Through two games of the Stanley Cup Final, the New Jersey Devils haven't found a way to break through on Kings goalie Jonathan Quick. And as you can see on the play shown above, it's not just because Quick is playing at the top of his game (which he is).
In the two games, both of which have gone to overtime, the Devils have scored just a pair of goals, with one of them finding the back of the net after it bounced in off of a Kings player. The second goal, Ryan Carter's third-period goal on Saturday, was scored off of a deflection. They've yet to beat Quick on a "clean" shot. He's been able to stop everything that he has seen or that hasn't changed direction on its way to the net.
Despite all of that, the Devils still feel confident that they're on the verge of breaking through.
They've certainly had their share of chances.
"I think as a team we're right there," said Devils forward David Clarkson on Monday before the start of Game 3. "I think we did a lot of good things last game."
"We were good in our zone and pressing a bit in their zone. Personally, I would have liked to have had a couple of those back in Game 1. This is a time of the season where you don't get too many of those chances. Hopefully they keep coming."
If you wanted to get a feel for what this series has been like for the Devils, Clarkson's performance in Game 1 would be a perfect place to start. He had two excellent, wide open scoring chances in the middle of the ice and simply missed the net on both of them. If he hits on even one of them, it's a different game and a different series right now.
In Game 2 the Devils were right there with the Kings in terms of overall scoring chances but again had a couple of near misses, including a last-minute shot off the crossbar from Ilya Kovalchuk. Devils coach Pete DeBoer said on Monday that he feels both players, as well as captain Zach Parise, are on the verge of breaking out.
"I thought Game 1 he was arguably our best forward," said DeBoer, regarding the play of Clarkson. "I thought he could have had two or three goals. He's a guy on the verge of breaking out, as is Parise, as is Kovalchuk. I don't think it's any secret. We have to score more than one goal. All those guys on that list have to find a way."
The number of chances for Kovalchuk and Parise definitely increased on Saturday. Now it's just a matter of putting them in the net in Game 3.
"We've had the opportunities," said Parise. "We just haven't scored. Kovy hits a crossbar. There's maybe under a minute left last game. He puts it off the crossbar. That's the way it's been going. We do need to score. That's our job, and that's our responsibility. We're close. I think, like I said, we've had the chances. But the bottom line is it doesn't matter. If you're getting the chances, you've got to put them in. We'll have to be a little better."
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