More thoughts on the Devils

So, without diving too deeply into the playoff picture, I want to establish that the Devils will definitely finish either 2nd or 3rd (probably 2nd, 'cause I imagine they will make up that point on the inconsistent Caps). We will end up anywhere between 4th and 9th, no one says we're even making the playoffs, but playing even odds puts us probably somewhere around 6th or 7th. This means it is entirely possible (though not necessarily the surest bet) that we will end up playing the Devils in the first round. I don't want to count on anything, from our perspective, but I want to throw a hypothetical situation out there - let's say we DO end up making the playoffs, and we draw the Devils.

What does Brent Sutter do?

Let me clarify: in Martin Brodeur, the New Jersey Devils have the winningest regular season goaltender in NHL history. They have the man most responsible for the Devils winning any cups at all, let alone 3, and they might have the player most responsible for them even still having a franchise in New Jersey at all. Look, I hate Martin Brodeur significantly more than the next guy, but there's no denying that he is one of the best to ever play the game (although there is plenty of denying that he is the best ever, mostly using math - if someone wants to start paying me a salary to write this blog, maybe I'll find the time to write up the entry that does so). The point is, he's obviously got to be the starting goalie for the Devils in every possible situation - how could he not be?

Well. Hmm. In the 2007-2008 regular season, the Devils played the Rangers 8 times. The Rangers won the first 7, then lost the last game of the season (which did not affect the standings at all), in a shootout. Then they played us in the first round of the playoffs, which we won in 5 games, dropping only game 3, in overtime. This season, they played us 6 times (take a note, Bettman: this is strictly worse than playing us 8 times. I don't care about seeing Evgeni Nabokov any more than people in Los Angeles care about seeing Sidney Crosby. Schedule this better). Brodeur played the first two and the final one, all of which we won. During the other 3, he was out with an injury, and Clemmensen played all 3. The Devils won all 3.

So, obviously, Sutter starts Brodeur. Realistically speaking, there's nothing else he could, will, or should do. But - if it happens - you can't tell me Sutter and Marty won't be more than a little nervous about the situation.