And The Beat Goes On

...And Patrik Elias' prediction of "We'll get them" comes to fruition. In front of a sold out crowd of 17,625 Johan Hedberg and the Devils shut out the New York Rangers and won the game 1-0 off a breakaway goal by Ilya Kovalchuk. At the end of the game, the crowd was chanting both players names in recognition and appreciation of their efforts in this game, but perhaps even more so the way each has played over this 6 game winning streak.

The game had all the atmosphere of a playoff game. A huge two points hung in the balance for each team. The Devils trying to continue their torrid pace and keep their playoff hopes alive, and the Rangers looking to put more cushion between them and the 9th place Buffalo Sabres, than their 6 points. After a scoreless 1st period, the Devils tallied their first and only goal of the game at 8:18 of the 2nd period. With the puck in the Devils zone, Anton Volchenkov chipped the puck along the near boards, and past a flat-footed Staal at the blue line, to send Kovalchuk off to the races. Kovalchuk, appearing to have wings on his back, raced down the middle of the ice and wristed the puck just under Lundqvist's glove and into the net, to send the sellout crowd into a frenzy.

In the 3rd, the Rangers played with more energy and had more chances than they had all game, but Johan "Moose" Hedberg was there to stymie the Rangers, and turn away every opportunity. The Devils played with desperation, energy, and outplayed the Rangers for almost the entire 60 minutes.

The Devils now move to 14-1-2 over their last 17 games, have won their last 6 games in a row, and currently sit 12 points back from the 8th seeded Carolina Hurricanes. They will go on to play the Hurricanes tomorrow night in Carolina, in what is the equivalent of a 4 point game for the Devils and is sure to be another playoff like, energetic atmosphere.