Game Results

Preseason: Devils 3 Rangers 2 F (Shootout)

The New Jersey Devils opened up the 2009-2010 preseason with a match-up against the rival New York Rangers at Prudential Center in Newark, NJ.

Notable players missing were Jamie Langenbrunner, Colin White, Paul Martin, and Jay Pandolfo. Patrik Elias is injured and is scheduled to return between 3 and 5 weeks meaning it is almost certain he will miss the season opener on Oct 3 against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Andrew Peters is a camp tryout for the Devils and most likely will make his debut in red and black next week against the Islanders. Look for the scratched vets to also appear against the Islanders.

The arena had a pretty good atmosphere considering it was a preseason game on a Wednesday night in September. As always, there was a lot of Ranger fans in the building and in turn, a lot of hatred. The Rangers opened their preseason the night before with a 2-1 loss to the Boston Bruins at Madison Square Garden.

David Clarkson was the best player on the ice for both teams. He netted both regulation Devils’ goals. The first goal was a result of a Niclas Bergfors shot that Henrik Lundqvist couldn’t hang on to. Clarkson stayed on the puck and deposited the rebound into the back of the net. Clarkson’s second goal was off of an odd man rush where he beat Chad Johnson on the blocker side.

Matt Gilroy, undrafted rookie, was the best player on the ice for the Rangers. He scored one of the Ranger’s two goals as he broke through a defensive block to deke and backhand the puck passed Yann Danis. Danis is penciled in as the backup goaltender for the Devils this season. There is not much evidence to anything different at this point.

Sean Avery was up to his usual antics as he went right for all-star Zach Parise early in the game drawing the attention of every Devil and fan in the building. Aaron Voros is another pest that was annoying some of the Devils and was involved in one of the fights of the night.

The shootout went into sudden death rounds. Matt Gilroy opened the scoring as he beat Yann Danis. Zach Parise kept the Devils alive with a ridiculous deke beating Chad Johnson. Travis Zajac sealed the win for the Devils as he beat Johnson with a quick snapshot off the left post.

Positives:
-Parise and Zajac looked very strong. I think this year the two will work together better than ever as that top line including Jamie Langenbrunner will again be one of the top lines in the league.

-Zharkov and Cormier looked nervous to start the game but settled in nicely. They were strong on the puck and were hitting as well. I believe Zharkov has an outside shot to make the team this year. Cormier might fill in while Elias is hurt but I fully expect him to be returned to juniors as Elias comes back in a few weeks.

-Yann Danis looked really solid and should be the full time backup for Martin Brodeur this year.

-Jacques Lemaire impressed me with his first coaching performance of the year. The Devils were hard on the attack and did not sit back and trap like everyone expected. The penalty kill was solid as well.

-Dainius Zubrus looked like a very happy guy now that Brent Sutter is gone. He got a lot of even strength, powerplay, and penalty kill time which is what he wanted. He wants to be a center this year and will get his wish if he keeps playing this way.

On the fence:

-Alexander Urbom was signed to an entry level contract for the Devils. He is 18 years old and a LONG shot to make the team come opening day. There is a lot of hype surrounding this kid by the coach and fans. He looked like a true NHLer, just not yet. During warmups he was having a good time and making some flashy passes and shots. During the game, he looked very nervous and unsure of himself.

Negatives:

-Brendan Shanahan did not look very good. He was wearing the C in the absence of Langenbrunner but that is something that will not stick. He looked slow and sloppy. Jacques Lemaire put him on the first line with Zajac and Parise. I could tell it wasn’t going to work out because Shanahan is older by about 15-16 years and is a few steps behind the youngsters. Because of his age, it might take him longer to get into shape.

-Johnny Oduya might be experiencing some preseason rust, but he was very shaky. We’ll have to keep an eye on that.