SUNRISE, Fla – Jose Theodore stopped all 30 shots he faced, leading the Florida Panthers to a 3-0 win over the New Jersey Devils. After being pulled from game three and sitting out game four, Theodore showed his physical and mental toughness while withstanding a barrage of shots near the end of the third period.
Devil’s goaltender Martin Brodeur was nearly as good, but a poor decision at the net led to Florida’s second goal to give them the breathing room they needed to put the game away. Brodeur left the crease to try to play the puck behind the goal line, but Kris Versteeg got there first, and passed the puck to Scottie Upshall who fired it into an empty net.
Both teams played cautiously in the first period. Nearly five minutes elapsed before the first shot and another two minutes went by before the first scoring chance. The goaltenders took care of the rest, each stopping all 11 shots they faced in the period.
Florida got on the board at 4:00 of the second period with a nifty power play wrist shot past Brodeur for the only goal of the period. The Panthers had several good additional power play opportunities in the period, but couldn’t cash in on Brodeur.
The Devils have given up more power play goals (7) in five playoff games than they did in the final 30 games of the regular season (6).
Tomas Kopecky was credited with a shorthanded empty net goal at 19:26 of the last period when he was hooked from behind on a breakaway. The puck didn’t go in the net, but the goal was awarded by rule.
“They did a lot of things better than us,” Devil’s Head Coach Peter De Boer said. “But the fourth win is the hardest one to get and we’re going to do everything we can to keep that from happening (on Tuesday).”
19,513 fans and who knows how many rubber rats, attended the game. It was the largest crowd to ever see a playoff hockey game in South Florida.
The series continues in New Jersey on Tuesday night where the Panthers will try to wrap up the series.
Contact the writer at: mitch.cooper@prohockeynews.com
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