New Jersey Devils 2011-12 Season: Despite How It Ended, a Lot To Remember Fondly

This time last year, the New Jersey Devils and their fans were in a state of confusion. After being a symbol of success through all of their playoff appearances (including three Stanley Cups), the Devils were busy worrying about their first top 5 draft selection in 20 years. With the team earning the lottery “victory,” it enabled them to select D Adam Larsson with the number four selection in the 2011 NHL Draft.  This time last year, the Devils and their fans were hoping the team could make it back to the playoffs again, let alone thinking about the idea of making a Stanley Cup run.  There were all kinds of questions including who would be the coach and would there be salary cap issues carried over to 2011-12?

Enter Peter DeBoer as head coach.  Exit Brian Rolston and Colin White to rid the team of any salary cap issues and we can all safely say, 2010-2011 was LAST year folks. This year, there were a lot of things to feel good about. After a playoff season of 24 games, the Devils fell just two wins short of a fourth Stanley Cup title. Along the journey, the Devils defeated the Florida Panthers in 7 games in a very tight first round, blew the doors off the Philadelphia Flyers in 5 games in the second round and knocked off their rivals, the New York Rangers in 6 to win the Eastern Conference.

While the Final didn’t get the desired result, the Devils showed a ton of heart, as they attempted to rebound from a 3-0 deficit, falling short in a desperate Game 6. They came up short in their efforts to duplicate the reverse sweep accomplished only by the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs. They also were trying to become the first team since the 1966 Montreal Canadiens to lose the first two at home, yet come back to win a Stanley Cup Final.

But, even despite falling short of the shiny silver chalice, the Devils showed a ton of promise in a season many projected to be a rebuilding season for them. Amongst the highlights are the following:

• Martin Brodeur continuing to show why at age 40, he still is one of the most clutch goalies in the league today. Time and time again, he stepped up and rose to the challenge when needed most. Brodeur enjoyed this season so much, he is all but certain to return to the Devils next season, even if his workload will be expected to continue to decrease.
• Adam Henrique established himself as a star in the making. Beyond being a Calder Trophy finalist for his body of work in the regular season, he took his game to a whole new level in the post season, scoring big goal after big goal when needed most. Included were overtime series-clinching goals against both Florida (Game 7) and the Rangers (Game 6). The sky is the limit for Henrique, a player who seemed immune to pressure or intimidation of playing with elite talent.
• Ilya Kovalchuk didn’t necessarily have his best series of games in the playoffs, but what was so impressive was that Kovalchuk still led the team in points this post season, despite losing his normal skating ability and flexibility due to an alleged herniated disk (or disks) in his back. It was painfully obvious Kovy was nowhere near 100% healthy, but it did not prevent him from being on the ice and helping to be a factor, even if he was reduced to a significantly lessened version of himself.
• Zach Parise showed he has recovered from his knee surgery that limited him to just 13 games in 2010-11.  While he’s set to become an unrestricted free agent in a few weeks, Parise was a big part of the team’s success and was the fuel injection to the team, filling a major leadership role as team Captain, and the players and fans alike hope the team is able to work out a new contract with him.
• The fourth line of Ryan Carter, Stephen Gionta and Steve Bernier established themselves to be a force in the playoffs, combining for 10 goals and 11 assists in 24 games.  Simply amazing and that doesn’t even take into account all the momentum-changing shifts they had throughout the postseason.  Yes, Bernier had the shift that led to the most painful penalty of the season, but it doesn’t discount all the positive all three brought to the fold.  Simply put, the Devils don’t make the Final without the contributions of the CBGB line.
• The young Swedes Jacob Josefson and Adam Larsson had solid runs in continuing their devlopment.  While they haven’t reached close to the ceiling their talent dictates, they both took giant strides in their development, leaving the foundation for next season and beyond.
• Travis Zajac has fully recovered from the Achilles injury he suffered last offseason and played a huge role in the postseason, with 7 goals and 7 assists in the 24 games, while showing he still adds his solid two-way play and is the team’s best faceoff man.

The team ended with a wonderful season, but there are still a ton of questions to be answered this off-season, to ensure the team has a chance to match its long playoff run of 2011-12 again next season.  My next installment will try to answer some of these questions.

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The Devils added a free agent from the European market, adding LW Harri Pesonen to the fold.  He seems like a nice potential signing as a highly skilled good skating forward.  How he adapts to the smaller NHL rinks will determine where he ends up, whether he starts in the AHL or NHL.  For some highlights of his work in Finland, check out this video: