' fifth goal; capitalizing on Gomez' capitalizing on a Johan Holmqvist error. Gionta (and Elias) helpfully screened Holmqvist on Brian Rafalski's power play goal, so he helped as well.

Not to take away anything from the second and third lines. Jay Pandolfo and John Madden caused problems for the Lightning for the most part, even getting some chances themselves. The PZL unit also shown, with Zach Parise scoring the game's first goal and ultimately the game winner. Why the Tampa Bay defense didn't have a man on #9 for that last goal was beyond me. The Devils were ultimately out shot 26-24, thanks to the Lightning's 13 shot flurry in the third period; but the Devils exerted their strength on offense, responding right away with a goal after Vincent Lecavalier got his second goal of the game to then tie it up at 3. I nor anyone else can complain about the offense when it scored five goals and went 2/3 on the power play. Great job there.

There are two aspects that the Devils must shore up on. The first is simple: defensive lapses. The Lightning put 13 shots on net in the third period and the Lightning did tie it up that period, looking to take the game back into their own hands. Early on, the Devils did well on defense, but they started playing a little bit too loose at times. It didn't hurt them too badly tonight; however, it is something they can improve on for game 2. However, the second aspect must be improved.

I do not want to hear one word about the refs and how they are horrible and how it's a conspiracy that they call the games the way they do and how they are killing hockey and all that hogwash. Just like last year's playoffs; the NHL told every team in the playoffs that the referees will call everything tightly. The Devils did not pay attention, handing Tampa Bay six power plays. That's not a typo, they gave up six of them. I shouldn't have to say it but I will: six power plays to the Tampa Bay Lightning which feature Vincent Lecavalier, Martin St. Louis, and Dan Boyle is never a good idea. Ever. Even worse, the Devils gave up two two-man advantages - one of which the Lightning converted. Both two-man advantages given by Johnny Oduya. Oduya did better after that first period, calmed down and didn't take any more penalties, so I won't be desiring Richard Matvichuk (who was scratched) to take his place. Worst of all is that all of those penalties were obvious calls; stupid things like holds, trips, and slashes on the wrist. Those are penalties at any other time in the season, to committ them and in that amount that blatantly is terrible discipline.

Fortunately, Martin Brodeur came up big when necessary, the penalty killers stepped up for the most part, and the Lightning were limited to one power play goal (a laser by St. Louis). However, the Devils need to improve on that because you can be sure Tampa Bay won't be so un-ruthless on power plays.

Again, those are two areas the Devils can improve on. However, the Devils showed that they can produce a fairly high number of goals and win. The first game in a playoff series is crucial and now the Devils can use the momentum of this game to build on in Game 2, this Saturday. Not perfect, but a pretty dang good win all the same.

The New York Islanders beat the New Jersey Devils 3-2 in a shootout. The win gives the New York Islanders the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. As always, NHL.com has the official scoresheet and official super stats of that game, linked respectively. Additional recaps include Tim Mo at RaReMaDev and Rich Chere's article in today's Star-Ledger.

My main concern for this game was that the Islanders were really going to be up for this one, really take it to the Devils. Amazingly, the Islanders played conservatively and tried to play something more akin to the Devils. Waiting for the opposition to make a mistake, take control, and push for an odd-man rush. The Islanders were aided by the Devils deciding to play very poorly in the first two periods. The Devils came out flat for a second game in a row, they put up a mere 3 shots on net and didn't start putting dangerous shots on net until the third period. Many Devils choosing to make poor passes instead of taking shots, some shots being taken with Islanders right in front to easily block their shots, and the Devils not even sustaining offensive pressure on the Islanders until the third period - and even then it didn't happen often. I know the EGG unit - Brian Gionta did return for yesterday's game - did it once or twice, I'm pretty sure the PZL unit didn't even do that (they didn't do much threatening of Wade Dubielewicz in the game). The power play? I don't want to talk about the power play, I don't think I can describe it while keeping my writing fairly clean.

The defense wasn't as disappointing, but letting Richard Park get rebounds and loose pucks not once but twice to score both goals for the Islanders is not a good sign with the playoffs right around the corner. Why Zach Parise, who was nearest to Park, if I recall correctly, didn't knock him down before Park put home a second put-back shot for the game's first goal is beyond me. Why none of the Devils in the slot stepped up to challenge Park before he scores is second shot is beyond me. Yes, the Devils were not beaten by the big guns of the Islanders; but in the playoffs, even the fourth-liner can be a dangerous foe and should be taken as if he was a first-liner. That said, no one was glaringly bad among the Devils defenders and they did well enough.

