Eastern Conference Quarterfinals

New Jersey Devils (3) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (6)

Game 1: Wednesday, 7:30 p.m. at Prudential Center - FS Carolinas/TSN2
Game 2: Friday, 7:30 p.m. at Prudential Center - FS Carolinas/TSN
Game 3: Sunday, 7:30 p,m. at RBC Center - FS Carolinas/TSN
Game 4: Tuesday, April 21, 7:30 p.m. at RBC Center - FS Carolinas/TSN2
*Game 5: Thursday, April 23, 7:30 p.m. at Prudential Center - FS Carolinas/VERSUS/TSN2
*Game 6: Sunday, April 26, TBD at RBC Center - FS Carolinas/VERSUS/TSN
*Game 7: Tuesday, April 28, 7:30 p.m. at Prudential Center - FS Carolinas/TSN2

Any games on VERSUS are blacked out for you if you are in NC/SC.
All the games are also on RIS, if there's actually any people in Quebec on here.


Regular Season:

Carolina - 45-30-7, 97 points, 2nd place, Southeast Division, 6th place, Eastern Conference
New Jersey - 51-27-4, 106 points, 1st place, Atlantic Division, 3rd place, Eastern Conference

Carolina - 26-14-1 at home, 19-16-6 on the road
New Jersey - 28-12-1 at home, 23-15-3 on the road

Special Teams:

Carolina PP - 18.7%, 18th overall
New Jersey PP - 18.9%, 15th overall

Carolina PK - 80.4%, 18th overall
New Jersey PK - 79.9%, 21st overall

Scoring:

Carolina - 2.88 per game, 16th overall
New Jersey - 2.90 per game, 15th overall

Carolina - 2.70 allowed per game, 8th overall
New Jersey - 2.52 allowed per game, 4th overall

Season Series: Carolina 3-1-0

-January 6, 2009 - Carolina 3, New Jersey 2 at RBC Center
A then season high 4 game winning streak was put on the board by averting a third period New Jersey comeback. Ray Whitney, Sergei Samsonov, and Tuomo Ruutu scored for Carolina, but the Devils scored twice in the final ten minutes of the third to make it interesting. Brandon Sutter played against his father for the first time. It was the first time in 140 games that Carolina did not have a player on the injury list. Scott Clemmensen took the loss for the Devils.

-March 18, 2009 - Carolina 4, New Jersey 2 at RBC Center
Following a come from behind 5-4 shootout loss to the Capitals at the Verizon Center, Carolina opened up a home stand with a win over the Devils one game after Martin Brodeur set the NHL wins record. Kevin Weekes returned to the RBC Center as a starter, and Anton Babchuk scored twice, joined by Sergei Samsonov and Eric Staal. Cam Ward stopped 40 of 42 shots, and for Carolina it would be the first of a franchise record tying 9 straight victories.

-March 28, 2009 - Carolina 2, New Jersey 1 at Prudential Center
Carolina had defeated the Devils twice, but had not faced Martin Brodeur. Looking for their 6th straight win, they did just that. Carolina outshot New Jersey 48-32, but still trailed 1-0 after 2 thanks to a Patrick Elias goal. With less than 7 minutes to go, Sergei Samsonov, who had scored in both previous games against New Jersey, tied the game. Minutes later on the powerplay, Tuomo Ruutu jammed in a rebound for the winner.

-April 11, 2009 - New Jersey 3, Carolina 2 at Prudential Center
In the regular season finale for both teams, Martin Brodeur defeated Michael Leighton despite a pair of powerplay goals from Anton Babchuk, who tallied 4 goals against the Devils this season. New Jersey's first two goals came courtesy of wild board and glass seams in Newark that resulted in tap in goals into a vacated net. By beating Carolina, the Devils ensured that they would face the Canes again a week later in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals.

Playoff History:

Since moving from the Greensboro Coliseum to the RBC Center in 1999, the Hurricanes have been to the playoffs 4 times. All 4 appearances have involved a meeting with the New Jersey Devils.

