By: Tim Brennan
The Devils had been on a downslide, having comprised a record of 6-12-2 in the 20 games played before the 2010 Olympic Games. That is not something that the Devils are used to this season and is hurting their chances at claiming the Atlantic division title. Most of the team was having a slump of their own, which included future Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur whose stats were less than stellar in that stretch, posting a dismal .826 save percentage. With a few games under his belt, sniper Ilya Kovalchuk looked more comfortable and ready to produce. Zach Parise and Travis Zajac fell into slumps during that time as well but have since gotten out of those. If the team was going to continue the success they've had all year, they needed everyone producing.
That all around effort showed in their first outing since the Olympic break when they took on Stanley Cup favorites, the San Jose Sharks at "The Shark Tank". The Devils set the pace with 3 quick goals in the second period after the first ended in a deadlock. It was obvious that the Devils were controlling everything about the game up until the point where they came back out on the ice for the 3rd. Travis Zajac pulled the game to an unreachable limit as he made it 4-0 early in the third. However the Sharks charged back by scoring 3 goals in a 3 minute span to bring the game back to within a goal. The Devils scrambled in their own end for the majority of the third and didn't play the trap system that they normally utilize. They came out on top 4-3 but had a tough time making through the final stanza.
Fast forward to Friday night when the Devils came into Calgary to go up against the new look Flames. Both teams have had struggles in spurts during this year and they both converged on Pengrowth Saddledome to stake a claim at showing the other up. The Devils needed to show that they can beat strong teams in the West, so this was an important game for them. Like most games for the Devils, they tend to get on the board first and did so courtesy Zach Parise and his 29th of the season. But once again the floodgates opened up and the Flames scored 3 second period goals, which continued into the third as Matt Stajan and David Moss tallied to make it 5-1. The Devils gathered themselves and put together a valiant effort to get two late goals from Parise and Ilya Kovalchuk, but fell short. This was not the result that the Devils were looking for, especially since the Pittsburgh Penguins continue to win and are starting to pull away with the lead in the division.
The Devils looked to redeem themselves after a lackluster performance when they took on the Edmonton Oilers. Yes, the Edmonton Oilers that sit in last place and look primed for the top spot in the Taylor Hall sweepstakes. For the Devils, this had to be an easy win and would be the perfect team to play to start anew to get rid of this slump they have been in. The result of this game you ask? A big victory for one team for sure but that team was not the New Jersey Devils. The Oilers controlled the tempo from the puck drop until the end of the game, outshooting the Devils 35-22 and beat them 2-0. If not for a scrum between Ryan Whitney and Andrew Peters that ended in the latter receiving a ten minute misconduct, I would have never known the Devils showed up.
It's obvious to everyone that Jacques Lemaire needs to do something to shake up the team, although that isn't his style. If I was the big boss in charge, I would do something about limiting Martin Brodeur's playing time because he needs a rest. Giving Yann Danis more playing time is going to help both Brodeur in resting for the playoffs and Danis in allowing him to establish an identity in the NHL.
Along with that, the lines need to be jumbled to get certain players to contribute on a night to night basis. The scoring line of Dainius Zubrus centering Ilya Kovalchuk and Patrik Elias has been a bright spot and needs to stay put. I would put Brian Rolston on the opposite side of Zach Parise to see how that might work with Zajac at center. Jamie Langenbrunner would be put on the 3rd line with surprise performer Rob Niedermayer and rookie Vladimir Zharkov. The fourth line would consist of Dean McAmmond centering Jay Pandolfo and David Clarkson. McAmmond left the game after a hit so if he is in fact going to miss some games, I would put Rod Pelley in to center that line.
The defense pairings would also be altered because the defense hasn't shown much chemistry and has been one of the main reasons why the team has struggled of late. A matching of Bryce Salvador and Andy Greene would be the 1st pairing, followed by Mike Mottau with Anssi Salmela and finally, Mark Fraser with newcomer Martin Skoula. Yes, that's right Colin White's name is not on there and the reason for that is because he is nowhere's near the physical force and defensive wall that he used to be in the pre-lockout NHL.
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