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Sunday, Apr. 16 7:30pm ET
Niedermayer returns, finds net for Devils | |||||
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BOX SCORE
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) -- Scott Stevens is not only shutting down Florida scoring machine Pavel Bure on one end of the ice, the New Jersey Devils defenseman is also beating the Panthers on the other end, too.
"You can't say enough about Scotty (Stevens), he's really led us the last two games," said fellow defenseman Ken Daneyko. "He's been a big-time player showing us the way. I said before the game he and Niedermayer are the two keys, and they did a good job." Rookie John Madden set up both odd-man rush goals and Martin Brodeur stopped 22 shots as the Devils took a commanding 2-0 advantage in the best-of-7 first-round Eastern Conference series by winning the first two at home. Mike Sillinger scored for Florida, which will play host for the next two games, on Tuesday and Thursday. "It's a must-win game, no doubt," said Panthers goalie Mike Vernon, who was outstanding stopping 26 shots. "We all know the situation at hand. Even though we think we gave it our all tonight, we have to push ourselves harder for the next game. It's not going to get any easier." The game was the first for Niedermayer since an ugly incident on March 19, when he whacked Florida's Peter Worrell over the head with his stick after being elbowed. There were some chants of "Scotty, Scotty" when he stepped on the ice the first time, and the two players bumped a couple of times in the game without incident. "I have never been through anything like this before and hopefully never again," Niedermayer said. "It wasn't too easy after it happened, but after a few days I just looked forward to this game tonight. I'm just trying to forget about it." The Panthers tried to hit Niedermayer every chance they had, but no one was around him when he whacked home a Madden rebound 56 seconds into the second period with Florida enjoying a 5-on-3 power play. "I didn't ask for that, it just happened," Niedermayer said. "I jumped up into the play." That tied it at 1, and Stevens got his second playoff goal in as many games, capping a 2-on-1 with Madden at 3:42 of the third period. Stevens worked a give-and-go with the rookie and then made a great move to his backhand to slide the puck between the legs of Vernon. "This is just a bonus for me," said Stevens, who has shadowed Bure since the series opened and not allowed a goal. "You don't think about scoring but it's obviously nice when you can take advantage. It's nice to put the puck into the net against their top line." Brodeur denied Alex Hicks in close less than two minutes after Stevens scored. He also got lucky when Bure clanged a shot off the goal post with 10:37 to go. Bure, who had a minus-2 rating in the opening game, helped the Panthers take a 1-0 lead with 5:15 left in the period. He got the puck in the right corner, charged the net and tried to stuff a shot in. Brodeur made the save, but Sillinger slammed home the rebound for his second goal of the series. The Devils tied it while skating with a two-man disadvantage in the opening minute of the second period. Panthers defenseman Robert Svelha could not keep a clearing attempt by Stevens in the New Jersey zone, setting up a break by Madden down the left wing. Vernon stopped his slap shot from the circle, but Niedermayer whacked the rebound out of the air into an open net. "I had no idea Scott was with me," Madden said. "I shot it and he did a nice job putting it in." Panthers captain Scott Mellanby couldn't remember giving up a 3-on-5 goal. "I'm going to remember this one, unfortunately," he said. "It's a huge swing. It turned the game around." Brodeur made two good saves on slap shots by Bure late in the period and the Devils just missed taking the lead late in the final minute of the period when Alexander Mogilny banged a slap shot off the crossbar. Devils left wing Sergei Brylin bruised his right knee early in the third period in a collision with Oleg Kvasha. He might play on Tuesday. Despite some concern about an abdominal strain, Daneyko played in his 110th consecutive playoff game for the Devils. New Jersey center Jason Arnott, who sprained a wrist in the Devils' 4-3 Game 1 victory, and Panthers defenseman Mike Wilson, who bruised a foot, also played. | ALSO SEE NHL Scoreboard Florida Clubhouse New Jersey Clubhouse RECAPS Edmonton 5 Dallas 2
New Jersey 2 AUDIO/VIDEO   John Madden feeds Scott Stevens for the goal.avi: 482 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1 Florida has a two-man advantage in the last minute, but New Jersey controls the puck and gets the win.avi: 1215 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1   | |||||
