FanHouse Chats With Devils Beat Writer Tom Gulitti

In a set of first round playoff series that look, at least on paper, to be more competitive than usual, the most hard-fought battle might be the one between the Devils and the Hurricanes. The teams entered the postseason at opposite ends of the spectrum -- the Devils waded through March like they were wearing cement boots, while the Hurricanes, despite losing their last two of the season, finished remarkably hot.

Tom Gulitti is the Devils beat writer for the Bergen Record and, as the voice of Fire & Ice, one of the best beat bloggers in the league. He took some time out to speak with FanHouse about the Devils and their first-round matchup.

Because of the recent Devils slump and Hurricanes surge, a lot of people are picking Carolina to win the series. Do you think that the slump was genuine, or was the team saving itself for the playoffs? This is a team with a lot of experience, a lot of playoff experience, is this a situation where they can turn the switch on beginning Wednesday night?

That's the thing that's difficult, turning that switch on. I think that they're a better team than they showed during the six-game losing streak, and in the games after that they started to play better and build back up, though they're not quite back to playing how they were before (the slump). But I think what happened was that Martin Brodeur broke the wins record and they were still chasing Boston down (for the East's No. 1 seed). They thought they could catch Boston and they lost a game to Boston (4-1 on March 22), and it was pretty much clear to them that they weren't going to finish first in the conference.

I think a little bit of complacency set in, where they thought, "Well, we're going to either be the No. 2 or 3 seed, there's not a lot of room to fall and not a lot to play for." When stuff like that happens and then you begin to drop off, that's how you wind up on a six-game losing streak. It shows how just a little slip-up or drop-off in play can have a big effect, and how hard it is to turn it back on. They went through something similar last year and they weren't able to turn it back on. I think this team is better than last year's team, but we'll find out in this series if they can turn it back on. I think that they will. The key will be Game 1. If they play well, that can set the tone for them. If they lose, it might bring some doubts in again.

You brought up last year, I wanted to touch on that and also their experience playing the Hurricanes recently in the playoffs (the Devils are 1-2 in the team's three playoff meetings since 2001). The team's saying all the right things about not thinking about last year and the previous years, but do you really think that's the case?

I don't really know how much the Hurricanes series are on their minds. (The last one) was three years ago and a decent number of players have changed since then. They might be thinking about it a little bit in how well Cam Ward played against them, but the Hurricanes haven't been in the playoffs since then, so they're a different team too.

The Rangers series (in 2008, which New York won 4-1) is something that really stuck with them. As much as they don't want to talk about or admit that's a driving force for them, I think that losing at home with fans from the other team in the building was a little embarrassing for them. They can't make up for that in this series, but if they were to win a series and make this place a good place for them in the playoffs, build some good playoff memories, it'll obviously be a positive step.

How do you think Brent Sutter has changed his approach from last year? It seems he's a little more patient about messing around with lines and has backed off on being such a disciplinarian. There were games last year when players were forced to ride the bike immediately after a game if their play didn't meet his standards.

I think there's been some things he's learned. I also think there weren't as many times (this year) when something like that was warranted. There's been an education for him in coaching the NHL, getting to know his players, them getting to know him, and learning what works and doesn't work. I know last summer he talked a lot with Jamie Langenbrunner, and they improved their communication between captain and coach, which is important. He definitely has changed. But he also hasn't had reason to change the lines much, because things have worked. Last year he was constantly looking for offense because the team wasn't scoring. This year he's stuck with the top line (Jamie Langenbrunner-Travis Zajac-Zach Parise) because it's worked. The second line (Patrik Elias-Dainus Zubrus-Brian Gionta) has stayed mostly in tact, as well. It's a lot easier when your team is scoring.

I wanted to ask you about both Langebrunner and Elias. I'll start with Jamie. At 33, I don't know how many people saw this kind of career season (29 g, 69 pts) coming from him. What do you attribute that to?

I think a lot of it is playing with Zach (Parise) and Travis (Zajac). Obviously Zach has been one of the best players in the league, and Travis has had a big improvement in his game from last year to this year, so playing with those guys definitely helped him. I think he learned some things from talking with Sutter, as well. He had five goals through New Year's Day. Then he really took after that. I think it's just hard work. He's always out early working with Travis and Zach and a couple of other players taking shots. He's also healthy. Last year he was coming off of a sports hernia, so I don't think he was able to really come back all the way last season. So all of that added up and it paid off, in the second half of the season particularly.

