New Jersey Devils keep Montreal Canadiens at bay for third straight 3-1 -NHL Update
New Jersey has found a way to get some wins and it seems like it had been working well for them ever since coming out of the All-Star Weekend as the Devils grabbed their third straight over Montreal Canadiens, 3-1, on Sunday night, February 19, 2012, at
the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Devils not only grabbed their third back-to-back victory but also improved their post 2012 National Hockey League (NHL) All-Star break record to 8-1-1, allowing them to move up big time in the extremely competitive Eastern Conference.
"The roll that we're on, it's well-deserved," Devils’ goalie, Martin Brodeur, said about his team. "The boys are working really hard, we're playing with a lot of passion every night, guys are blocking shots, making second efforts. We're happy with the position
that we're in but we just want to move forward."
New Jersey captain, Zach Parise, kicked it off with his 22nd of the 2011-2012 NHL regular season with less than two minutes remaining in the opening period after the Devils managed to keep Montreal out during their early penalty.
David Clarkson extended the lead coming out of a minor penalty, also with his 22nd of the year with 18 seconds left to play till the mid period came to an end.
Montreal finally showed some progress as Max Pacioretty brought them within one of tying the score in the opening minutes of the final period on an early power play opportunity with Devils’ missing Dainius Zubrus, due to high-sticking, but Matt Taormina
was right around the corner and tipped in the insurance goal at 8:27.
"We've put ourselves in a good position, but we still have a lot of work to do. We like what we're seeing, but eventually we need to get healthy. It's going to get harder and harder as we go," Brodeur added.
New Jersey is hoping on staying consistent as they playoff against Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday while the Montreal Canadiens host Dallas Stars on the same day.
Unlike last season, the Devils have their eyes set on making it big in the playoffs this time, making them a team to observe closely as the season progresses.
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