still breathing

It was a game they had every reason to lose. Failed defensive assignments resulting in two different deficits. For a team that needs overtime to score two goals, that alone was enough to sink the Devils, and put them 3 games under "Faux .500 with 15 left to play. Another loss, and season over. The goal that put them behind in the third period saw Marty Brodeur underneath the 6'10 Nik Andropov and mighty Dustin Byfuglien blasting a puck through the tangled sweaty mess for his 20th goal. The Devils got screwed, the join was jumpin, no one would blame this club if they pouted and went home. But they didn't.

It started with a valiant play by Mattias Tedenby, a guy liberally listed at 5'10" 175 pounds sprinting down the left wing like some Scandinavian Keith Tkachuk, engaging Tobias Enstrom and cutting in on net, forcing the Thrashers alternate captain to hook him down 6:24 into the third. That paved the way for Atlanta's prodigal son Ilya Kovalchuk to torment his former faithful and redeem his recent sins of lethargy with his 25th goal of the year. Three trips back to Atlanta for their former superstar, three goals against. He's the logical guy to boo against, and probably sells a lot of tickets for a franchise that appears to be dying. It's good theater, good for the league, and on this night, his goal was vital for the Devils playoff life. His celebrating consisted of keeping his back to his delirious teammates as he embraced the glass with both arms raised, inches from his tormented former fans. Great theater, real emotions, huge stakes.

All the big name Devils made their critical contributions in Atlanta: Kovalchuk, Patrik Elias and Travis Zajak resurrecting a dormant power play, without which their season would be over; Marty Brodeur, an aging star still playing the position in his unique athletic style that would be challenging physically for goalies 10 year younger, a symbol of the franchise and their Stanley Cups from 16 years ago, a man fighting off a challenge from a goalie who was carrying the club on its improbable comeback, yet here was Marty battling every step of the way, the best penalty killer in overtime with the season on the line. Despite never lighting the lamp himself, Elias was brilliant and his playmaking was probably the number one reason the Devils season lives on for at least another night.

Yet for all the contributions by aging stars, there is hope that younger legs will be able to carry this team if and when the 30-somethings sputter and stall down the stretch. 21 year old Tedenby, 20 year old Jacob Josefson and 23 year old Vladimir Zharkov comprise of a kid line that doubles as an energy line. Lemaire has been giving them plenty of ice time in the past two games, even double shifting them against Ottawa, and they have shown to be relentless forecheckers and explosive skaters in neutral ice. There is a sign in the Montreal Canadiens locker room that was a mantra during their two dynasties: "From failing hands we pass this torch..." Lemaire lived under those words for two years; Brodeur absorbed them on his father's knee in Montreal. If the Devils are to remain significant for the next three weeks of the NHL season, it is this youth that will get them through the horse latitudes that are bound to plague the veterans.

No time for these Devils to reflect. The Islanders, fresh off a stunning come-from-behind victory over league power Boston, lay in wait, playing with house money tonight in Neward. The next chapter awaits..