HOME may be where the heart is, but then we’ve always known how heartless hockey people can be, haven’t we? Or is there a better way to explain the 1-7 record home teams – i.e., higher-seeded teams – registered in their respective playoff openers?
“The pressure and expectations on the home teams is so much greater now than ever before,” Pat Burns, whose Devils were the only home team to emerge with a Game 1 victory, said at the Meadowlands before last night’s second game against the Bruins.
“To me, this is a workingman’s playoffs; the team that works hardest is going to win.
“At home there’s more of a tendency to relax, to take things for granted the way you never would on the road. Look at Minnesota and Anaheim, winning [in Colorado and Detroit] their games. Their big thing is consistent work ethic.
“But at the same time, we shouldn’t overanalyze. We’re talking about one game here. And I know that after one game in this series, we have nothing to be cocky about.”
It’s one game – eight games – this year, but there’s most clearly a trend, too. Home teams won only 47 of 90 games last year, with Cup champion Detroit losing five at home but only two on the road.
In 2001, home teams did no better than 43-43. In winning the Cup in 1995, the Devils established a league record by winning 10 on the road; they tied that mark in winning again five years later, memorably clinching on Jason Arnott’s Game 6 double OT goal in Dallas.
“We’ve always been very comfortable on the road,” Ken Daneyko said following the morning skate. “Both other times we played Boston [in 1994 and 1995] we won all three games away.
“I don’t want to say there’s more pressure at home, because there’s always pressure in the playoffs – that’s what it’s about – but it seems like there are more jitters for the home team.
“Even for us [in Wednesday’s 2-1 win], I thought we were a little nervous and played a little tentatively; not a lot, but on another night maybe enough to make the difference. Really, there’s such a fine line between winning and losing, because the discrepancy between being second and seventh is so slight, that jitters can make a difference.”
Teams play all season for home-ice advantage; at least that’s the claim. But the advantage tends not to manifest itself until Game 7, in which home clubs went 5-0 last year and 8-1 the last two years. Still, the numbers mean nothing to Martin Brodeur.
“I know our record on the road was great the years we won, and we’re confident on the road, but I’d rather play at home, anytime,” the goaltender said. “I just think because we rely so much on matchups, it’s always going to be in our favor to be home.
“We get the guys on who we want, when we want. There might be other teams that prefer being on the road, but not us.”
Which of course explains why the Devils account for the “1,” in 1-7.
