The coach’s decision had two possible results. The Devils were to find out last night whether Sean Brown was demoralized or made more determined by sitting out two games.
The worry was whether scratching Brown would affect the newfound confidence that stunningly made the journeyman as good a defenseman as they had for nearly a month. Instead of being a suspect backup, Brown became a factor in keeping the Devils afloat as they struggled through the first quarter of the season.
Then, after he went minus-2 in a 5-4 loss in Ottawa, his 17th straight game, Brown was shown the press box for victories over Florida and Tampa Bay.
Since the Devils had won two straight and were seeking their first three-game winning streak of the season, he probably wouldn’t have been back in action last night against the Bruins at the Meadowlands, except that Vladimir Malakhov sat out with flu.
Brown remained upbeat during his Florida vacation, but he didn’t like it.
“It [stinks],” Brown said. “I want to be in the lineup. But, on the other hand, I made a couple of mistakes, and that’s going to get you out of the lineup.”
Brown’s performance and plus-minus had both deteriorated in his three previous games, going a total of minus-5 to fall to minus-9 on the season. He had different partners in each of those three, going from Brian Rafalski to Malakhov to Dan McGillis. And though his numbers fell, he didn’t seem a major culprit.
“I was happy,” Brown said. “I was confident and I still feel pretty good. But that’s the situations we’re in. We have a lot of depth on defense, so if you make a couple of mistakes, you’re going to come out.”
Brown’s on-ice response to being sat out was being scrutinized last night. Brown was curious, too.
“I’m trying to stay positive, and I’m not going to try to do too much,” said the 29-year-old veteran of 406 NHL games. “I want to go out and prove I belong in the lineup.”
The way the Devils’ defense has struggled this season without Scott Niedermayer and Scott Stevens, it has needed all the help it could get, and Brown had given it plenty. The Devils were hoping they hadn’t jeopardized such future contributions.
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Contrary to rumors, Krzysztof Oliwa remains Devils property, still trying to keep in shape on his own in New Jersey, hoping he finds a place to play.
The Devils waived him last month, but did not assign him to Albany, leaving him in limbo. The maneuver removed Oliwa’s $836,000 salary from the Devils’ cap liability, but they still must pay him full value.
If he were recalled to the NHL, he’d have to clear re-entry waivers, and the Devils would have to pay half his remaining salary – which would count against New Jersey’s cap – for him to play for another team. The rumors had Phoenix taking him on.
For third straight game, Devils elected not to have a morning skate yesterday.
“We didn’t skate in Florida and had great jump,” Larry Robinson said. “We didn’t skate in Tampa, since the arena was 45 minutes away, and it didn’t seem to hurt us. Sometimes you can leave your legs at the morning skate.”
mark.everson@nypost.com
