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Brodeur can't do it alone

Arthur Staple

12:22 PM EDT, April 10, 2008

Martin Brodeur didn't lose Game 1 for the Devils, even if it looked that way. That awful misplay, or hesitation, or brain-cramp that led Brodeur to just watch a sitting puck right in front of him, and a yawning net, before Ryan Callahan swatted it home to break a 1-all tie in the third was just that, a momentary lapse by one of the game's all-time clutch goaltenders.

No, the problem for the Devils, their problem all season really, is that they can't recover from a mistake like that, no matter who makes it. That it was Brodeur, "the most important person on the team," as he put it after the loss, may make it sting a little more.

That's because, as Brodeur also said, "if we don't score, I have to be perfect." He's the unquestioned leader of the Devils, so his words are not meant to put down his teammates, who have scored zero or one goal in 31 of 82 regular-season games, and now 1 of 1 playoff games.

"He's always been there," said Devils defenseman Paul Martin, who had the lone Game 1 goal. "It's up to the rest of us to pick up the slack."

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The Devils rang two posts and a crossbar in Game 1, and you can forgive Sergei Brylin (first period, shorthanded, crossbar) and Arron Asham (second period, far post) for raising their sticks in premature celebration on each shot that beat Henrik Lundqvist but did not go in.

Lundqvist is the real reason the Devils lost this game, with help from Brodeur and the rest of the can't-score crew from Newark. The Rangers goaltender made the best save of the night, a left-pad flash to stop Patrik Elias with the game tied 1-1 late in the second.

And it doesn't take much to get the Devils thinking too much or stressing about goals. They had 206 in the regular-season, more than just four teams - only the Ducks, with 205, scored fewer among the 16 playoff clubs. The Rangers have committed to the Devils' style of defense and goaltending to win, but they showed Wednesday night that guys like Jaromir Jagr and Scott Gomez can utilize open ice to make plays and provide winning margins.

Gomez had high praise for his old buddy Brodeur.

"He's going to go down as the greatest who ever played," he said after his three-assist night. "We know he's going to bounce back."

Brodeur has always been an active goaltender. Before the NHL put the clamps on roving goalies, he was out of his crease, ranging around his zone for loose pucks to stop dump-and-chase teams from pinning down Devils' defensemen. He cuts down angles, skates out to get a view of a shooter and throws his big body around often.

That's unlike Lundqvist, who stays tight in his crease and has the moves of a yoga instructor to stop shots. He also has a crossbar and two posts, which were a big help on Wednesday night.

"If we can't bury our opportunities ... " Brodeur said, still with a hint of the grin he wears most of the time.

He didn't lose Game 1 for the Devils. And his words said what was on plenty of minds in the Prudential Center: If his teammates can't score, there isn't much he can do for them the rest of this series.