by John Fischer
The opponent, who is a veteran of the "Let the kids play and make mistakes" mindset, isn't nearly as bad as you may think.
The Time: 7:00 PM EDT
The Broadcast: TV - MSG+; Radio - 880 AM WCBS
The Matchup: The New Jersey Devils (18-18-9) vs. the Florida Panthers (17-21-6; SBN Blog: Litter Box Cats)
The Last Devils Game: On Thursday night, the Devils hosted the Dallas Stars. Both teams headed into the night with three game winless streaks, one team left with it ending. Both teams were excellent in net. Kari Lehtonen had to be right on his toes (skate blades?) early as Cory Schneider battled flurries later on. Both teams would trade off dangerous attacks in the second period, but only one resulted in a goal. A strong possession shift ended with Travis Zajac finding Michael Ryder alone in the slot for a banger of a one-timer. The Stars really looked to equalize at points, such as part of a four-minute power play late in the second and the first eight or so minutes of the third. But the Devils kept the Stars very honest as they out-shot them in every period. The goalies made sure very little got through and by the end, Schneider shined with a 1-0 shutout. My recap of the win is here.
The Last Panthers Game: As the Devils faced off with the Stars, the Panthers were in Buffalo to take on the Sabres. Florida took to attacking early and often but the first period ended without a goal. Buffalo broke the deadlock when Jamie McBain beat Tim Thomas after a great pass from Steve Ott. But Florida kept attacking and would find an equalizer. Brad Boyes tipped in a shot by Tom Gilbert past Jhonas Entroth before the halfway mark of the third period. Boyes appeared to have scored about five minutes later but the officials disallowed the goal on the basis of play being dead for Dmitry Kulikov being hurt after taking a stick up high. No penalty was issued and no other goal would be scored. The shootout became necessary and controversy followed. Jonathan Huberdeau put a shot on Enroth and Enroth slid into the net; but a video review disallowed the goal for Enroth being pushed in. It didn't mean much as Thomas stopped Buffalo's third shooter and Boyes scored afterwards to give Florida the win. Here's Todd Little's recap
Source: http://www.inlouwetrust.com/2014/1/11/5297002/new-jersey-devils-vs-florida-panthers-game-preview-46
The opponent, who is a veteran of the "Let the kids play and make mistakes" mindset, isn't nearly as bad as you may think.
The Time: 7:00 PM EDT
The Broadcast: TV - MSG+; Radio - 880 AM WCBS
The Matchup: The New Jersey Devils (18-18-9) vs. the Florida Panthers (17-21-6; SBN Blog: Litter Box Cats)
The Last Devils Game: On Thursday night, the Devils hosted the Dallas Stars. Both teams headed into the night with three game winless streaks, one team left with it ending. Both teams were excellent in net. Kari Lehtonen had to be right on his toes (skate blades?) early as Cory Schneider battled flurries later on. Both teams would trade off dangerous attacks in the second period, but only one resulted in a goal. A strong possession shift ended with Travis Zajac finding Michael Ryder alone in the slot for a banger of a one-timer. The Stars really looked to equalize at points, such as part of a four-minute power play late in the second and the first eight or so minutes of the third. But the Devils kept the Stars very honest as they out-shot them in every period. The goalies made sure very little got through and by the end, Schneider shined with a 1-0 shutout. My recap of the win is here.
The Last Panthers Game: As the Devils faced off with the Stars, the Panthers were in Buffalo to take on the Sabres. Florida took to attacking early and often but the first period ended without a goal. Buffalo broke the deadlock when Jamie McBain beat Tim Thomas after a great pass from Steve Ott. But Florida kept attacking and would find an equalizer. Brad Boyes tipped in a shot by Tom Gilbert past Jhonas Entroth before the halfway mark of the third period. Boyes appeared to have scored about five minutes later but the officials disallowed the goal on the basis of play being dead for Dmitry Kulikov being hurt after taking a stick up high. No penalty was issued and no other goal would be scored. The shootout became necessary and controversy followed. Jonathan Huberdeau put a shot on Enroth and Enroth slid into the net; but a video review disallowed the goal for Enroth being pushed in. It didn't mean much as Thomas stopped Buffalo's third shooter and Boyes scored afterwards to give Florida the win. Here's Todd Little's recap
Source: http://www.inlouwetrust.com/2014/1/11/5297002/new-jersey-devils-vs-florida-panthers-game-preview-46
