Embarassing effort

March 7, 2009   ·   Hasan   ·   Jump to comments

Before I bother with my own thoughts on the fiasco that was the Devils’ 7-3 loss on Long Island to a team 38 points behind them in the standings, here’s a Brent Sutter postgame quote that pretty well sums up what happened this afternoon:

This team we played tonight worked hard again and we weren’t ready to match that work ethic,” a clearly upset Sutter said afterward. “Our compete level tonight, it’s hard to play this game when you’re not physically involved. Outside of maybe a couple of guys, we weren’t involved like we needed to be. When you get seven goals scored against you, it tells you something, especially with a team that takes pride in playing well without the puck. That’s tells you where your mindsets were and it’s disappointing. They should be embarrassed because they got embarrassed by a bunch of young players that play hard and compete.”

Personally, it’s not losing that bothers me so much - it’s when my team doesn’t compete that I get aggravated.  While for the most part the Devils have given effort this year, they’ve had some frightening lapses along the way, including a 4-0 home loss to Atlanta back in January as well as today.  Losing to the New York Islanders is one thing, losing by four goals in back to back games against that team is another.  When you get outshot by the worst team in hockey through two periods, falling behind 6-2 then outshoot them 16-2 in the third period that tells me you didn’t compete in the first 40 minutes.

Obviously, things didn’t improve much from the first period which I already recapped in my prior blog.  And it didn’t take long for the Isles to wipe the momentum from Brian Gionta‘s early second period tally off the board when Sean Bergenheim‘s stoppable goal just 71 seconds later restored the Isles’ three goal lead.  Yes, Jamie Langenbrunner scored his 21st goal at 4:01 making the score 4-2 but the Devils got no closer after that and the game degenerated into a joke.  A ridiculously bad penalty by Langenbrunner opened the door for Blake Comeau to score on a power play thirteen minutes into the period.  Bergenheim again beat Brodeur through the pads minutes later, making the score 6-2 and effectively ending Brodeur’s afternoon early as he was pulled in the second intermission.

With the game out of reach, suddenly the Devils decided to show a little spark in the third period but despite outshooting the Isles by a wide margin could only convert one time, when Patrik Elias scored a tip-in power play goal at 6:48, Elias’s 26th of the season – giving the Devils their only successful power play (1-6) of the afternoon.  Joey MacDonald was somewhat of a surprise starter after Yann Danis‘s shutout against us a couple weeks ago and his great play since, but he made 35 saves in the game and the Devils would get no more goals today.

Then late in the game came one final aggravation.  Down 6-3 but on a power play with over three and a half minutes remaining Sutter pulled Weekes to get a two-man advantage.  Okay, fine – he had done this in Carolina earlier in the season with success (surprisingly that fact escaped Doc Emrick before Chico Resch reminded him).  Of course that power play faltered, but the Devils got another one with just over 90 seconds remaining.  At that point, what possible reason is there to pull Weekes?  Detroit playing a semipro team is not going to score three times in ninety seconds.  Not only that but Sutter left the net vacated after a stoppage in play, basically inviting Bergenheim to get a hat trick – which he did with just under a second remaining on a shot from practically the side of the goal and around a barely interested Brian Rolston.  I suppose it was a fitting end to the game in one respect, but really nothing was going to be accomplished by having the net empty and under a minute remaining.

In any case, the Devils’ loss and the Bruins’ win against Chicago puts them eight points behind for the top spot in the conference, and they squandered a game in hand with the Capitals though they’re still two points up for the second seed.  Next the Devils play a Calgary team that alternately looked fired up in a 5-1 win over the Flyers just after the deadline, then disinterested behind a backup goalie in a 6-1 loss to Carolina.  It does seem as if bad losses are contagious this time of year – the Bruins lost to Phoenix at home after all, and the Caps have had a couple of blowout losses recently too.  Still it was a dissapointing showing where better was expected…or as Lou Lamoriello would say, ’good is not good enough where better is expected’.  Today wasn’t even good.

Notes: Nicklas Havelid didn’t have a great debut for the Devils, playing 19:28 and being a -2…then again he was hardly alone in looking bad today.  Brodeur’s loss means the earliest he can tie Patrick Roy‘s wins record would be in Montreal this Saturday, but first he and the team need to concern themselves with Calgary and Phoenix at home this week.  Even before that they need to get their own game and effort level back to where it should be.     

BoNY Three Stars:

1. Sean Bergenheim (hat trick, +3)
2. Jeff Tambellini (goal, assist, +2)
3. Radek Martinek (goal, 24:30 icetime)