GAME 2: Devils 4 – Bruins 2
It’s already a vastly different playoff for the Devils, and for Jamie Langenbrunner. They’re half done with Boston, thanks to a whole lot of Langenbrunner atoning for last year.
“If you’re out there, you have to perform. I didn’t do it last year, and it’s something that bothered me all summer. I hope to make up for it,” said Langenbrunner, who has both game-winners as the Devils, 4-2 winners last night, took a 2-0 series lead to Boston for Game 3 tomorrow.
Wearing the No. 15 that belonged to New Jersey’s all-time playoff point leader, John MacLean, Langenbrunner has provided the scoring that is the answer to the Devils’ biggest question of these playoffs. He has scored three and assisted on two more of the Devils’ six goals in this series, and he was on-hand for the other one, too.
“He’s taken his game to a higher level,” said Joe Nieuwendyk, who scored his first playoff goal as a Devil last night, joining Guy Lafleur and Boom-Boom Geoffrion for 29th place all-time with 58 lifetime postseason goals. “He’s real good and he’s showing it. He’s working hard, having fun and playing with confidence, and that’s what Jamie is all about. He’s showing some finesse, too, which is a big key.”
He’s making up for last year in a hurry. Little more than a month after arriving from Dallas for Jason Arnott, Randy McKay and a first-rounder, Langenbrunner and Nieuwendyk were held to one assist each, both going minus-2 in last year’s six-game ouster at the hands of the Hurricanes. That seems long, long, ago.
“You’re more confident. you feel like you can make the play,” Langenbrunner said. “When you’re struggling, you’re gripping your stick tighter, and you lose that split second. In this game, that’s all it takes.”
The Bruins have never survived an 0-2 deficit, just as the Devils have never blown one.
This time, Boston took the early lead, Glen Murray converting Joe Thornton’s feed at 8:02, but Langenbrunner set up Jeff Friesen’s answer at 14:17. Brian Rafalski put the Devils in front with their first power-play goal of the series with 25.2 seconds left in the first. Pat Burns sent out an unusual extra-man unit of Madden, Langenbrunner and Patrik Elias up front, and Madden shoved the puck to Rafalski while being cross-checked to the ice. Rafalski’s straight-out slap deflected down off a Bruin, past goalie Steve Shields.
Dan McGillis squared matters again at 13:59 of the second with Boston’s first PPG. Burns had Friesen and Langenbrunner as his forwards, an unusual combination, for the final seconds of that disadvantage, and McGillis was uncovered for Jozef Stumpel’s feed to the right slot from behind the net, able to measure his shot over Martin Brodeur’s waffle.
A silly Nick Boynton slash at the second buzzer gave the Devils 36 vital seconds of a 4-on-3 to open the third, and Langenbrunner converted for New Jersey’s second PPG of the night. Shields yielded his second straight goal off a slap from the blue line, Langenbrunner’s third of the series beating his waffle cleanly 15 seconds in. Nieuwendyk sealed victory at 14:24, sent on a breakaway by Langenbrunner, who picked up his third point of the evening and fifth of the series.
