New York Rangers Defeat New Jersey Devils, Game One ECF Recap

New York Rangers Defeat the New Jersey Devils 3-0 in Game One of the Eastern Conference Finals – Recap, Reflection, Thoughts, and NHL Playoffs Predictions from a Devils Perspective

The New Jersey Devils hung with the New York Rangers for two full periods before falling apart in a disaster of a third. In that period the Devils looked tired and sloppy, and the Rangers capitalized on two terrible errors to put the game away. The Devils defensive corps, sure to be a focal point of the series, made two huge mistakes that led to goals. Marek Zidlicky was late rotating over after a bad hop caused Bryce Salvador to miss a bouncing puck, which led to an open slapshot from Girardi for the first goal. The second error was a lazy play where Anton Volchenkov got caught on the wrong side of the ice on a break. Other than those two goals, which can be chalked up to the unfortunate play of those in front of him, Martin Brodeur was brilliant.

If Brodeur was brilliant, Henrik Lundqvist was Albert Einstein. While Brodeur made a couple dynamic saves to keep his team in the game, Lundqvist never left any doubt in his shutout effort. The Rangers blocked 26 shots in front of him, and save for a few key saves, the Devils really never had any good chances. Something needs to change if New Jersey is going to make this a series – whether it’s the lines or the philosophy.

New Jersey’s incredible forecheck of the last series was slowed down. While their pressure resulted in a few turnovers and sustained rushes, it did little to produce legitimate scoring chances. The Rangers are definitely faster than the Flyers were, and the Devils cannot afford to be this sloppy going forward. Still, it was Game One on home ice for the Rangers. They are supposed to win that game, and did so fairly convincingly in the third. The Devils hung around for two periods, but their third period effort was certainly lacking.

Why New Jersey Has Hope:

Marty Brodeur was phenomenal again. His diving save across the crease with the glove could be the save of the playoffs. It’s a shame that the mistakes in front of Brodeur led directly to two goals. Henrik Lundqvist was able to pick up a few Rangers errors, particularly the dangerous pass from behind the net that was nearly tipped in early in the game. Lundqvist made a skate save, and went on to shutout New Jersey. Still, it seems you can expect Marty Brodeur to stay hot throughout the series. The only question is whether the Devils can rebound offensively.

It’s amazing to me that with only a day off to prepare for the Devils, their new lines, and their new forecheck, the Rangers could dominate the Devils so completely. The Devils should know by now that the Rangers like to clog up the shooting lanes, block shots, and minimize scoring chances. Why then, could the Devils only muster a few legitimate opportunities to score? Hopefully after the Rangers played so well to open the series, the Devils can adjust between games and not allow the Torts system to dominate Game Two.

Additionally, if the Devils can keep games close going forward (and they will if Brodeur stays hot), they can wear out a Rangers team that is in rhythm, but tired. New York has played a lot of hockey this month, and New Jersey needs to get their skaters loose. Hopefully some adjustments and fatigue will kick in to make this a fun series.