Now Elias. He's had a good year, a bounce-back year, but he's still kind of an enigma. He's dominant at times, but he seems to come and go. Which of those sides will come out in the playoffs, and do you have a feeling about why it's up and down with him?

I still don't think they've found a center for him. Last year people talked about him having a down year, and I guess he did, but he also moved to center which he never played before. It was a big deal for him, and he was still one of their better players in the second half last year. He moved to center and made a sacrifice. This year they put him back at wing, and he's responded by scoring more goals and has had a really good season.

Still, he's been playing with Zubrus, who's not really a play-making center. For him, it's about who he gets to play with and how well they're doing. But last year he played really well against the Rangers in the first round; he was probably their best player, even though they lost the series. He's a playoff player. I can see him playing really well for them in this series too.

One other player I wanted to touch on was Jay Pandolfo. He and John Madden both looked a step out of touch to start the season, and then Brendan Shanahan came along and Pandolfo wound up a healthy scratch for most of the season. Do you think part of the motivation was to keep his legs fresh for the playoffs, as he's played such a key role as a defensive forward against other teams top lines? Or was his benching and re-insertion in the lineup born out of necessity?

I don't think it was a plan to save him and rest him. He wasn't playing well, and the coach played players who were doing better. For Jay it was tough, as you're used to playing every game and then you're not. He had to learn how to deal with that. I think since he's come back in he's played pretty well, and by doing so he's basically forced the coach to put him back in the lineup. He, Madden, and Shanahan have played pretty well together, and Sutter didn't want to split those three up. He and Madden always play well together, so finding some chemistry with Madden again and Shanahan shouldn't be that much of a surprise. Some other guys weren't playing as well, like Bobby Holik, so now Holik is sitting out.

Speaking of Holik, how long do you think his self-imposed gag order is going to last?

I don't know, it seems like he's sticking to it. I think he's not really going to say anything. He knows that his mouth can sometimes get him in trouble. (Laughter) But I think he's trying to be the good team guy and not say anything bad, so this is his way of doing it.

What appears to be the biggest factor coming into this series is special teams. Carolina and New Jersey are on opposite ends of the spectrum as far as power play opportunities, and Carolina's got some guys that can really blast it from the point. How do you see that playing out?

I think it's going to be a big key in this series. Paul Maurice was saying this morning how he felt that one of the factors in Carolina doing so well on the power play against the Devils was that a lot of times they caught New Jersey on the second night of back-to-back games. When you're tired, the penalty kill is one of the first things to go, so he feels like the Devils penalty kill will be better in this series.

I think they'll be better too, but you mentioned the point shots from Anton Babchuk and Joe Corvo, and they're going to have to not necessarily take them away, but make sure they give them shots from spots that can't be as dangerous. They want to keep the shots to the outside the circles. I don't think you want to force it and say, "We have to take away the point guys," because you have guys who can really hurt you down low with Eric Staal, Ray Whitney, Rod Brind'Amour, Sergei Samsonov, Erik Cole and Tuomo Ruutu, so if they want to take away those point guys they can really hurt themselves down low.

Carolina went 7-for-16 on the power play in the season series. If they even approach anything near those numbers in this series, do the Devils have any shot at winning?

No, they can't win in that case. They'll have to do better than that. They can't be allowing two power play goals per game and win the series. If they allow two power play goals per game and aren't scoring that many, which they probably won't, then they're not going to win.

There's a question that seems to be on some fans' minds. Brodeur has looked tired the last couple of postseasons, and you can point to him at least in part for the team's downfall the last few years. Say it gets to be a 3-0, 3-1 series and the Devils are in desperation mode, does Sutter even think about putting Scott Clemmensen in?

No. Martin Brodeur is their goaltender, and he's one of the best goaltenders in the history of the game. You're going to take him out for a guy who's never started an NHL playoff game in a situation where you could be eliminated? If Brodeur was hurt it'd be different, but he appears to be healthy. As long as he's healthy he's going to play every game.

If the Devils wind up making a run towards the Cup, is there a guy other than Parise, Brodeur, or Elias who's the key in leading that charge?

I think you'll see something from Langenbrunner, he's a guy who's scored some big goals for them. I can also see a guy like Shanahan, who doesn't play in many scoring situations 5-on-5 make a difference. If Gionta and Shanahan can help out on the second power play, it certainly helps them.

Finally, who do you see coming out of this?

I think it's a really evenly matched series. These are two teams with a lot of depth. They really are two of the better teams in the East, but I think as long as the Devils can win the first game they can win the series in six or seven games. But if they lose the first game and their confidence gets shaken, then you wonder about how they'll respond.