Devils lose early lead, fall at Philly

By Bud L. Ellis

Trying to chase down the red-hot Washington Capitals for the top spot in the Eastern Conference won’t be easy for the New Jersey Devils.

Especially if the Devils keep coughing up leads.

New Jersey started strong Monday night at Philadelphia, opening up a 2-0 lead. But the Flyers rallied against Martin Brodeur, scoring three unanswered goals to take a 3-2 victory.

The Devils get their chance at revenge on Wednesday night in Philadelphia. With the loss, New Jersey remains 14 points behind Washington in the Eastern Conference standings. The Devils lead Pittsburgh by two points in the Atlantic Division race.

Zach Parise gave the Devils a 1-0 lead with a power-play goal seven minutes into the first period. Anssi Salmela made it 2-0 with a short-handed tally 61 seconds into the second. But that was it for the New Jersey offense. Newly acquired Ilya Kovalchuk, who came to New Jersey last week with Salmela from Atlanta, took nine shots but did not score.

Kovalchuk still seeks his first goal as a Devil.

James van Riemsdyk and Jeff Carter scored the first two Philly goals. Mike Richards netted the game winner, a power-play goal at 12:02 of the third period.

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Tuesday, February 9, 2010 at 5:31 pm by bud

Tags: Anssi Salmela, Ilya Kovalchuk, James van Riemsdyk, Jeff Carter, Martin Brodeur, Mike Richards, National Hockey League, New Jersey Devils, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Zach Parise