Turning Point: Other Devils rookies make impact
By Brian A. Shactman
ESPN.com
This season has been the year of the rookie. So much talent emerged in the NHL, and a lot of the youngsters remain in the playoffs. Scott Gomez, Simon Gagne and Alex Tanguay are familiar names to many by now.
But in New Jersey -- home of Gomez, Calder Trophy favorite -- there are two other rookies, who few know much about but may have a major impact in the Devils-Maple Leafs series.
|  | | Rafalski isn't big, but he might have a big impact on the series. |
Left wing John Madden and defenseman Brian Rafalski are the next wave in a long line of young talent to come through New Jersey. Madden is a skilled forward, who has learned to modify his offensive game to become an excellent two-way player. Rafalski, a little more undersized than the 5-foot-11 Madden by about two inches, can generate a pretty rush and scoot back quick enough to break up the play in transition. He also proved a clutch scorer with the game-winning goal in Game 3 of the quarterfinal series against Florida.
They share the common experience of playing Division I college hockey in the midwestern United States. Rafalski, although a native of Michigan, traveled to Wisconsin for four years, while Madden bolstered some incredibly successful Michigan Wolverine teams.
From there, however, their respective paths to the NHL were quite divergent.
Like so many other New Jersey players, Madden went to Albany of the AHL and earned his stripes with 149 minor-league games. And like Jay Pandolfo, Sergei Brylin and Patrik Elias he's made the transition with the big boys and is making a difference in then NHL. In four playoff games, he has two assists and is a plus-2; he rarely hurts his team when on the ice.
Rafalski, on the other hand, is more of a Greg Hawgood success story. Probably due to his 5-foot-9 stature, Rafalski landed in Europe for four seasons before signing with the Devils last June. And what a find he has been. His 27 regular-season assists and plus-21 are impressive enough, but in the playoffs he's been involved in some crucial goals -- like the aforementioned game-winner -- and logged significant ice time. In Game 4 against Florida, Rafalski, with more than 23 minutes, was third on the team behind Scott Niedermayer and Scott Stevens.
The key for both players is sustaining their level of play as the playoffs progress. Will they hit the wall -- when rookies run out of steam because their bodies are unaccustomed to playing so many games? Gomez, who had 70 points this season, may have hit it head on; he has just one goal thus far and has seen his ice time diminish. Before this season, Gomez hadn't played more than 70 games, and he's suited up for 86 in '99-00. Madden hasn't slowed much, which isn't surprising because he played two full AHL seasons prior to this -- a far cry from Gomez's junior experience.
That leaves Rafalski, who played professionally in Europe. Rafalski never played more than 63 games in a season, yet he shows absolutely no signs of letting up.
If Gomez can find the spark, and Madden and Rafalski maintain theirs, the Devils will be too deep for Toronto.
Brian A. Shactman is the NHL Editor for ESPN.com. |
