The return of their record goal-scorer didn’t snap the Devils out of their latest drought. Now they’re skidding as they hit the road for nine of 11.
In their last eight games, they’ve scored three regulation goals only twice. After falling 4-1 to the Bruins at the Meadowlands last night, they’ve lost three of five.
“I said I’d be happy, no matter where we end up in the standings, as long as we were playing well. We can’t be [happy] after the last few games,” Patrik Elias said.
Elias and Scott Gomez rejoined last year’s 48-goal scorer Brian Gionta, back in action after sitting out eight with a groin injury. But the reunion wasn’t permanent.
Elias was shifted off that line in favor of Mike Rupp, who then scored New Jersey’s lone goal, assisted by Gionta, in the third. They were reunited later, with no effect.
“We were definitely sluggish, not winning the battles, and it showed,” said Gionta, who last scored Jan. 30, a seven-game zippo. Gomez is without a goal in 10 straight, Elias in seven.
“You play teams who have to win now, and you have to match their intensity,” said Martin Brodeur, denied a record-extending 40th victory of the season for the second (0-1-1) straight game. He holds the mark of five 40-win seasons, with second place at three.
The Bruins jumped in front early and gave Joey MacDonald his second NHL victory. Aaron Ward, traded by the Rangers for Paul Mara last week, notched his first point as a Bruin to open the scoring 12:26 into the first. Ward’s high wrister from the right point slipped through a screen of Devils defenseman Andy Greene and Boston’s Stanislav Chistov to find net under the crossbar.
“You could see we had nothing early. We were flat,” Elias said.
The Devils gave up their 10th short-hander of the year when Marco Sturm burned them 19 seconds into the second period, breaking past Brian Rafalski to wrist his 21st over Brodeur’s waffle.
New Jersey hasn’t been blanked at home this season, and Rupp snapped MacDonald’s bid for his first NHL shutout at 6:10 of the third. Just on the ice, Paul Martin shot from the left point and Gionta tipped the puck onto MacDonald. Rupp charged the net to put the rebound away for his fourth of the season.
Brandon Bochenski reopened the Bruins’ two-goal lead at 8:31, after Chistov stole Sergei Brylin’s pass. P.J. Axelsson added the empty-netter with 41.7 seconds left.
The loss left the Devils eight points ahead of the Penguins for the Atlantic Division title. Both teams have 16 games left.
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Swedish national team officials Bengt Gustafsson and Mats Naslund scouted Johnny Oduya last night for World Championships in case Devils exit early. …
Devils play next three and nine of 11 away from Meadowlands. They visit Flyers tomorrow, Penguins on Thursday and Buffalo on Saturday. …
Cam Janssen served the first of his three-game suspension for his late hit that hospitalized Toronto’s Tomas Kaberle Friday.