Devils dim Stars 4-0

After a week that saw the New Jersey Devils split a pair of road games (losing in Chicago,defeating Minnesota) the Devils returned to action with a 4-0 whipping of the visiting Dallas Stars.
Martin Brodeur had 28 saves in the shutout win,while the Devils received goals from Patrik Elias (9 & 10),Zach Parise (18) and Travis Zajac ( 10 power play).
The Devils return to action Friday against Tampa at the Rock before traveling to Montreal on Saturday.

Hell Raisers

1) Patrik Elias was the player of the night with two goals,but Elias showed unusual fire when he dropped the Stars Steve Ott (A Sean Avery playalike) with a crosscheck that earned Elias two minutes in the box.
Jacques Lemaire wasn't thrilled with the penalty,but since the Devils killed the two minutes,it was a good thing in my opinion.
Elias standing up for himself and earning respect can do nothing but help.

2) Elias also made the penalty look better by charging from the box and joining a rush that instantly became a 3 on 2,ending in an Elias goal.
Good hustle and that two minute segment was the backbreaker of the evening for Dallas.

3) Martin Brodeur's shutout was his third in his last seven games and he was sharp all evening.
Brodeur robbed Mike Ribiero and Loui Eriksson each on shots that normally have an excellent chance of going in.

4) The goal for Travis Zajac snapped a 12 game run without a goal for the Devils first line center.
While that is entirely too long,it does show just how well the Devils have been playing to continue to win without Zajac and Zach Parise scoring many goals.

5) Bryce Salvador and Pierre Luc LeBlond each returned to the ice after layoffs.
While Salvador's was just two games,LeBlond hadn't been in action since November.
LeBlond hit a few Stars and tried to get Steve Ott to throw hands,but Ott wisely demurred.

6) David Clarkson will miss another two to three weeks after aggravating his right leg injury.
Here is hoping Clarkson gets all in order this time and this nagging injury goes away.

7) I missed the road swing due to late starts and work,but wanted to give a late tip to Jamie Langenbrunner,who scored the only goal in the Chicago loss and added his first ever hat trick in defeating the Wild.
Add that to two assists last night and the Captain is having quite a run.

Photo Credits-Rich Schultz-AP Photo