With so many similarities, it’s likely to depend on goaltending, as usual. If the Devils win their fourth Stanley Cup, Martin Brodeur could win his first Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP, the one he was denied so unjustly with three shutouts as the Cup winner to J.S. Giguere’s one, in 2003.
Home ice actually matters in this series, although Devils coach Pete DeBoer is unlikely to make much of his matchup rights.
The Kings must travel transcontinental once more than the Devils will, at least until the Cup is awarded, and jet lag will be an issue, one the Devils had best pounce upon in tonight’s opener to put Los Angeles behind in a series for the first time this spring.
Everything is magnified in the finals, every strategy switch, every pass, every shot, especially every goal. It’s the big stage, bigger in importance than the Battle of the Hudson, and that will be one matter for the Devils to overcome, avoiding anticlimax. They have never won a Stanley Cup by going through the Rangers.
Here’s a look at how the teams match up:
FORWARDS:
The Devils have the skill, but the Kings may have the grit. New Jersey’s top nine forwards are formidable, and then there’s the fourth line, whose nine goals is a major reason they’re here. The Kings’ Dustin Penner and Dustin Brown will try to expose the Devils’ defense, just as other teams tried and failed. The additions of Jeff Carter and Mike Richards to Anze Kopitar give the Kings a 1-2-3 punch at center that will be a learning experience for Devils rookies Adam Henrique and Jacob Josefson, behind Travis Zajac.
Edge: EVEN.
DEFENSE:
Drew Doughty and ex-Devil Willie Mitchell have averaged 25 minutes of excellence in these playoffs, and the Devils will have to score while they’re goofing off. They may rely on ex-Penguin Rob Scuderi a little too much, while Matt Greene and rookie Slava Voynov will be tested. The Devils have enjoyed inexplicable offense from stopper Bryce Salvador, and deadline addition Marek Zidlicky will have to be better in his own zone while providing offense. Andy Greene has been as much of a stopper as Salvador, and Mark Fayne has played with the urgency the situation and his station require. Peter Harrold has been strong offensively, but he and Anton Volchenkov can find themselves stuck in their own end.
Edge: KINGS
GOALTENDING:
Jonathan Quick is the latest Wonderboy of the West to take on Brodeur, rising from obscurity to the finals. The Devils are likely to test him in close, then hope to score before he rises again. One of the Devils’ most important accomplishments in these playoffs has been to dominate early. Brodeur can look shaky until he finds his groove, and then he’s the Brodeur of old. The Kings will try to expose him early, or suffer the consequences. Pick against Brodeur after the first round at one’s own risk.
Edge: EVEN.
SPECIAL TEAMS:
The Kings score few on the power play and yield fewer when shorthanded, when they’ve nearly matched their power play output, 5-6. The Devils’ power play has shown moments of Oiler magic, particularly its last PPG against the Rangers, and there is plenty more potential it can tap, if allowed by the stingy Kings’ killers. Edge: DEVILS
COACHING:
Devils coach Pete DeBoer has earned his stripes, making moves absolutely when needed. His team believes and follows. Kings coach Darryl Sutter came in midseason to replace Terry Murray, giving the Kings a fresh voice, much as Jacques Lemaire did for New Jersey last season. The difference is that the Kings managed to finish eighth and get in, doing the damage the Devils can only dream they would have done last year.
Edge: EVEN.
PREDICTIONS
Mark Everson: After finally getting one right, we’ll have to let it ride. DEVILS in SIX.
Larry Brooks: The Kings present a package of size, speed and depth beyond any of the Devils’ three Eastern Conference conquests. Adding to the challenge is Quick, the goaltender who reduces the net to slivers for opponents at which to shoot. The penalty-kill is a dynamic force of which New Jersey point man Ilya Kovalchuk will have to be aware.
But the Devils’ depth exceeds the Kings, Kovalchuk and Zach Parise are building toward a peak, and the rolling thunder of a four-line forecheck is primed to give a thin L.A. blue line fits while the team’s big bodies create traffic in front of Quick. Brodeur, meanwhile, rediscovered by the hockey world, is four victories away from becoming the first goaltender in NHL history to win Stanley Cups 17 years apart. He’ll earn them.
DEVILS in SIX.