Rookies make difference for New Jersey
Associated Press
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- While Martin Brodeur and Scott
Stevens have been outstanding, one of the big reasons the New
Jersey Devils have played so well in the playoffs is their rookies,
and we're not talking about Scott Gomez.
Gomez, who led NHL rookies in points and is the top candidate
for rookie of the year honors, is struggling compared to center John Madden and defensemen Colin White and Brian Rafalski.
|  | | Scott Gomez may win the Calder Trophy, but he isn't the only talented young player on the Devils. |
White scored the only goal, Madden helped kill off a crucial
four-minute high-sticking penalty in the third period and Rafalski
spent most of the night helping Stevens shut down Toronto's top
line as the Devils evened their best-of-seven series with the Maple
Leafs on Saturday night.
Games 3 and 4 of the second-round Eastern Conference series will
be played at the Continental Airlines Arena on Monday and
Wednesday.
"They are all fitting perfectly into the playoffs for us,"
left wing Patrik Elias said after the Devils practiced Sunday.
"Whitey is a tough guy who works hard. He's surprised me. He's
played well.
"Mads does his jobs well and plays hard, and Ralfy, he's got a
lot of experience even though this is his first year here."
Since the playoffs started, the three rookies all made major
contributions.
White, a late season recall from Albany of the AHL, not only has
played a physical, tough game on defense, he also has a plus-3
rating.
Rafalski, who has been Stevens' defensive partner all season,
also is plus-3. He has two assists and one goal, the game winner in
Game 3 of the opening-round sweep against Florida.
Madden, who tied a record with six short-handed goals in the
regular season, has helped the Devils kill off 23 of 24
short-handed situations. He's a plus-2 for the playoffs with one of
his two assists coming on a goal by Scott Niedermayer during a
two-man disadvantage in Game 2 against Florida.
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GOMEZ'S SITUATION
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On Sunday, coach Larry Robinson
skated over to Gomez during practice and
said something that left both men smiling.
It was decidedly different from an exchange they had before Game
2 of the team's series against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
When Robinson spoke to Gomez before the Devils' 1-0 victory on
Saturday to even the series, he wasn't kidding around with the
odds-on favorite to win the NHL's rookie of the year award.
Gomez wasn't playing well, and Robinson told him as much.
"Gomer is not moving his feet like before," said Robinson, who
said he considered benching the forward for Game 2.
"But he was a lot better last game, I thought. But in the
playoffs, if you don't step it up and you play similar to the
regular season, you're going to be a step behind."
-- Associated Press
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Gomez has been the biggest surprise, with the surprise being his
lack of play and production. Although he had the game-winning goal
in the series opener against Florida, his playing time has
diminished. He's minus-1 in six playoff games.
Coach Larry Robinson nearly scratched him Saturday night because
he has not been skating well. He played just 12 shifts and 9
minutes, 34 seconds on Saturday, but Robinson said he skated
better.
"To tell you the truth, as long as the team wins, there is
nothing to be down about," Gomez said Sunday.
Rafalski, who played four years in Sweden and Finland before
joining New Jersey this season, said it isn't hard to fit into the
Devils system because everyone has a role.
"We all know what we need to do," Rafalski said. "There
hasn't been much change coming to the playoffs. Mad Dog (Madden) is
still killing off penalties and it seems his playing time has
increased playing against the top lines.
"I'm still playing with Scotty, and Whitey has been solid. I
guess the only thing is Gomer (Gomez) has been struggling a bit. He
may be a little tighter, but I'm sure he'll adjust and he'll do
better as we play more games."
Like Gomez, the Maple Leafs have struggled generating offense
against Brodeur, taking just 41 shots in two games.
"We have to get the pace up and make it more end to end,"
center Mats Sundin said. "We won't win the series this way."
Sundin, Steve Thomas and Jonas Hoglund combined for 10 goals
against Ottawa in the first round. The line has not scored against
the Devils.
"Our game is a creative, flowing game through the neutral zone
and they're not allowing us to do that," said Thomas, a former
Devils player. "We worked on a few things in practice to try and
combat that." |