In summary, it wasn't so much that the Islanders outplayed the Devils or played excellently as it was the Devils not playing well at all and the Islanders being better at that.

There were some bright spots. Scott Clemmensen played well in relief of Martin Brodeur. When I saw him come out for the initial skate-around before the game begins, I wasn't confident. However, he made a number of good saves. So I was wrong for doubting Clemmensen - and I don't blame him at all for either of the two goals (the defense and/or backchecking forwards should have picked up Park) nor for the shootout. I was also wrong for doubting Richard Matvichuk. He did play and didn't look out of place or terribly rusty on the third pairing, playing 12:45. I was concerned that he was going to be a weak link on defense, that he would be burned, and I felt that a player who hasn't played all season or should not be skating off any "rust" this late in the season. I was wrong, and I'm not so opposed to Matvichuk in the playoffs if he gives solid minutes - but only on the third pairing.

The other bright spot was John Madden. His deflection of a Jay Pandolfo shot late in the third period and his put-back of Jamie Langenbrunner's slapshot, which came off an Patrik Elias feed, with 0.9 seconds left were vital in tying up the game. Eventually, the game did go into a shootout and the Devils could not keep pace with the Islanders, who scored two to the Devils' one. Lou Lamoriello put Sergei Brylin out as the third shooter, which still baffles me. Yes, I know he scored a beautiful goal in the last shootout the Devils were a part of (Ottawa), but I don't think it makes him a better option than Patrik Elias, Scott Gomez, Jamie Langenbrunner, John Madden, etc. in the shootout. Brylin was stopped by a diving poke check and didn't get anything off. Great decision, as I roll my eyes.

With respect to the upcoming playoffs, which begins for the Devils this Thursday, the performance of yesterday's game is cause of concern. I thought the firing of Claude Julien was supposed to have this team stop coming out flat, retain their focus on the game for 60 minutes, and all that. Clearly, I was wrong. The Devils cannot afford to float on through the first period (or any other period) anymore. The Devils will be soundly beaten by Tampa Bay should that occur again. I'm a big believer in momentum and the Devils are going into a playoff series against a team that is known for it's offensive prowess with very little. Hopefully, Lou has the Devils working hard in practice to correct such occurrences before they become habits.

NOW THAT THE SEASON HAS ENDED: Trendon at On Fire has a statistical year in review that is worth checking out.

The New Jersey Devils have defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2. As always, NHL.com has the official scoresheet and official super stats of that game, linked respectively.

Two power play goals (Jamie Langenbrunner breaking his goalless slump, Sergei Brylin off a deflection) and a shorthanded game winning goal from Jim Dowd.

It wasn't perfect, but I'll tackle that before Sunday's season ending game against the Islanders. Let's focus on sweet rewards of this victory.

However, I still have something to say. Sorry. From what I saw (and from the results), the two teams were evenly matched and both struggled to charge to the net for the goal. The Devils goal was the result of hard work down in the corner by John Madden and Erik Rasmussen. Brian Rafalski received the feed from the corner and fired a shot that was strong, but low enough for Madden to deflect the puck in. A great goal. Less than a half-minute later, Ottawa responded when Daniel Alfredsson found just enough space next to the slot to fire a laser to beat Martin Brodeur. The rest of the game seemed to be an affair of which team will blink first: neither did. The same occurred in overtime. In an earlier time, we get a tie and be done with it. Not so, as every game has a winner and it went to a shootout.

This was an entertaining shootout. Brodeur stoned and robbed the Cash Line (Alfredsson, Heatley, Spezza); but the Devils could not capitalize on Ray Emery. Zach Parise hit the crossbar (and told his teammates that there's nothing up high), Zajac got stopped at the end, and Elias' attempt to listen to Parise and put it 5-hole did not work. Sudden death was upon us and Ottawa's Antoine Vermette struck first by putting it in between Brodeur's legs. It was OK as the Devils countered with a goal of their own. Another Ottawa goal, with Mike Comrie beating Brodeur to the post. Then Sergei Brylin scores his first shootout goal of the season in an impressive fashion, going high on Emery, hitting one post, the crossbar, then the other post, and in. Beautiful. Almost as pretty as that was Brodeur stopping Ottawa's Mike Fisher, the Senator's sixth shooter. Then John Madden successfully did what Elias was trying to do: go 5-hole on Emery; which decided the shootout and the game. Madden got the Devils' only goal and secured the shootout win; clearly the best player for NJ. Much credit goes to Brodeur for his 47th win this season, tying Bernie Parent's all-time record for most wins in a season.

