NJ Devils Pet Peeves

What do the New Jersey Devils dislike the most? From a professional perspective, the NJ Devils have their fair share of despised rivals – chief among them the New York Rangers. Back in the old days, the NY Rangers defenseman, Brian Leetch was the very face of the New York Rangers – an arch nemesis of the New Jersey Devils.

In 1994, Leetch was on the team that robbed the Devils from an Eastern Conference Finals berth. When the New York Rangers went 1-0 against the New Jersey Devils, it was thanks to Brian Leetch that things soured. During the Eastern Conference finals, he also had 5 assists.

New Jersey Devils fans harken back to the time when Pat Verbeek went head-to-head against Brian Leetch – a great contest for any boxing fan no doubt.

The Enemy at the Eastern Conference Finals in 1994

The captain of the New York Rangers in the early 1990s, Mark Messier was a particularly loathsome individual to the New Jersey Devils. Fans didn't like him. With so much rivalry between New York and New Jersey, it comes as no surprise that his face represented this ill-will.

As the Joker joked in the Jack Nicholson and Michael Keaton version of Batman, 'I've given a name to my pain...' and in this case it was Mark Messier. Prior to game 6 of the 1994 EC Finals, the NJ Devils were just a single game away from advancing to their first-ever Stanley Cup Final.

The New York Rangers – the enemies from across the Hudson River – totally obliterated the New Jersey Devils in Game 6, and Messier complied by scoring a hat-trick. What many in New Jersey perceived as Messier’s arrogance was the wicked smile that sunk the ship.

A Bitter Pill to Swallow – Ilya Kovalchuk

Adam Graves and Darcy Tucker know the name Ilya Kovalchuk all too well. But here's the catch: Kovalchuk’s claim to infamy took place while he was part of the NJ Devils. Fans of the Garden State's NHL team have a particular dislike of Ilya Kovalchuk.

He left the team when they were in the midst of rebuilding, and his annual salary of $11 million could have seriously dented the financial fortunes of the New Jersey Devils – had he remained on board. In a way, his departure resulted in the Devils missing the prestigious play-offs multiple times over the course of the next couple of years.

Toronto signed another New Jersey Devils favorite in Clarkson barely a week previously, and then Kovalchuk broke the news that he too was retiring. It couldn't have come at a worse time. Back then, several major acquisitions were made in the form of Michael Ryder, Ryan Clowe and even Marek Zidlicky who was re-signed to the team.

Unfortunately, Ilya Kovalchuk’s departure was the nail in the coffin that left New Jersey floundering for many years. He was the team’s best chance of succeeding at that time, but he ditched the New Jersey Devils for the Los Angeles Kings, and helped them to win. That's adding insult to injury.

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Stay in Your Position Brad Marchand

NHL is a brute force game. There's no two ways about it – you are going to get hit hard. Brad was one of those players with all the potential, were it not for his physicality a.k.a. brutality against other players. Not only did he score lots of points against the New Jersey Devils in the 1990s, he really hammered home his message with some powerful elbowing, receiving a multi-game suspension in the process.

The victim in this case was Marcus Johansson. Hailing from the Washington Capitals, Johansson was considered a major boon to the New Jersey Devils back in the day. What happened after that savage takedown was a decommissioned Marcus Johansson for several months.

No wonder the New Jersey Devils took a particularly negative view of Bad Brad!

Moving Forward – the Devils Can Do It!

In current times, there's lots that the New Jersey Devils need to get done to get back on top of things. That they made it to the 2018 play-offs is a spectacular achievement, but that was then. Experts believe that the Devils need to fire up their game with combinations that really come together.

They will also need to put together a defense that keeps the opposition at bay. Guys like Dakota Mermis, Damon Severson, and Connor Carrick can have an impact if they play cohesively. It is going to have to work, based on what's currently available.

The New Jersey Devils will need to optimize their use of players, including Jesper Bratt, Pavel Zacha, Travis Zajac, and Miles Wood. This team needs to eliminate inconsistencies, put together a winning combos, and bring it all together under the right leadership.

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*Photograph courtesy of Kathy Willens and AP Image