EASTERN FINALS
GAME DAY PREVIEWS
GAME 2:
#1 PHILADELPHIA FLYERS vs #4 NEW JERSEY DEVILS
New Jersey leads 1-0
Game time: Tuesday May 16th, 2000 7pm at Philadelphia
Two days after taking the home-ice advantage away from the Philadelphia Flyers, the New Jersey Devils try to take a commanding two games to none lead Tuesday night as the teams meet in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals. New Jersey claimed home-ice advantage in the Eastern Conference finals with a 4-1 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday. Scott Niedermayer, Petr Sykora and Bobby Holik tallied in the opening period and Martin Brodeur made 35 save in leading the Devils.
After allowing a playoff-record six shots in Game 6 of the conference semifinals against Toronto, the Devils surrendered 16 in the opening period before equaling their playoff-high of 36. But the Flyers only mustered seven in the third period and were stymied throughout by Brodeur.
The Flyers were hoping for a boost from the return of Keith Primeau, who suffered a concussion in Tuesday's clincher against Pittsburgh, but they went 0-for-2 with the extra man against a New Jersey team that has killed 35 of 36 shorthanded situations in the playoffs. Holik's ended his 28-game playoff goal-scoring drought with his first tally since Game 5 of the 1997 conference quarterfinals against Montreal. The line of Holik, Randy McKay and Sergei Brylin registered five points and was a combined plus-6.
Mark Recchi scored the lone goal for Philadelphia, which lost the first two games at home against Pittsburgh during the semifinals before rallying to win four straight.
The Devils are 5-1 in road playoff games this year. During their Stanley Cup championship year of 1995, they went 10-1 away from the Continental Airlines Arena.
That year was the last time the Devils and Flyers met for the right to reach the Stanley Cup Finals. New Jersey won the series in six games before sweeping the heavily-favored Detroit Red Wings to win their only Cup.