-2001: Quarterfinals - New Jersey (1) 4, Carolina (8) 2
Raleigh saw playoff hockey for the first time against the heavily favored top seed defending champion Devils. Some would argue that the end of this series was where the Caniac Nation was born. It did not look like that would be the case early, as the Devils popped Carolina 5-1, 2-0, and 4-0 in the first three games. In addition to the convincing losses, the Hurricanes lost Shane Willis in game 2 and Ron Francis in game 3 to brutal hits from future Hall of Famer Scott Stevens. Willis was never the same, fading out of the NHL to become a career minor league player. But suddenly, there was a glimmer of hope. Rod Brind'Amour scored in overtime of game 4 to give Carolina a 3-2 win and send the series back to Jersey. They weren't done yet, winning 3-2 in New Jersey to deliver one more game in Raleigh. While New Jersey dominated 5-1 in Game 6 to win the series, a sold out ESA gave the team a 5 minute standing ovation as time ran down, and hockey had truly arrived in the Triangle.

-2002: Quarterfinals - Carolina (3) 4, New Jersey (6) 2
16 years of playoff frustration and tough memories from one year prior, but it was only fitting that Carolina would get their chance for revenge against New Jersey. The last and only NHL playoff series won by the Carolina franchise was by Hartford against Quebec in 1986. Ron Francis was 23 then. He was 39 this time when he scored the only goal of the game in Game 6 to send Carolina on to the second round and ultimately to destiny with an Eastern Conference title and a hard fought series against the big guns of the Detroit Red Wings. It was an embarrassment for New Jersey following back to back years in the Stanley Cup Finals (they lost to Colorado in 7 games in 2001). The series was marked by two clutch overtime wins at the ESA by Carolina, 2-1 in Game 2 and 3-2 in Game 5. The Game 5 overtime included what is no doubt on the short list of defining moments in this team's history. Kevin Weekes, making his first start of the series, made a save on John Madden that defied logic and defined the series. It was the first of many such moments in 2002, followed up by the Miracle at Molson, the series winner by Martin Gelinas against Toronto, and Ron Francis in front of the net in overtime of Game 1 in Detroit.

-2006: Semifinals - Carolina (2) 4, New Jersey (3) 1
The first season post-lockout was the best in history for the Carolina franchise. Coming into Round 2, however, it looked like the Canes had run into a very unfortunate matchup. The Devils were hockey's hottest team by far, winning 11 straight games to end the regular season and then absolutely stomping the New York Rangers in a 4 game sweep. It was Cam Ward, the untested rookie, against his idol, the future Hall of Famer Brodeur. No one could have predicted what happened in Game 1. Carolina exploded, the RBC Center exploded, and Brodeur was chased from the goal as Ward picked up his first career NHL shutout, 6-0. Game 2 would become yet another page in the team's book of legends. A gritty game seemed destined to head to overtime at 1-1, but Jamie Langenbrunner stunned the Raleigh crowd, scoring with less than 30 seconds to go to seemingly even up the series. It was not to be, as Eric Staal batted in a pass from Justin Williams in front of the net with under 3 seconds to play, and the rest is history. Niclas Wallin, already known for unexpected clutch playoff overtime prowess, took a pass from Rod Brind'Amour and beat Brodeur to complete Carolina's dramatic finish. They never looked back, losing only Game 4 as they cruised past New Jersey en route to the first championship in franchise history.

CONTINUED BELOW...

4/12/2009 9:36:08 PM

New Jersey Players to Watch:


Martin Brodeur, goaltender. The man, the myth, the legend. He missed a good bit of the season injured, but he's back and looking sharp as always. Arguably the greatest to ever play the game, but the Canes have been one of the few teams to get in his head in the past.


Zach Parise, left wing. Parise transitioned from star to superstar this year, blowing up for 45 goals and 94 points. 5th in the NHL in scoring and 3rd in goals behind Alex Ovechkin and Jeff Carter.


Patrik Elias, left wing. Assistant captain. While the veteran star was overshadowed by Parise this season, he has not dropped off a bit, scoring 78 points in 77 games.


Jamie Langenbrunner, right wing. Captain of the New Jersey Devils. At 33, Langenbrunner has had the best offensive season of his career, scoring 29 goals and 69 points.


Travis Zajac, center. The 23 year old is another promising Devil who had his breakout season, scoring 62 points.


Brian Gionta, right wing. The shifty winger lives in his own shadow after scoring 48 goals in 05-06. He hasn't come close to those numbers before or since, but is still a threat, and put up 20 goals and 60 points this year.


Brendan Shanahan, right wing. The 40 year old former Whaler has come full circle, signing with the team that he started his career with in 1987. While his numbers are modest with only 6 goals and 14 points in 34 games, he is one of the most grizzled veterans in the league and one of the great power forwards to ever play the game. He also has 3 rings and nearly 200 games of playoff experience.


