Get mad, get over it, get better.
That must be the Devils’ progression or they’ll deserve a second straight first-round playoff exit, and a fifth straight season of being unable to win two rounds.
Martin Brodeur’s postgame stick-slamming was amusing, but really, the Devils can consider themselves lucky to be all-square at 2-2 with the Hurricanes, as they face Game 5 tonight in Newark.
The Devils were the better team in the opener, but since then, the ‘Canes have deserved to win each of the next three. Deserving wins and getting them don’t always have anything to do with each other in the playoffs, but there it is.
Bryce Salvador is expected to sit out with a sprained knee, suffered in Game 4’s 4-3 loss in Raleigh, N.C. Captain Jamie Langenbrunner, also believed to be out with a knee injury, seems a long shot to return to action tonight, but it might not be out of the question.
The series has alternated victories, the Devils unable to stand prosperity, the Hurricanes rebounding under duress. Jersey allowed a team-record 22 shots in the second period Tuesday in Game 4, but coach Brent Sutter says that will not happen tonight.
“Our sense of urgency, no question, is going to be where it needs to be,” Sutter said. “This is a proud group that has played hard all year. It had a tough night [Tuesday] night.”
They fell behind 3-0 then roared back to tie the game, only to see Jussi Jokinen bump Brodeur, Brodeur regain his position, and Jokinen deflect home the winner with 0.2 seconds left.
“The hockey gods got even with us because of the way we played the first two periods,” Sutter said.
When the goal was allowed to stand, the game over, Brodeur raced to the refs to complain of Jokinen’s bump, repeatedly slamming his stick in anger before sending it flying, end over end.
His outburst was a source of bemusement to him.
“My friends said, ‘You grew a goatee, and you think you’re a little tougher,’ ” Brodeur said. “It’s something that doesn’t happen too often with me. I got a message from my kids, ‘Daddy, are you OK?’ Daddy’s not mad anymore. Don’t be afraid.
“It was the two goals in a row [that he was bumped] and losing the game like that [with 0.2 seconds left],” Brodeur said of the cause of his stick swinging and tossing.
He said he’d never done such a thing.
“In front of people? No, not really,” he said.
His complaint is the one he made to The Post before the series started, when he called for an expansion of the crease by a foot in each direction — because of exactly these issues.
“I don’t think that’s worthy of a penalty. But it is a rule when there’s incidental contact outside the crease you get a whistle,” Brodeur said.
Paul Martin, whose backhanded clearing attempt up the glass was intercepted and turned into the winner, said Brodeur’s outburst should inspire the team.
“He’s usually the calmest presence back there,” Martin said. “For him to get fired up shows we need to pick it up, too.”