April 2008 Devils Advocate - New Jersey Devils

April 2008 - VOLUME 5 - EMAIL ISSUE 4
top story
forty wins for marty
New home, new tradition
Reaches 40-win mark for record 7th time
Last month, Martin Brodeur became the first goalie
in history to reach 40 wins for a seventh time.
A new home calls for a new playoff tradition.
This season, as the Devils embark on their first Stanley Cup playoff run at Prudential
Center, the message to their fans is... ROCK YOUR RED.
It can be your favorite Martin Brodeur jersey or Zach Parise t-shirt; a Devils windbreaker or that perfectly broken-in 1995 Stanley Cup Champions jacket. If it’s red,
wear it to Prudential Center when the puck finally drops on the new postseason.
We want you to bring the same passion that has been the hallmark of the Devils’ last
10 consecutive playoff appearances.
Now that the team has clinched its 11th berth in a row, do it in red!
Devils Legion fan page makes April debut
Brodeur made 24 saves for a 4-2 victory at Colorado
on 3/15 for his record third-straight 40-win campaign.
The feat further secured Brodeur’s legacy.
No one else has won 40 games more than three times.
Alicia Keys coming to The Rock
Alicia Keys is coming to Prudential Center!
The R&B songstress will perform in Newark on
Tuesday with special guests Ne-Yo and Jordin Sparks.
Tickets are on sale now at the arena box office and
on Ticketmaster.com!
Read more
There are plenty of
you out there.
You paint your face
and never miss a game.
Dinnertime at your
house means watching
“Chico Eats,” and your
friends know better than
to call during a Devils
power play.
You love a 2-1 game as
much as a 6-0 blowout,
and maybe even more. If
a one-goal win is what it
takes, you’ll take it.
You’ve always said that
what matters is who
finishes with the ‘W’.
A slick breakaway
move or a gutsy blocked shot, you come out of your
seat for any play that’s about blood, sweat and tears.
Doesn’t matter if that seat’s three rows off the glass
in Section 13 or in your own living room.
Ever wonder why any hockey player that’s ever
been honored at center ice has thanked the fans?
Scott Stevens did it when they raised No. 4 to the
rafters. So did Ken Daneyko. That's not just force of
habit, or some empty token
of appreciation.
It’s because none of this
happens without the fans’
involvement. Not the cheers,
the noise, or the memories.
Not the stairwell chants, not
the whistles, not the message
board rants. Not even the
waving behind Steve Cangialosi during the postgame
show at the Bud Light Goal
Bar.
Yeah, there are plenty of
you out there. Now you have
a place on the web to post
your Devils best – stories,
photos or videos.
The Devils Legion fan
page is for the guy that hasn’t shaved in the spring for
the past 10 postseasons; that mom with the blinking
Devils horns; or that kid coming to every game in his
brother’s hand-me-down Johnny Mac jersey.
Get ready to join the Devils Legion.
There’s no purchase necessary… you paid your
membership dues the first time you called yourself a
Devils fan.
2008 New Jersey Devils
New Jersey Devils • 165 Mulberry Street • Newark, N.J. 07102 • P: (973) 757-6100 • F: (973) 757-6399
www.newjerseydevils.com • ©New Jersey Devils 2008 • All Rights Reserved.
2008 NJSIAA hockey champs crowned at ‘The Rock’
Delbarton, Kinnelon, and Ridge claim titles
Delbarton 5, St. Augustine 1
The Green Wave built a 2-0 lead on a pair
of goals by Mike Smigelski and pulled away
to a 5-1 victory over the St. Augustine Prep
Hermits in the 2008 Devils/NJSIAA NonPublic High School Ice Hockey Championship on March 22.
It was the fourth state title for Delbarton,
which avenged last year’s semifinal loss to St.
Augustine to take back the non-public championship title that it last won in 2006.
Smigelski later added an assist to round out
a three-point afternoon, and Delbarton goaltender Michael Infante made 21 saves to
backstop the Green Wave to a win in the
first-ever NJSIAA championship game at
Prudential Center.
