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The usual elements remain in place for the defending champion New Jersey Devils.
New Jersey will again rely on goaltender Martin Brodeur, one of the league's
best defenses and continued attention to detail as it begins defense of its
Stanley Cup against the Boston Bruins and new coach Mike Sullivan.
The Devils captured their third Stanley Cup in nine seasons in 2002-03, joining Detroit as the only team with three NHL titles in that span. New Jersey lost just one game in the each of the first two rounds of the playoffs against Boston and Tampa Bay, respectively, but needed seven games to defeat Ottawa in the Eastern Conference finals and surprising Anaheim in the Stanley Cup finals.
Winning it all has left the Devils wanting more, and with Brodeur coming off the best season of his career and a strong defense anchored by captain Scott Stevens, they remain one of the favorites.
``When you get the taste -- and it's a big taste winning three times in the last nine years -- you see the hunger and the desire in the players,'' center Igor Larionov said. ``The players are still young, there is great goaltending and great defense, so I don't see any reason why they can't repeat.'' Ticketmaster
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Larionov, the NHL's oldest player at 42, is one of several new faces New Jersey
hopes will add to its team concept this season. Larionov will be counted on
to fill the void left by center Joe Nieuwendyk, who signed with Toronto in the
offseason.
Also gone from last season's championship team are defensemen Ken Daneyko and Oleg Tverdovsky and forwards Pascal Rheaume and Jim McKenzie. Rookies David Hale and Paul Martin will be asked to fill the vacated spots on defense.
One of the main reasons the Devils are a contender for the Stanley Cup every season is because in Brodeur they have arguably the game's best goaltender. The only goalie in NHL history with four seasons of 40 wins, Brodeur won his first Vezina Trophy in 2002-03 as the league's best at his position. Ticketmaster
Brodeur does have the luxury of playing behind a top-notch defense. Stevens, Scott Niedermayer, Brian Rafalski and Colin White helped the Devils allow just 166 goals last season, tying Philadelphia for the league's fewest.
The biggest questions for the Devils, as always, are up front where there are no big-time scorers. While they may not have a bunch of 40-goal scorers, the Devils do have a group of forwards that are effective in both zones and have no problem playing a team-oriented style.
Right wing Patrik Elias, the team leader with just 57 points last season, is one of New Jersey's most skilled players.
``We know how to play, but everyone wants to beat the Stanley Cup champion,'' Elias said. ``It was the same way last year, when we wanted to be champs. It will be tough, but we've got a lot of guys who were in this situation before and can use it to our advantage.'' Ticketmaster
Following another postseason failure, the Bruins made Sullivan the team's fifth coach in less than three years. Sullivan, the youngest coach in the NHL at 35, retired as a player in 2002 and has just one year of coaching experience.
He takes over a team that boasts some of the league's best forwards, but has questions on defense and in goal.
No longer an emerging star, captain Joe Thornton enters this season as one of the NHL's best players. Thornton, just 24, finished third in the NHL last season with 101 points, the first time in his career he's reached the 100-point plateau.
``I want pressure,'' Thornton said. ``I put more pressure on me than anybody else. I want to be the guy everyone points to and says, 'Look how hard Joe's working, I want to work that hard as well.' I like the pressure.''
Thornton could center one of the league's best lines with Glen Murray and Sergei Samsonov on each side. Murray was fifth in the NHL in 2002-03 with 44 goals and the speedy Samsonov is healthy after a wrist injury limited him to eight games last season.
Boston is hoping veteran Felix Potvin can become the No. 1 goalie the team has lacked in recent years. Potvin, however, has battled inconsistency much of his career and has something to prove after he struggled with Los Angeles last season.
2002-03 STANDINGS: Devils - 108 points, 1st place, Atlantic Division. Bruins - 87 points, 3rd place, 26 PB, Northeast Division. Ticketmaster
2002-03 TEAM LEADERS: Devils - Elias, 28 goals and 57 points; Scott Gomez, 42 assists; Turner Stevenson, 115 PIM. Bruins - Murray, 44 goals; Thornton, 65 assists and 101 points; P.J. Stock, 160 PIM.
2003-03 SPECIAL TEAMS: Devils - Power play: 11.9 percent (36 for 303), 30th in NHL. Penalty killing: 87.9 percent (232 for 264), 1st. Bruins - Power play: 18.2 percent (59 for 325), 8th. Penalty killing: 82.7 percent (310 for 375), 18th.
GOALTENDERS: Devils - Brodeur (41-23-9, 9 SO, 2.02 GAA); Corey Schwab (5-3-1, 1, 1.47). Bruins - Potvin (17-20-3, 3, 2.66); Andrew Raycroft (2-3-0, 2.40).
2002-03 SEASON SERIES: Devils, 2-1-1.
LAST MEETING: April 17; Devils, 3-0. At East Rutherford, N.J., Brodeur stopped 28 shots and Jamie Langenbrunner scored twice as New Jersey eliminated Boston in Game 5 of the conference quarterfinals.
ROAD/HOME RECORDS: Devils - 21-9-7-4 on the road; Bruins - 23-11-5-2 at home.