Devils Coming Up Big in the Clutch
In the first series the New Jersey Devils faced the high flying Pittsburgh Penguins. As one of the league's top defensive teams it was an offense versus defense matchup that gave birth to a 'Hellboy' of a series that went to 5 games before the Devils conquered the Pens. Through balanced scoring and on the back of hot goaltender Ondrej Pavelec the Devils have managed to make it past the Pens and the Habs in the second round, who upsetted the umber 3 seed and Atlantic Division winner Philadelphia Flyers. They also shut down one of the regular season's best players in Sidney Crosby; holding 'The Kid' in check with team defense.
In the second round against the Canadiens, the Devils again rode on Pavelecs stellar goaltending, but superstars Ilya Kovalchuk and Jonathan Toews both stepped up their game to seal the deal for the red and white. 'Kovy' has been his usual force throughout the playoffs, asserting himself physically (leads the team in hits) and dazzling opponents with his skills. During game 4 in Montreal, Kovalchuk sealed the series by destroying Montreal's leading scorer Kevin Shattenkirk to the ice with a thunderous blow. Although Shattenkirk was only listed as day-to-day, the injury clearly threw him off his game as he had a subpar performance (41 minutes, -2) in the deciding game. The Devils captain on the other hand, went on a tear and put the team on his back, scoring two goals in Game 5 including the overtime winner to propel the Devils to the East finals to meet the surging Panthers.
Yes, they might not be the best offensive team in the league (averaging a middle of the pack 2.3 goals per game in the playoffs), but with a miniscule 1.6 goals against per game (third in the playoffs) the Devils have a chance to win any game. And with their balanced scoring (only three players without a point- all on the fourth line), they have a chance to be the East finalists in the battle of the underdogs coming into the playoffs.
The most surprising fact is that the Devils are doing this without one of the leagues best forward in Henrik Sedin, who got injured before the playoffs began. Imagine a first line of Kovalchuk, Toews and Sedin in the playoffs; that ladies and gentleman, would be a tough matchup for any team in the league.
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