Devils even despite some struggling stars
By Brian A. Shactman
ESPN.com
To win their East semifinal against the Maple Leafs, the Devils had to win at least one game on the road.
Coach Larry Robinson club did that, and if it wasn't for Toronto goalie Curtis Joseph, New Jersey could have come home for Game 3 up 2-0.
But the Devils are succeeding in this series without contributions from a few key players -- two of whom were brought to New Jersey specifically for this time of year.
|  | | Mogilny, center, has scored just one goal this postseason, and it was against Florida in the first round. |
Claude Lemieux, Alexander Mogilny and Scott Gomez do not have a point in the series. Even though that's no surprise considering the Devils only have two goals in two games, not seeing those three names on the scoresheet is something that has happened a lot this postseason.
The three have combined for three points in a combined 18 games. Not good.
The Devils traded for Mogilny at the trading deadline to provide speed and a scoring threat. Mogilny may not be anything like the player who scored 76 goals in a seasoon in the early '90s, but he had 24 this season. He's fast and remains a legitimate threat at all times. But hasn't been too fearsome of late.
Lemieux came on board earlier in the season basically due to his legend as a playoff star, who has won the Stanley Cup three times, including once with the Devils. Lemieux has 76 career goals in 204 postseason games. He's due. Overdue.
Scott Gomez is the odds-on favorite to win the Calder Trophy as the league's top rookie. His 70 regular-season points were second on the team, one less than Patrik Elias. But since getting 21 points 14 January games, his numbers have steadily decreased. He had 10 points in the same amount of games in March. And in the final four regular-season games, Gomez had one point and was minus-5. That means he has just two points in his last 10 games. He is either running out of gas -- rookies often hit a wall because their bodies aren't accustomed to playing so many games in one season. It may also be a case of other teams focusing on him more, thus taking away some of the space and time he had earlier in the season.
From viewing the first two games against Toronto, New Jersey looks like it certainly can beat the Leafs without significant point production from these guys -- they can contribute in other ways. But to make it to the Cup finals, and perhaps win it, at least two of these three players needs to come alive to score or set up a few goals.
Brian A. Shactman is the NHL Editor for ESPN.com. |
