New Jersey Devils cool down Anaheim Ducks 3-2, snap three-game winning streak in shootout-NHL Update
Anaheim has caught fire ever since they were briefed on how close the playoffs have gotten but the Ducks could not manage to stay hot against New Jersey with the Devils trying hard for a postseason positioning of their own getting a second straight win,
3-2, in a shootout on Friday night, February 17, 2012, at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
While Anaheim continues to fight for spot in the top eight as they sit currently at number 13 with 58 points, New Jersey has managed to grab the fifth number spot in the Eastern Conference with 70 points, just one ahead of sixth place Pittsburgh and two
above seventh place Ottawa Senators.
Adam Henrique and Alexei Ponikarovsky scored two straight in the second period after both teams failed to add any points in the first. They gave New Jersey a dominating 2-0 lead midway through, but failed to add any more or even maintain it as the match
progressed.
Corey Perry potted in Anaheim’s first of the night and his 29th of the 2011-2012 National Hockey League (NHL) regular season with less than four minutes remaining in the second while Sheldon Brookbank picked up his first goal of the year at the
17:47 mark to level the game in round-three.
Martin Brodeur provided New Jersey with the boost they needed to take the match as the veteran goalie blocked two of three chances by the Ducks in the shootout and 36 of 38 saves in regulation despite being widely outshot.
"He was great," Devils coach, Peter DeBoer, said about Brodeur. "He was our best player. Again, we were a little bit off but I give them full marks. They are playing very well and they are at the top of their game. That's the reason they have won as many
as they have. They are a difficult team to play against and they put us in trouble a couple of times, but he was our best player.”
Patrik Elias made the game-winner by scoring the second goal of the shootout on New Jersey’s third attempt while Ryan Getzlaf was shutout by Brodeur on their last chance.
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