The only real bad news is that late in the third period, Brian Gionta got hit in the foot with a shot (while jumping, if I recall correctly). Gionta skated off the ice, but did not return. Supposedly, he was sent to a hospital on a wheelchair for X-rays. Hopefully they're negative and Gionta can quickly heal.

The win was great for reasons other than Brodeur's record-tying performance and Madden's all-around solid game. The Penguins lost to Buffalo 4-1 last night, so now the Devils have a 3 point lead over Pittsburgh for the Atlantic Division lead. With 2 games remaining for both teams, earning a point at Philadelphia on Thursday can clinch the division and the #2 seed for New Jersey. The Devils are in the driver's seat for these last two games, which is definitely where they would like to be right now.

Thursday could be a big night: a division title and a new NHL season record can be established with a win over the last place team in the league. Lou made a point about the team needing to keep their focus, so I expect the Devils to do well that night. All the same, a win over a powerful Ottawa team is always good (especially when short another skater - Scott Gomez and Cam Janssen didn't play) and while some aspects of their performance could be improved, the Devils should be pleased with the result.

The New Jersey Devils soundly defeated the Boston Bruins 3-1 yesterday afternoon. As always, NHL.com has the official score sheet and official super stats of that game, linked respectively. Additional thoughts can be found by Patricia at 2 Man Advantage, who focuses on the first star of the game. Tibbs at the Beast from the East also has a recap of this game.

I apologize for not getting to this postgame recap sooner, but I just have so little to say. The Devils played a solid hockey game in all aspects for all 60 minutes. They came out strong, they skated well all game, and I can think of only a handful miscues: Colin White taking a hooking penalty in the second period which was quite dumb of him, Brian Rafalski drifting away from Marc Savard in the slot on the resulting powerplay - which led to a wicked one timer goal by Savard, and Andy Greene had some trouble with the puck sometimes. Other than that, there isn't much to criticize. Even the power play (fortunately) showed up, converting one of the five chances the Devils received.

Brian Gionta returned to the line up and his impact was felt immediately. Scott Gomez did not play so the first line featured Sergei Brylin centering Patrik Elias and Gionta and Gionta looked good all game long. Gionta also returned to the first power play unit, back at right wing and pounding the net. A Zach Parise shot trickled through Tim Thomas and fell right on the goal line. Before you could say "GET IT!" at your television, Gionta and Elias pounced on the loose puck and Gionta (getting to it first) knocked it in for the power play goal. Yes, Gionta returned to the line up and scored a power play goal; that's enough to say that his return from injury was a success. In general, the Devils forwards looked good despite being without Gomez and Cam Janssen, who did not play due to "soreness." The Devils did play with a short bench, but you couldn't have noticed that short of looking at the roster or the bench and counting players. Fatigue was not a factor in hurting the Devils.

The most impressive players for the Devils, however, were Brian Rafalski and the Goal Scoring Machine Jay Pandolfo. Rafalski's assist on the power play goal set a new career high in points with 53 and continued his point streak to 6 games (7 assists in that time span). Rafalski led a defense that only allowed 18 shots on net from Boston, largely quelling the force that is Marc Savard except on that one penalty kill. Rafalski had a great game, but more impressive was Jay Pandolfo. He didn't just score once, he scored twice and both were very pretty goals. The first came on an Erik Rasmussen feed across the slot; Pandolfo was in the right place and right time to knock that puck home with ease and authority. The second came in the third period via a blazing wrist shot that just beat Tim Thomas and put the proverbial nail in the proverbial coffin. I'd like to say it's usually rare to see Pandolfo score in a game much less twice, but not quite this season as he has 14 goals. OK, he isn't be the Rocket Richard of defensive forwards; but it's still praise-worthy, Pandolfo had a great game.

The Devils remain undefeated with a less than full roster, Brodeur has win #46, and most importantly the Devils now have a one point lead over the Pittsburgh Penguins for the Atlantic Division lead. Tuesday will be crucial as they host the Ottawa Senators. A win against this possible first round opponent would be huge for the Devils confidence and really put the screws to Pittsburgh's hopes of winning the division. If the Devils play Ottawa as well as they did today, that is most definitely possible.

The New Jersey Devils defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 3-1 to snap a 5 game losing streak at the Continental Airlines Arena. As always, NHL.com has the official score sheet and the official super stats of that game, linked respectively.