Andy Bell, Mike Pirovano and Charles
Nerbak also scored for Delbarton, while
Zach Stern had the lone marker for St.
Augustine.
The Delbarton Green Wave poses with their second state title in three seasons.
The Kinnelon Colts with their first-ever state championship.
Kinnelon 5,
Jefferson Twp. 1
Their biggest game of
the season turned into a
family affair for the Kinnelon Colts.
Mike and Pete Crampton each scored twice for
the Colts, who topped the
Jefferson
Township
Falcons, 5-1, to take the
2008
Devils/NJSIAA
Public B High School Ice
Hockey Championship on
March 22.
It’s the first state title for
Kinnelon, which outscored opponents 21-5 in
the three games leading up
to the Finals and kept rolling in the title match. The
Colts built up a 2-0 lead in
the first period and took a
3-0 edge after 40 minutes.
Head
coach
Jeffrey
Myhren’s squad netted two
more in the third to secure
the trophy.
Derrick Fu had the
Colts’ other goal, while
Kevin Kelly registered the
lone score for the Falcons.
Colts goaltender George
Huber stopped 31 of 32
shots and was named to
the All-Tournament squad
along with the Crampton
brothers. Kelly and Dean
Combos were all-tourney
for Jefferson Township.
Pete Crampton opened
the scoring for Kinnelon,
and moments later, the
younger Crampton connected for a 2-0 Colts lead.
Mike, a sophomore, went
forward with a draw at the
left faceoff dot in Falcons
territory before roofing
one shortside over Chris
Coffey’s blocker at 6:34.
Kelly brought the Jefferson fans to their feet early
in the third, dangling
down the left wing and
slicing through defender
Trevor Horton before
burying one past Huber
from the slot at 2:54.
2008 New Jersey Devils
Ridge 5,
Watchung Hills 0
The Ridge Red Devils display their first Public A title.
This time, the Ridge Red Devils reigned.
One season after stumbling in the semifinals
of the NJSIAA tournament, the Red Devils got
22 saves from Bill Higley for a 5-0 shutout win
over the Watchung Hills Warriors in their 2008
Public A High School Ice Hockey Championship on March 22.
Greg Zambon had a goal and three assists for
the first-time state champs, who received tallies
goals from five different players.
Ridge dethroned the two-time defending
champion Randolph Rams in this season's
semifinals and proved that triumph was no
fluke.
Tucker Brinkman and Keith Macey gave the
Red Devils a 2-0 lead in the opening frame, and
the team from Basking Ridge never looked
back.
Warriors’ goaltender Dan Schroeder made
23 saves in the loss, and was named to the AllTournament team after limiting opponents to
one goal in back-to-back games en route to the
Finals.
Brandon Lipke and Alex Kong were also
named to the all-tourney squad from Watchung
Hills, while Bill Foard was selected from Ridge.
Brodeur, Pandolfo take player awards
Repeat as MVD, Unsung Hero and Players’ Player
It was an encore performance,
but it sure hasn’t gotten old.
Martin Brodeur and Jay Pandolfo were the big winners at the
player award ceremony held last
month at Prudential Center.
Brodeur received the Most Valuable Devil while Pandolfo took
both the Devils’ Players’ Player
and the Hugh Delano Unsung
Hero award.
It was Brodeur’s second straight
MVD, and the 10th of his career.
The three-time Stanley Cup
champion and defending Vezina
Trophy winner received eight
consecutive MVD awards from
1996 to 2003, sharing the 2001
award with Patrik Elias.
Brodeur has put together
another outstanding campaign in
‘07-08, having notched an NHLrecord third straight 40-win
season. He has compiled seven
seasons with 40 or more wins
while no other goaltender in
league history has had more than
three.
Pandolfo, meanwhile, is no
stranger to the Devils’ award
podium either.
He has won both the Players’
Player and Unsung Hero three
straight times, and has garnered
Unsung Hero honors five times in
his career.
