I really don't know any other way of describing the New Jersey Devils 4-0 road trip than dominant.  I think the team is unconscious right now.  Bill thinks they are catching fire.  After the first two wins of the trip, I had this feeling that they were overcoming some early season jitters.  But, after the final two victories, on back-to-back nights no less, over the Thrashers and Lightning on Saturday night, I've concluded that the Devils are unconscious right now (it's a good thing don't worry).

Devils Goaltender Martin Brodeur not only earned a milestone win No. 500 away from home, but he followed it up with wins 501, 502, and 503, in which he allowed three total goals over the four-game seven-day span.  He raised his save percentage above .900 for the first time this season and lowered his GAA below three to 2.44, while earning his first shutout of the year.

Brodeur received much help from Jamie Langenbrunner and Colin White's returns to the lineup.  Both players were recovering from off season surgery for separate injuries and were definitely missed for various reasons.  Langenbrunner's the freaken man actually, assisting on six of the last eight Devils goals, four on the power play.  A power play, which was struggling to sustain any pressure, has lately identified itself as one of the best ones in the league.

On Saturday night, the Devils endured their toughest matchup of the trip, another battle with the Lightning.  Brodeur received some help from the video review in the third period with the Devils leading 3-2 in a tightly contested game.   Although the referee initially indicated that the puck went in the net, replays and the guys upstairs correctly ruled that it never crossed the goal line, due in fact to defenseman Mike Mottau's leg helping Brodeur to keep the puck from scoring.

Brodeur made 34 saves on 36 shots in the game, 14 in the third period when the Devils only took one shot on net.  As expected, his October slump seems to be over and he is back to being the team's bread and butter.

I don't care what I said in October or at the beginning of November when the team was scaring me half to death with such poor play on the ice.  They have since made a 180 degree turn and are one of the hottest teams in the league.  The Devs also returned to their defensive-style, neutral zone trap, which seemed to irritate opposing team's flows during these past four games. 

I'm glad that head coach Brent Sutter figured out the ideal lines and positioning before it was too late in the season.  I always had confidence in him, whether I admitted it or was in denial.

If you had a chance to see John Madden's feed to David Clarkson on the two-on-one in the Devils three-goal second period, it was so beautiful and reminiscent of the team's performance this past week.  Brian Gionta added the two other goals, his sixth and seventh just as sweet, before Tampa threatened with a quick goal, 36 seconds into in the final period.  But, the Devils, as they've been playing lately, held on for dear life, thanked Brodeur for being so good at goalie and boarded a plane back to New Jersey with an un beaten road trip and an 11-10-2 winning record.

Can the Devils play this well on home ice?  That's the million-dollar question concerning a team that has only been 3-4-0 at the state-of-the-art Prudential Center in its augural season.  Home ice has been the Devils huge advantage the past five years (four seasons due to lockout) at the former Continental Airlines Arena, where they won 24, 27, 22, and 25 games.  They need to keep up that dominant penalty killing (they killed off 14 straight at one point during a 3-1 four-game stretch within the last two weeks of play) that helped them to this point.  Tampa was able to break free though and scored once on the man advantage by Jason Ward.  Vincent Lecavalier tallied the first Lightning goal, his 16th of the season.  But, that's all she wrote as Brodeur and the Devilscompleted the four-game streak utilizing hard work, patience, and a complete team effort.

While Langenbrunner was manning one of the two power play units, White was using his physique in preventing teams from scoring on their man advantages.  He was situated to defend against a five-on-three and held his ground efficiently against the Thrashers.  Sutter also situated him on the ice in the final seconds, proving to skeptics that White's blurriness from his eye injury might not have and may not ever heal 100%, but he's a terrific stay-at-home and physical defenseman, and equally as important to his teammates.

The Devils did not have their full lineup card when Patrik Elias was unavailable the past two games due to the flu.  I was glad that the Devils still managed to win both matchups without one of their best players, but also that Elias could take a rest, prepare for Dallas on Wednesday night.  He was struggling a bit and I am hoping that he takes the time off to recover and then return to the ice stronger than ever.

I'll have a full preview on Dallas before Wed. night's game, but the Stars are also hot.  They are coming off a five-game winning streak, having just defeated the struggling Rangers 3-2 on Sunday afternoon, before a visit to the Islanders on Monday, and the Devils on Wed. as part of their three games in four nights against New York metropolitan area teams.

Although the Devils are firing on all cylinders, they are now on hiatus for three full days and cannot afford to miss a beat.  They recently completed nine consecutive games against Division rivals and now stay home for five non-division yet important matches.

The Devils will need to maintain their balanced scoring, ride Brodeur's hot hand or glove, and keep up their unconscious play to extend their longest winning streak of the season.

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