newjerseynewsroom.com

BY SAM HITCHCOCK

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

COMMENTARY

Have there ever been two teams more raked over the coals while simultaneously thrown under the bus than the two about to battle for the Stanley Cup? Let’s look back.

All season long, Los Angeles Kings’ GM Dean Lombardi was lambasted for firing Terry Murray and hiring Daryl Sutter (who at the time was tabbed an uninspired choice). Then he was mocked for trading away Wayne Simmonds and Brayden Schenn to Philadelphia for Mike Richards while Flyers’ GM Paul Holmgren was heaped with praise.

Lombardi also got crushed after giving their young, promising star Drew Doughty a lucrative deal and yielding to his demands after Doughty missed much of training camp because of how displeased he was with his current contract. Doughty went on to struggle for most of the season because he had trouble regaining form after the important practice time missed, so Lombardi got even more heat.

L.A.’s high-priced winger Dustin Penner, the team’s most popular scapegoat for its collective underachievement during the season, was ridiculed for dramatically underperforming while gaining some extra girth. (Further ammunition came when he notoriously suffered a back injury eating pancakes.)

Then, right before the trade deadline, the struggling Kings traded former 2005 3rd overall pick Jack Johnson (who was a top-four defenseman for them at the time) to Columbus for Mike Richard’s best friend and former linemate in Philadelphia, Jeff Carter. Carter was under siege for underperforming in Columbus and was under scrutiny for his work ethic. This trade helped Lombardi decide not to deal Captain Dustin Brown, which ended up being his best decision of the many shrewd moves he made this season.

For the Devils’ part, they got blasted by the national media when they signed Ilya Kovalchuk two years ago to a long-term lucrative contract, and chided incessantly when the team struggled last year. Marek Zidlicky was deemed virtually useless by Minnesota Wild’s head coach Mike Yeo. And Marty? Articles have been written telling Brodeur that he is over the hill and should retire.

The best part of all of this? The 180’s completed so fast that my head is spinning. Suddenly the Devils’ acquisition of Kovalchuk by Lamoriello was brilliant, and the Jeff Carter and Mike Richards’ trades were proactive, heady, win-now- mentality moves. These comments, of course, are being written by the same people who destroyed these teams’ decisions less than a year ago.

Well here both stand, four games away from glory. Quick recap of the Devils’ year. In the third game of the season, Marty injured his shoulder in a contest against none other than the Kings. Hedberg took the helm and won the game, and played very well in subsequent games, giving Marty time to heal. Hedberg also fueled minor controversy over who was New Jersey’s better goalie option for the 2011-12 season.

The Devils’ offense at this point was not generating many goals, turning the puck over in all three zones at alarming rates. But while the Devils offense struggled to find its game and adapt to Peter DeBoer’s aggressive forecheck, their defense played well and continued to get solid goaltending from Hedberg.

Eventually, Brodeur returned, but looked off his game. Many, including myself, wondered if father time had finally caught up with him. The first week of December, the Devils were only a .500 team and their two stars, Kovy and Parise, were struggling potting goals.

During these dark times it was Patrik Elias, Adam Henrique, Petr Sykora, and David Clarkson who did the scoring and helped keep the Devils afloat until their big guns found their game.