Plenty of Devils shirts cover New Jersey chests. Captain Zach Parise wishes he would see more of their owners inside their Newark arena.
For Thursday night’s visit by the Islanders, the Devils are trying to figure out how to manufacture the same emotion they rode to a 4-1 victory over the Rangers Tuesday. They clearly were a different team than the one that lost 1-0 to the Isles Sunday at Nassau Coliseum, and they don’t want to revert.
More witnesses would help, Parise said.
“We’d love it, of course.” he said. “It really does go a long way.
“A full building and an excited crowd, it definitely goes a long way for any player.”
The Devils have sold out only eight of 32 home games this season, including their opener, three against the Rangers, and visits by Dallas, Pittsburgh (twice) and Buffalo.
“In our building, we don’t have the same type of energy we have for a Ranger game, any other time of the season. That’s the way it is for us,” Parise said. “We have to find ways of getting the excitement and always have that type of energy level and excitement for the game.”
Thursday night, discounted benefit tickets remain ($61 100-level seat for $35, including hot dog and soda voucher). A portion goes to the Yaroslavl Family Victims fund to support those left behind by September’s Russian team airplane crash.
March is a challenging time, the playoffs a month away, the season winding down. The best teams figure out how to produce the juice that is often the difference between winning and losing.
“I really think at this time of the season, and how tight everything is, it doesn’t matter who you’re playing. You should be able to generate that type of emotion,” Parise said.
Coach Pete DeBoer said it’s his duty to have his charges charged up.
“Some games come with that built in, based on rivalries and where teams are in the standings and history,” he said. “You don’t have that with everybody.
“Getting your team emotionally engaged in the game every night is key to winning in this league,” he said. “It’s a coach’s job.”The memory of Sunday remains fresh for both sides. The Islanders haven’t played since Anders Nilsson’s first NHL victory and shutout, and the teams meet against Saturday at the Coliseum.
The memory of Sunday remains fresh for both sides. The Islanders haven’t played since Anders Nilsson’s first NHL victory and shutout, and the teams meet against Saturday at the Coliseum.
“That’s an easy motivator,” DeBoer said of Sunday’s loss. “You’re coming off something fresh. When you come off an emotional game like we did, the next game is trying to re-manufacture that again.
“Listen to the Rangers talk about the game, they came off an emotional win against Boston and couldn’t get it back against us the next night. We’re in basically the same type of situation here [tonight]. We have to make sure we don’t fall into that.”
The Islanders still have mathematical hope of making the playoffs, but little other. Yet they were able to turn that desperation into consecutive victories over the Bruins and Devils, a two-game winning streak they bring into tonight.
The Devils were warned Sunday. If they go through the motions, they will risk another costly loss.
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Alexei Ponikarovsky said he will return tonight after missing three games with a slight right knee MCL sprain. … Martin Brodeur is scheduled to be in net for New Jersey. … Parise said his ailing left wrist is much improved.