The three stars of this game was Mike Rupp, Travis Zajac, and Simon Gagne. While all three did well in the game, especially Rupp but I'll get to him in a minute. I must say that Martin Brodeur had a great game. He was vital in the first and second periods when it seemed that he was the only one to show up to play, deflecting pucks and making saves to prevent glorious scoring chances for the Flyers early on. To be fair, Brian Rafalski provided two crucial blocks in front of an open net after Brodeur moved out of the crease off a minor injury early on. It looked to be a strained leg, there's no worry, he played the rest of the game and played it well; just seemed to move it funny. All the same, while the Flyers didn't put a lot of shots on Brodeur in total, they clearly looked a lot better in the first two periods. Brodeur came up big en route to his 45th win this season. I just think he should have been named one of the stars; but those three are good enough.

I must reiterate this: The Devils were horrible in the first and second periods. OK, they were successful on their 3 penalty kills; but Brodeur factored big on that as well. More than halfway through the game, the Devils had a whopping 10 shots on Flyers goaltender Martin Biron. 10. Patrik Elias setting up a few - and I do mean a few - scoring chances the Devils had. Overall, for the first 38 minutes of the game, the Devils skated in slow motion, played way passive on defense, and did very poorly on offense. The crowd was booing at the Devils poor performance after PZL did little with a turnover deep in the Flyers' zone, as an example. And I did not blame them. I wanted to yell "MOVE! MOVE! MOVE! MOVE! MOVE!" at the TV, I wanted to convey to the Devils not named Brodeur to wake up, as the game actually meant something to NJ's playoff seeding. Sadly, I could not, for obvious reasons.

Fortunately, Mike Rupp of all people came through. Scott Gomez got injured during the first period and saw only 5:39 of ice time. The broadcasters on FSNY (Doc Emerick and Chico Resch) said it was a bruised thigh. With all the other Devils seemingly ready to return, I hope Gomez heals quickly. That said, it led to a first line of Mike Rupp and Patrik Elias with Sergei Brylin at center. Believe it or not, it actually worked. The Devils first goal started with another disappointment: a Patrik Elias slapshot goes nowhere near the net thanks to the stick breaking. But the puck goes into the corner, so Elias can skate back to the bench to get a stick. While that was happening, Rupp moves the puck along behind the net and it gets out to the point. Brad Lukowich gets the puck at the point while Rupp peals into the slot and fires a hard shot. Rupp deflects the shot in for the Devils first goal just as Elias gets his stick. Goal aside, Rupp was skating pretty hard with Elias (who also was hustling) and he played well filling in on the first line. It was amazing that the Devils scored first considering how putrid their entire performance was until that point. That goal led to more offense, however.

Mike York takes a hooking call late in the second, leading to a Devils power play. All right, the Devils scored one goal; but this is a power play and I'll be honest - I wasn't expecting much. Yet, the Devils actually did well on the power play and they did something even better: they scored. Elias along the boards won the fight for the puck, moved it up to Rafalski at the point, who fired a low shot at Biron. Parise tries to poke it in, fails, but it moves to Travis Zajac who puts it home and the Devils enter the third period with early two periods worth of bad performance and a two goal lead.

The Devils would really turn it on the third. The Devils put 10 shots on Biron in that period alone, looked good (but was not successful) on two power plays, and came close a number of times to extend that lead. The defense also stepped up and really shut the Flyers down, holding them to only 2 shots in that period (a total of 15 shots). John Madden did return to the line up and became more noticeable in this period on defense. David Clarkson was sent down to Lowell as a result (salary cap reasons as well, I believe); but I'm glad Madden returned and looked good (in the third mainly) with 20:11 of ice time. The defense did hang Martin Brodeur out to dry as Simon Gagne - the guy I was concerned about in my preview of the game - was wide open at the top of the slot. Gagne fired a laser up high to beat Brodeur and dash any hopes of a shutout. Fortunately, the Devils would close the Flyers down and ice the game with a backhand shot by Jay Pandolfo reaching the empty net.

Strong third period makes up for a crappy first two periods and the Devils retake the Atlantic Division lead with the win. The cliche states that good teams find ways to win games despite poor performances and unfortunate circumstances (losing Gomez to injury during the game is certainly unfortunate). Tonight's game is evidence supporting that cliche. Four games left for the Devils and Boston is next on Sunday, we should see Brian Gionta return for that home game. Hopefully Gomez will not be injured for too long and the Devils can close out this season with wins and a healthy team.