Quote:
Originally Posted by pesadillamal
Tough series to call. On one hand I know the Devils are a good team coming out of a great division, but on the other hand I know that despite fansince's annual post slobbering on Marty, Marty is 5-12 his last three years in the playoffs. Two of those years his GAA was above 3 and his save % was below 9. It is hard to win in the playoffs with goaltending like that and it has been hard for the Devils to win in the playoffs since Stevens and Niedermayer left. Panthers in 6.
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Honestly, the Devils just haven't had playoff built teams the last few years. They were always successful in the regular season but their weaknesses were always exposed come playoff time whether it was a weak defensive corps, lack of scoring, a bad PP, etc.
People always want to point the finger at Brodeur as the cause for the lack of recent success. Looking at just the numbers will make it seem like that is the case but I assure you he hasn't been the sole problem. All those weaknesses in addition to Brodeur not playing fantastic has led to the bad numbers and lack of success.
This year they don't seem to have any glaring weaknesses (besides some 3rd period let downs) and Brodeur has been playing excellent in the 2nd half. Bottom line is i expect Brodeur and the Devils to be a tough team to beat.