Ole, ole, goodbye!

January 2, 2009   ·   Hasan   ·   Jump to comments

Before tonight’s game with Montreal I read all sorts of message board speculation about how many Hab fans would invade the Prudential Center tonight, I have to admit I scoffed but man there were a ton of Montreal fans at Bell Center the Rock.  Maybe there weren’t as many Hab fans as Ranger fans during a Devil-Ranger game but the Montreal contingent was certainly loud, brought signs and were well-coordinated with their Ole! and Go Habs Go! chants.

All of that made tonight’s 4-1 Devils win that much sweeter – and more fun.  I have to admit it makes things more lively to go back and forth with another fanbase during the game, especially when they don’t cross the line with drunken nonsense.

After a shaky first few minutes for the Devils, both teams settled into a back-and-forth game, which included each goaltender trading bad goals in the first period.  Brian Gionta opened the scoring at 14:21 with his 10th goal of the season, surprisingly on one of those infamous shots from the boards that always seem to hit goalies’ crests.  99 times out of 100 they do, but this time the shot eluded Jaroslav Halak, who is normally a capable backup but just didn’t have it tonight.

Usually Devils fans make a list of the shooters Martin Brodeur allows to score their first NHL goal, tonight Scott Clemmensen let Max Pacioretty score not only his first NHL goal at 16:30 but in his NHL debut to boot, on a wrist shot from just inside the blueline that should have been stopped.  As has been the case with Clemmensen throughout his Cinderella run however, he allows one bad goal per game then nothing else.  Looking around the stands after Pacioretty’s goal, I couldn’t help but notice section 117 literally looked like it was a reserved Montreal section, practically everyone there stood up.  And there were pockets of Hab fans throughout the arena…maybe I should have taken pictures, oh well. 

On the ensuing shift just five seconds later came the highlight of the first period, if not the entire game – after the drop of the puck David Clarkson and Tom Kostopoulos went at it like rabid dogs, but Clarkson got the better of him and then punctuated his win by throwing Kostopoulous to the ice with a vengeance, firing up the crowd and quite possibly the team.  Less than two minutes later, Zach Parise scored his 22nd of the season, making a nice move and beating Halak through the legs to give New Jersey a 2-1 lead that they would not relinquish.

With just three goals, seven assists and a -8 in 30 games this season, John Madden‘s had a rough go of it, but tonight he looked more like the Mad Dog of old, playing 16:48 and helping to kill off all four Montreal power plays.  Fittingly Madden was rewarded for one of his best games of the season with a pretty goal, when he and Mike Rupp were sprung on a two-on-one, and Madden beat Halak for his first goal since October 22 – 25 games ago!  The time of the goal?  11:11.

Having a 3-1 lead in the third period is by no means safe, especially considering the Devils lost a game to Montreal last year with a 3-1 lead in the third period at home.  This year would prove to be a different story however, as for once the Devils delivered a pain-free third period and even added an insurance goal when Jamie Langenbrunner beat Marc Denis – yes that Marc Denis - with a backhander in front for his sixth goal of the season, after Halak was pulled during the second intermission.  To their credit most of the Hab fans stayed but were definitely muted a little by the three unanswered goals that led to a 4-1 Jersey triumph, the Devils’ third win in four games.

BoNY Three Stars:

1. Scott Clemmensen (33/34 saves)
2. Zach Parise (goal, assist, +2)
3. Jamie Langenbrunner (goal, assist, +2)