The New Jersey Devils (28–9–1) blanked the Pittsburgh Penguins (26–14–1) 2–0 as Martin Brodeur got his 105th shutout on Wednesday night.
The Devils, leaders of the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference with 57 points, have now won four straight games over the reigning Stanley Cup champs.
New Jersey came into the game on a hot streak winning 10 out of 13 games during the month of December and entered the ice on fire behind winger Niclas Bergfors and Martin Brodeur.
Bergfors scored the first goal of the game early in the first period with a sharp-angled shot that escaped Penguins goalie Brent Johnson. For Bergfors, it was his 13th goal of the season.
Devils forward, Jamie Langenbrunner, wound up sealing the victory for New Jersey after hitting the empty netter with seconds remaining in the third period.
Led by Brodeur, who has a league-leading 24 wins and a 2.15 goals-against-average, the Devils frustrated Pittsburgh’s high-octane offense throughout the night.
Brodeur had dominated the Penguins in their last five games, limiting them to one or fewer goals and posting a 0.67 goals-against-average against them—he continued to do so in this matchup.
In particular, Brodeur made several big-time saves in the second and third period and really appeared to get into the heads of Penguins players.
Notable plays by the Devils goalie included a save against Pens star center Evgeni Malkin early in the second period and an acrobatic save halfway through the third period in which he stonewalled several shots on goal while a crowd developed in front of his net.
Martin Brodeur finished the game with 32 saves.
In addition to Brodeur’s outstanding play, the rest of the Devils defense did an excellent job at containing the Pens top guns—Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby. The star centers were limited to only three and two shots on goal respectively.
Brodeur’s recent play has certainly lived up to Canada’s expectations for him at the Vancouver Olympics in February. He was named as one of three goalies for Canada earlier on Wednesday.
The Devils, leaders of the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference with 57 points, have now won four straight games over the reigning Stanley Cup champs.
New Jersey came into the game on a hot streak winning 10 out of 13 games during the month of December and entered the ice on fire behind winger Niclas Bergfors and Martin Brodeur.
Bergfors scored the first goal of the game early in the first period with a sharp-angled shot that escaped Penguins goalie Brent Johnson. For Bergfors, it was his 13th goal of the season.
Devils forward, Jamie Langenbrunner, wound up sealing the victory for New Jersey after hitting the empty netter with seconds remaining in the third period.
Led by Brodeur, who has a league-leading 24 wins and a 2.15 goals-against-average, the Devils frustrated Pittsburgh’s high-octane offense throughout the night.
Brodeur had dominated the Penguins in their last five games, limiting them to one or fewer goals and posting a 0.67 goals-against-average against them—he continued to do so in this matchup.
In particular, Brodeur made several big-time saves in the second and third period and really appeared to get into the heads of Penguins players.
Notable plays by the Devils goalie included a save against Pens star center Evgeni Malkin early in the second period and an acrobatic save halfway through the third period in which he stonewalled several shots on goal while a crowd developed in front of his net.
Martin Brodeur finished the game with 32 saves.
In addition to Brodeur’s outstanding play, the rest of the Devils defense did an excellent job at containing the Pens top guns—Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby. The star centers were limited to only three and two shots on goal respectively.
Brodeur’s recent play has certainly lived up to Canada’s expectations for him at the Vancouver Olympics in February. He was named as one of three goalies for Canada earlier on Wednesday.