In 54 games this season Pan-
Brodeur accepted his Most Valuable Devil award from assistant coach Larry Robinson.
Pandolfo received his Players’ Player award from assistant coach John MacLean.
dolfo tallied 12 goals and 12
assists.
He notched his first career hat
trick in the Devils’ first-ever win at
Prudential Center, a 6-1 decision
over the Tampa Bay Lightning on
Oct. 31.
Brodeur received his award
from Devils’ assistant coach Larry
Robinson. Pandolfo accepted his
Unsung Hero honor from assistant coach Tommy Albelin and
was given his Players’ Player
award by Devils’ assistant coach
John MacLean.
The winners of the annual
awards are determined by players’
secret ballot voting.
Devils sign d-man
Tyler Eckford
The Devils signed defenseman Tyler
Eckford to his first professional contract
last month. The announcement was made
by Devils’ President/CEO/General Manager Lou Lamoriello.
Eckford, 22, was New Jersey’s fifth
choice, and the 217th overall selection in
the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. The 6-3,
220-lb. defenseman spent the past three
seasons at Alaska-Fairbanks (CCHA)
where he compiled 16 goals and 55 assists
for 71 points and 152 penalty minutes in
112 career appearances.
During his just-completed junior season,
Eckford became the first player in Nanook
history named to the CCHA AllConference First Team. In recording 31
points this past season, he finished first
among the school’s defensemen in scoring
for the second time in three seasons.
Eckford finished first among AlaskaFairbanks’ defensemen/rookies with 18
points in 2005-06 when he was named to
the CCHA All-Rookie Team. Born September 8, 1985 in Vancouver, B.C., he
played two seasons with South Surrey
(BCHL) prior to his collegiate career.
Morreale wins ‘08 McMullen Service honor
Mike G. Morreale of CranNewark, New Jersey-based
ford, N.J. has been named the
newspaper’s lead writer for the
recipient of the 2008 Service to
Devils/New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association’s
New Jersey Hockey Award.
The award is named for the
Ice Hockey Championships,
late Dr. John J. McMullen, who
while employed at Dorf Feature
brought professional hockey to
Service (Mountainside, N.J.).
the Garden State in 1982. It has
Through Morreale’s efforts,
high school varsity ice hockey in
been presented annually since
1984 by the National Hockey
the state has increased from 56
Morreale (l.) with Devils Exec. V.P. Peter McMullen. schools in 1990 to more than 150
League’s New Jersey Devils to an
individual or individuals who have supported ama- today. He covered the sport when there was no sepateur hockey throughout the state.
ration of tournaments (public/non-public) as there is
Morreale, 39, served as The Star-Ledger’s scholastic
today.
ice hockey writer for 17 seasons from 1990-91
Morreale currently serves as a staff writer for the
through 2006-07. From 1998-2006, he was the National Hockey League and its website, NHL.com.
Newark welcomes Willie O’Ree
This season marks the 50th anniversary of Willie O’Ree’s trailblazing debut with the Boston
Bruins, when he became
the first black player in the
NHL.
O’Ree visited Newark
on March 19, joining Devils
Chairman and Managing
Partner Jeff Vanderbeek
and team Co-Owner
Michael Gilfillan to meet with the
Newark Americans NHL Diversity
team at the Ironbound Rink.
That was followed by a trip to
City Hall to meet Newark Mayor
Cory A. Booker and receive a
Medallion of Excellence from the
City of Newark.
Afterward, the NHL
legend attended the contest between the Devils
and New York Rangers, at
Prudential Center and
dropped the ceremonial
opening faceoff between
Devils captain Jamie Langenbrunner and Rangers
captain Jaromir Jagr.
O’Ree’s debut and his position
as the NHL’s ambassador for NHL
Diversity have paved the way for
future players of diverse ethnic and
economic backgrounds.
O‘Ree drops the ceremonial draw between Jamie Langenbrunner (l.) and Jaromir Jagr on March 19.
2008 New Jersey Devils