With the win, the Devils improved to fourth place in the tightly-knitted Eastern Conference.  Yet, Sidney Crosby’s return to Pittsburgh motivated the Penguins to a 2-0 blanking of Tampa, leaving them in the Conference’s driver seat by one point, 83 to 82.

The Devils captured an early edge, scoring twice before the Leafs jumped on the board late in the second period.

The Devils led 1-0 after one. After circling the net, Zach Parise's spin-o-rama sharp-angled shot beat Leafs goaltender Vesa Toskala.  Jamie Langenbrunner assisted on Parise's 26th at 11:22. Despite Parise's goal, Toronto generated more offensive momentum, outshooting New Jersey 14-5 in the opening frame, yet failed to beat Martin Brodeur, who played superbly. "I thought we played well in spurts," Parise said after the first. "I just wanted to put it on net. They're (Leafs) playing for their lives. We gotta get back to desperation and play for first."

Both teams committed one penalty apiece, but could not produce on the man advantage.

With the Devils on the power play, Brian Gionta extended the Devils edge, backhanding home Sheldon Brookbank's shot from the point at 5:11 of the middle stanza.  Dainius Zubrus and Brookbank added helpers on Gionta's 19th, his third in the last four games.  Zubrus snapped a four-game pointless streak with the assist but has yet to tally since Feb. 9, a span of 11 games.

“We made it easy on them in the first period,” Gionta said during the second period intermission, referring to the Leafs’ numerous chances on Brodeur.  Gionta also snapped the Devils 0-for-8 skid on the power play, netting his second in two games. “I’m working to get in front of the net,” he said.

At 16:47, Nik Antropov halved the score, rebounding Tomas Kaberle’s shot from point blank range.  Kaberle and captain Mats Sundin, who refused to waive his no-trade clause last month, assisted on Antropov’s 24th.

However, Brodeur, who competed in his 26th straight appearance, stood tall against the Leafs constant pressure.  He also rarely allowed any second chances of their 42 shots on goal.

“They had scoring chances but Marty made some big saves at big times, which you need in this league with a good goaltender,” Sutter said.  “He’s as fresh now as he was in October.”

In addition, the Devils skaters allowed Brodeur some breathing room, producing three or more goals for the first time in the last six games.

Skating into the Leafs zone, John Madden patiently waited for reinforcements.  He found a Toronto-native David Clarkson, who buried the hatchet in front of family and friends.  Madden and Sergei Brylin assisted on Clarkson’s 8th at 9:21 of the third, extending the score to 3-1.  Clarkson also broke a 13-game scoreless streak with the tally.

“We knew tonight was huge,” Clarkson said.  “I have to remember this is my first year and I’m going to work hard no matter what line they put me on. It’s been a great season for me and I need to compete, do the things that got me here and hope for the best.”

After Toronto’s defensemen pressured to close the gap, the Devils broke up the ice on another odd-man rush.  Patrik Elias stick-handled into the Leafs zone, feeding Parise an easy one-timer past Toskala, 91 seconds after Clarkson’s effort.  Jay Pandolfo and Elias assisted on Parise’s 27th, at 10:52 of the third.

The Devils also earned their fifth straight win when scoring on the power play and holding the opposition off the board on their man advantage.

New Jersey returns home to host Tampa on Friday night before visiting Toronto less than 24 hours later.  Since the Rangers fell in a shootout last night, the Devils maintain a 5-point lead over their crossriver rivals.  Toronto, meanwhile, continues to battle for a playoff spot, remaining six points behind the Flyers, who lost to the Sabres on Tuesday night. 

Notes:

The Devils have now won 25 road games in which they led after second period, the longest streak in NHL.

Rod Pelley, Vitaly Vishnevski remained out of the lineup as healthy scratches for the Devils. Paul Martin missed his second straight contest with an ankle injury.

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