Devils Upend Thrashers, Can They Make it Four Straight?
The New Jersey Devils have broken out of their slump and the Tampa Bay Lightning are in the midst of their three-game losing streak. Goaltender Martin Brodeur is heating up and just recorded his first shutout of the season, 3-0, last night over the Thrashers, a milestone no less. He is 1-1 against the Lightning this year, losing the season opener 3-1 before a 6-1 convincing victory in the Prudential Center. Jamie Langenbrunner has made a serious contribution since returning to the lineup on Nov. 14th after offseason surgery. He’s scored two goals and added three assists the last two games on all five Devils goals, both wins. Having him back in the rotation, especially on the power play where he has assisted on three goals, after the Devils failed to score on the man advantage for what felt like a decade, is crucial for the team’s success this year.
Patrik Elias missed last night’s game and is out against the Lightning with a touch of the flu. Hopefully, he can use this recovery time to get his head straight and return to optimal form. Congrats to fourth-line center Rod Pelley on his second goal of the season and fourth point overall in only 5:32 of ice time.
Everything clicked last night, including Brodeur’s perfect save percentage on 22 Thrashers shots, their special teams, just about all you can ask for.
Congrats to NJD defenseman Paul Martin on his first goal of the season, a power play blast, after returning from a lower body, which shelved him for eight days. Pelley and Martin scored in the second period, with Martin’s goal the crucial one putting the Devils in front 2-0 and taking the crowd out of the contest.
Congrats to Colin White for coming back from a career-threatening eye injury suffered during training camp. He logged over 20 minutes on ice time against the Thrashers on 26 shifts including 3:15 of penalty kill time, stopping 19-goal scorer Ilya Kovalchuk, who logged a game-high 28:11, from adding to his scoring total.
The Devils special teams units have been amazing lately, killing off both Thrashers power plays and making it 15-15 over the past four games.
Of course, Jay Pandolfo finished the scoring with an empty-netter, his team-leading eighth goal of the season. He also scored three goals against the Lightning the last time these two teams played.
With Marty on his game, the Devils playing their defensive-style, low scoring, physical games, they are clicking on all cylinders. This is a crucial back-to-back game against a struggling and inconsistent team that has had success against the Devils in the past. Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis are two of the premier players in the league and must be contained for a win.
The Devils must continue to limit opposing team’s scoring chances and power play opportunities (Thrashers only had two power plays all game) while reaching the net on their man advantages.
They are flying high, the team looks very good and definitely wants to end a four-game road trip 4-0 before they return to New Jersey.
Notes:
The Prudential Center practice arena should be ready for use by the Devils next home game, Wednesday night versus Dallas…Brodeur’s shutout was his 115th overall in his regular season and playoff career, tying Terry Sawchuk for the most all-time. Brodeur is in third place with 93 in the regular season, 10 fewer than Sawchuks’s 103… Sergei Brylin was the only consistent Devils center to win the majority of his faceoff draws against the Thrashers, going 10-13. Madden was 11-24, Pelley 2-7, Zajac 5-14… Danius Zubrus, who was heavily criticized for inefficent playing, is currently tied with Brian Gionta on the Devils point list, with 4G, 9A, and 13 points.
- ‹ previous
- 177 of 430
- next ›
Featured
Subscribe Free
Jeremy - A response to your Hummer Metro Ice Challenge Blog
Jeremy, This is a letter sent to Hummer. I am surprised that none of these ideas came to you or were at the very least questioned.
While watching the Rangers play their usual brand or roller coaster hockey this afternoon I yet again came across another advertisement for the Hummer Metro Ice Challenge. Whether it is that incessantly annoying video or the nescient announcers touting this new and cutting edge strategy for true hockey fans to have the rivalry ratcheted up by a ridiculous promotion.
My letter stems more from the paltry amount Hummer offers than the elementary concept or promotion behind it. 2006 Hummer sales grew 202 percent over the previous year, largely on the strength of the new H3, GM’s newest “I’ve arrived” statement. The final award from the magnanimous division of General Motors is $50,000.00 to be relegated to the charity of choice of the winning team. I would submit that the mail clerk in the Hummer building is netting approximately 65 grand so this shiny donation is appearing to lose its luster. In return for all the airplay, recognition and television spots, some genius in the Hummer organization actually floated this idea to the three teams and it stuck.
Hummer has indeed found the true crystallizations of PT Barnum’s contention here in the NHL. However, the fact remains that charities require more than feigned philanthropy. They need organizations with not only the monetary capability, but the will to donate to their good work. This is nothing more than a disingenuous attempt to appear socially conscious since I have contributed to various charities for years and have infinitely less money than these three teams and General Motors. In the future please alter your mindset and public persona from self-serving campaigns to a seemingly unattainable level of benevolence.