2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs Blog - NJD vs. CAR

Carolina Hurricanes coach Paul Maurice gave the Devils their due. After all, they outshot his team 39-19 in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference quarter-final series Wednesday night in Newark, N.J.

“They played very well. They didn’t really have any elements to their game they weren’t successful at," Maurice said. "They skated very well. We were a little jittery coming out of the gate, but you expect that to wear off, and we just never seemed to get on track.

“On the upside, we’ve got a lot of areas to get better at.”

Hurricanes centre Matt Cullen suggested there was room for improvement in Game 2.

"They played very well. They came out with a lot of energy," Cullen said. "I thought Brodeur played well and we didn’t play our best."

Finally, a playoff victory for the Devils in Newark

One year ago the Devils felt like the visiting team in their own arena. Facing the Rangers, the Devils endured a sea of blue jerseys in the Prudential Center.

That changed Wednesday night as the Devils won their first playoff game in the arena which opened 18 months ago. They lost all three home games against the Rangers last year.

“It certainly was a home type of atmosphere,” Devils’ coach Brent Sutter said. “Quite a difference from last year. It felt like you were playing in your home building. And it should.”

Goalie Martin Brodeur was quick to point out the difference in the atmosphere.

“The crowd was great. It was fun,” Brodeur said. “I think we deserved that kind of support the way we’ve been playing at home this season. I think it was fun for the fans also that we finally came in and finally performed well in front of them in the playoffs. Last year they didn’t have much to cheer about the way we played here. It definitely makes a difference when all the clapping is on our side."

It is, in fact, a touchy subject with the Devils. Finally they got to play a post-season game at home in front of red jerseys and T-shirts.

“It was nice having your own fans in here instead of the other team’s fans," captain Jamie Langenbrunner said. "That definitely helps.”

A magic moment for Mike Mottau

He took a lot of heat from his teammates, but give Devils defenceman Mike Mottau a break. He doesn't score many goals, so he deserves a chance to celebrate when he does.

It was Mottau's goal that gave the Devils a 1-0 lead over the Hurricanes Wednesday night.

“That was a big goal for us. The crowd gets excited and it gets the bench excited,” Zach Parise said. “It was a great celebration by him.

“It was fun to watch, like somebody just put in his 50th.”

Mottau could only smile at Parise's comment.

“I don’t score too many goals,” he said. "I get pretty excited when I score. I don’t even know what I did, really.”

Devils took a page out of their old playbook

The Devils are a much more offensive-minded team under coach Brent Sutter. But they played a lot like the Devils of a different era in Game 1 against the Hurricanes.

"We played well," Brodeur said. "All night long they didn't sustain too much offence on us. We didn't turn the puck over. Those guys feed off that. It shows that, when we play well defensively, we'll get our chances."

Some familiar faces were at the centre of it. Jay Pandolfo and John Madden, who haven't skated together for much of this season, were matched against Carolina's Eric Staal-Tuomo Ruutu-Erik Cole line.

“They have a history,” coach Brent Sutter said of Madden and Pandolfo. “That’s been John and Pando’s makeup. I think Shanny takes a lot of pride in playing well as far as that role.”

Pandolfo said: “We didn’t give their top players too much time with the puck."

The Devils came just over 10 minutes from a shutout, which would have been the 23rd of Martin Brodeur's career. That would have tied Patrick Roy's NHL record.