John Madden, center. Assistant captain. The 35 year old veteran had modest numbers this season with 23 points, but has consistently been one of the league's great two-way forwards. He won the Selke in 2001, and finished second in voting in 2003, 2004, and 2008. Expect him to be matched shift for shift against Carolina's top line and to be saddled with the job of shutting down Eric Staal.


Paul Martin, defenseman. The Devils #1 defenseman. He plays a shut down role, kills penalties, leads the team in minutes, and chips in offensively. New Jersey has a fairly low scoring blue line, and he leads it with 33 points and is a +21.


Colin White, defenseman. The Devils very much have a defense-by-committee approach, and White is their most physical defensive defenseman. The Devils tend to lock things down pretty well in front of Brodeur, and he will be at the forefront getting a body on Carolina forwards.

BEEP BEEP



[Edited on April 12, 2009 at 9:41 PM. Reason : .]

4/12/2009 9:36:29 PM

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO IT'S FINALLY TIME

4/12/2009 9:37:36 PM

2002 first round against the Devils was the best series in Hurricanes history. I hope this one will be good.

4/12/2009 9:38:07 PM

Cue the return of maximus and his trolling

4/12/2009 9:38:59 PM

OH WE BACK

4/12/2009 9:41:46 PM

OH SHIT SON

4/12/2009 9:51:24 PM

Why the hell dont they post the schedule already???





EGG

4/12/2009 9:56:45 PM

WOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

LETS GO

4/12/2009 9:59:21 PM

I need dates and times...c'mon NHL.com

4/12/2009 9:59:26 PM

Being posted tonight supposedly

4/12/2009 10:00:36 PM

i got tickets to games 4 and 6, but i have a shitload of commitments the next week and a half, so god willing the schedule will fall just right

4/12/2009 10:05:29 PM

I am always torn during these match ups and it always seems like the Canes are destined to clash with the Devils in the playoffs. The Devils were carried here on the shoulders of a goalie, Scott Clemmenson, who, upon the return of Marty, was brushed aside and relegated back to the minors. I have said this before, I feel that Marty came back with his new bionic arm and played well enough to keep the team steaming along in order to obtain his title but during the last half of March the wheels fell off of the wagon and they lost six straight games.

Between Marty perpetually cheating off of the post and the top lines failing to put pucks in the net I am not entirely confident that this is a championship team. During their peak though I saw the ghost of the 2000 A-Line of Elias, Sykora and Arnott in the Parise, Zajac and Langenbrunner line. I doubt many of you avidly watch the Devils' play but it was often times a marvel to behold Zach Parise's breakout season.

The Hurricanes have worked so hard to get where they are after what looked like yet another disastrous season early on. No matter the outcome of this first round the Canes can not be praised enough for finding that way to win and proving they have the makings of a champion.

4/12/2009 10:08:21 PM

THE

TIMES

THESE

IS

4/12/2009 10:17:19 PM

we get it

hockeyroman likes the devils and hurricanes both

4/12/2009 10:20:22 PM

Haha. I am just trying to distance myself from the trolls that like to jump out of the shadows around this time. I will be both happy and sad either way.

4/12/2009 10:26:51 PM

Game 1 is on Wednesday at 7:30pm

4/12/2009 10:32:15 PM

link? I haven't seen the schedule released yet

4/12/2009 10:38:10 PM

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/feature/?fid=11662

4/12/2009 10:39:14 PM

no schedule, just that game.

4/12/2009 10:40:58 PM

looks like i will be shaving my beard wednesday morning to start growing a new (and hopefully longer) one

4/12/2009 10:54:15 PM

Don't forget to http://beardathon.com/

Although my playoff beard will be more on par with Sidney Crosby or Eric Staal than say Mike Commodore or Kris Draper.

4/12/2009 10:56:08 PM

just got the email/signed up

i'm on the commodore end of the beardtrum

4/12/2009 11:22:30 PM

Game 1: Wednesday, 7:30 p.m. at Prudential Center
Game 2: Friday, 7:30 p.m. at Prudential Center
Game 3: Sunday, 7:30 p,m. at RBC Center
Game 4: Tuesday, April 21, 7:30 p.m. at RBC Center
*Game 5: Thursday, April 23, 7:30 p.m. at Prudential Center
*Game 6: Sunday, April 26, TBD at RBC Center
*Game 7: Tuesday, April 28, 7:30 p.m. at Prudential Center

http://njmg.typepad.com/devilsblog/

[Edited on April 12, 2009 at 11:38 PM. Reason : ]

EPIC HURRICANES TAILGATING DATES SET UP BY THE NHL!!

