New Jersey Devils coach Peter DeBoer listens to a question during a media conference before Game 4 of the NHL Stanley Cup Final between the New Jersey Devils and the Los Angeles Kings in El Segundo, Calif.LUCY NICHOLSON/Reuters
File this one under the category 'last-ditch effort.' Or maybe 'what have we got to lose?'
In a bid to change the Los Angeles Kings' seemingly endless push towards their first-ever Stanley Cup, the New Jersey Devils will make two line-up changes for tonight's fourth game.
Coach Peter DeBoer announced that forward Petr Sykora and defenceman Henrik Tallinder would play tonight. Los Angeles leads the series 3-0 and the Devils have scored just two goals in the series against goaltender Jonathan Quick. Sykora, who will replace Jacob Josefson, previously played 15 games in these playoffs, and managed just four points in that span, which is why he came out of the line-up in the first place.
But he is a proven sniper and at a time when goals have been hard to come by for the Devils, it is a chance that DeBoer figured was worth taking.
So, for that matter, was the decision to put Tallinder in for Peter Harrold. Tallinder was placed on injured reserve back on Jan. 30 and missed 37 regular-season games, plus 21 in the playoffs, recovering from acute thrombophlebitis in his lower leg. Tallinder was a top-two defenceman for the Devils before his condition flared up and had been cleared to play before the start of the series.
"The reality is Tallinder was a top-two defenceman for us, was all year," said DeBoer. "He's been out for a long time. This is the first time in the last four or five days where we felt in practice that he was up to game speed and a legitimate option.
"We considered it after Game 2, but our group I thought had played such a good game that I didn't want to change it then. But now it seems appropriate."
The Devils are trying to become only the second team in history and the first since the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs to overcome a 3-0 deficit in the Stanley Cup final. As per the usual cliché handbook at this time of year, the Devils vowed to worry only about short-term goals - winning a single game - rather than the larger, daunting task that lies ahead.
"This is a great opportunity for us," said DeBoer. "I mean, we can be the first team in a long time to climb out of this hole in this situation. As our general manager (Lou Lamoriello) said, 'there's 28 other teams sitting at home that would love to jump into this spot, even the hole we're in, and take a shot at trying to win this thing.'"
For his part, Tallinder said he was excited about the return, but couldn't predict how long it will take him to get up to game speed. Hopefully, not long.
"I guess we have to see," said Tallinder. "I feel pretty comfortable in practice. But, as you said, it's practice. Game is a different thing. Yeah, it's the Stanley Cup Final. I mean, how do you prepare for that? Excitement, a lot of jump in your legs - and try not to think too much."