[Edited on April 12, 2009 at 11:54 PM. Reason : ]

4/12/2009 11:38:02 PM

Dear god Game 6 must be at night. PLEASE PLEASE make it another night game NHL scheduling gods.

4/13/2009 12:02:28 AM

Well seeing how it's on VS i can't imagine that it wouldn't be... I don't think Versus did any afternoon games last year. NBC handles them.

4/13/2009 12:03:24 AM

my beard, let me show you it
https://www.beardathon.com/hurricanes/strudle66/profile.aspx

4/13/2009 12:06:32 AM

I won't hold you to it, as not to get my hopes up. However, while I would take us winning the series by then, that would be the only game I could attend, perhaps for the entirety of the playoffs. I'm driving up from Mississippi that Saturday night/Sunday morning to see family, and what a day that would make it!

fyi-its hard to even get into hockey season in the deep south when the closest team is...Atlanta.

4/13/2009 12:09:03 AM

https://www.beardathon.com/hurricanes/thegoodlife031/profile.aspx

thats about 3 1/2-4 weeks worth of not shaving

[Edited on April 13, 2009 at 12:15 AM. Reason : BEARD]

4/13/2009 12:11:59 AM

I think Game 6 may be at 5 PM because Versus also has a game in St. Louis scheduled for 8 PM that night.

[Edited on April 13, 2009 at 12:15 AM. Reason : .]

4/13/2009 12:14:40 AM

I submit that a beard is in no way a playoff beard unless you shave on (or at least close to) the day of the first playoff game

4/13/2009 12:31:10 AM

trimming allowed?

4/13/2009 12:35:06 AM

^^ i feel the same way

i just posted an old picture of me with a beard

i'll post updated pics as the playoffs go on

4/13/2009 12:36:06 AM

trimming is taking sharp metal to the beard to make it shorter

that is shaving and certainly isn't allowed for a playoff beard

it's not supposed to look pretty

4/13/2009 12:38:47 AM

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/playoffs/2009/news?columnist=burnside_scott&id=4062800

4/13/2009 7:46:38 AM

I'm there on Sunday night.

4/13/2009 9:21:22 AM

i haven't shaved in a week, and thats gonna continue till the stanley cup

4/13/2009 9:26:33 AM

Quote :

"but Jamie Langenbrunner stunned the Raleigh crowd, scoring with less than 30 seconds to go to seemingly even up the series."

It was Scott Gomez.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nhl/recap?gameId=260508007

4/13/2009 9:29:47 AM

Well I'll be god damned. Too late to edit now, but there has to be at least one gaffe in the thread per tradition.

4/13/2009 9:47:47 AM

I thought it would also be interesting to note that Martin Brodeur has the worst win percentage of goalies in OT games in the playoffs.

May be good news for Wallin.

4/13/2009 9:57:19 AM

I'll shave at some point Wednesday and then go from there. CONBOY jersey expected to arrive tomorrow, hopefully it also comes with MOJO.

Game 1 viewing plans? I'm probably going to go out and watch it somewhere.

4/13/2009 10:32:46 AM

i wish i had multiple jerseys

4/13/2009 10:35:26 AM

Backyard Bistro opens TODAY.

I am down for Wednesday on the big screen there...

4/13/2009 11:09:00 AM

iop1. GO CANES!

i love devils/canes series. they always deliver.

4/13/2009 11:15:30 AM

BEAP BEAP

4/13/2009 11:19:47 AM

so, will any of these games be in HD?

4/13/2009 11:31:49 AM

I would hope they would show every game in HD. I don't think that is an unreasonable expectation, but they didn't exactly step up to the bar in the regular season.

4/13/2009 11:34:03 AM

I'd like to think they have the wherewithal to show them in HD as well, but then I remember it's still FSN.

PROVE ME WRONG, FUCKERS!!

4/13/2009 11:36:47 AM

Hopefully in on page 1! I'm excited about this series, I mean it isn't playoff hockey without New Jersey coming to the ESA/RBC Center. As much as I typically hate Burnside, but this write up was one of his best ones he's given in a long time, let's just hope he didn't jinx us.

BEAP BEAP!

Oh and hooray winning the TWW Fantasy Hockey Tourney !

4/13/2009 11:47:48 AM

set em up

4/13/2009 11:54:02 AM