NHL Playoffs 2012: Florida Panthers vs New Jersey Devils Series Breakdown

The 6th seeded New Jersey Devils battle the Southeast Champion and 3rd seeded Florida Panthers beginning on Friday, April 13 in Sunrise, Florida. This Quarterfinal series may not be a marquee matchup in the eyes of the NHL, but for die hard fans in Jersey and in the Sunshine state this will be an intriguing series in which both teams look for a way to spring board themselves into a deep playoff run.

The Devils, winners of six straight to close out the regular season, are playing good hockey and after missing out on the playoffs just a year ago, they are extremely poised and prepared to make a big run at the Cup. The Panthers, now having returned to the dance for the first time in 12 seasons, are looking to ride the home ice advantage and win their first playoff series since their miracle run to the Cup Finals in 1996.  

Let's take a look at how these two clubs match up:

Forwards

Devils: Top line of Zach Parise, Travis Zajac and Ilya Kovalchuk can measure up with the best lines in the game. Secondary scoring will come from the lines of Petr Sykora, Patrik Elias and Dainius Zubrus, and Alexei Ponikarovsky, Adam Henrique and David Clarkson. Their top three lines consist of five 25-plus goal scorers, including three 30-plus goals scorers.

Thus, providing the Devils with the necessary balanced scoring that will give their opponent fits. This group of forwards has the size, skill, and power to wear down a defense over a playoff series.

Panthers: For the Panthers to win this series, they must get secondary offensive production from other than their top line of Tomas Fleischmann, Stephen Weiss and Kris Versteeg. Their top trio each scored 20-plus goals and provided the majority of their team's offense. Veterans such as Mikael Samuelsson, Sean Bergenheim and Scottie Upshall must be key contributors on the score sheet in order for Florida to advance onto the next round.

However, the Panthers do have plenty of Stanley cup experience within their forward group featuring 3-time champion and former Devil John Madden, two-time champ Tomas Kopecky and Mikael Samuelsson. 

The Devils bring three well balanced scoring lines. The Panthers are too top heavy and lack secondary scoring. The HF Advantage goes to the DEVILS. 

Defensemen

Devils: GM Lou Lamoriello's terrific move to bring in much needed veteran puck moving defenseman Marek Zidlicky from Minnesota may go down as providing the missing piece to the Devils back-line. Zidlicky, paired with defenseman Bryce Salvador, has played big minutes and has added an offensive skill set that the Devs have lacked for many seasons.

The Devils' other top pairing of Andy Greene and Mark Fayne is steady and responsible, often getting called upon to play in key, late-game situations. The bottom pairing consists of physical shot blocking defenseman Anton Volchenkov and Peter Harrold. Rookie Adam Larsson, who can provide some offense, may be re-inserted into the lineup at some point during this series. 

Panthers: GM Dale Tallon made an outstanding move acquiring number one defenseman Brian Campbell from Chicago who has provided leadership and offense from the back-line, particularly quarterbacking the power play. Jason Garrison's 16 goals and heavy shot poses a serious threat from the blue-line. Dmitry Kulikov is another Panther defenseman who can provide offense and plays big important minutes.

Mike Weaver, rookie Erik Gudbranson, and Veteran Ed Jovanovski round out a versatile group of defensemen that will be called upon to not only shut down their opponents but also contribute offensively as well.

The Devils have the edge in experience and better defensive defensemen while the Panthers have the edge in providing much more offense from their blue-liners. The HF Advantage is EVEN.

Goaltending

Devils: Riding a five-game winning streak to close out the regular season, there is no question Martin Brodeur will be in net for Game 1 and beyond for his Devils. Brodeur added another record to his legacy, recording his 14th 30-plus win season, passing Patrick Roy. Martin Brodeur's next playoff shutout will be an NHL record 24th, which will break the tie with Roy as well.

The Devils do have a very capable backup in veteran Johan Hedberg but this is Marty's team, and he will take them as far as he can.

Panthers: Who will be the starting netminder for Game 1? This will be a huge game-time decision for coach Kevin Dineen. Will he go with experience and give the nod to Jose Theodore or to Scott Clemmensen, the former Boston College Standout and ex-Devil who is the hotter goalie at the end of the regular season.

Odds are we will see both goalies at some point during this series. The fact that there is no clear cut number one is a bit troubling at this stage.

The Devils are relying on their veteran, leader, and future Hall-of-Famer Martin Brodeur to have one more playoff run in his storied career. The Panthers hope that whichever goalie they roll the dice with will get hot and lead them to playoff success. The HF Advantage goes to the DEVILS. 

Special Teams

Devils: New Jersey holds the number one ranked Penalty Kill unit succeeding at an impressive 89.6% efficiency rating and scored a league leading 15 short-handed goals. Assistant Coach Dave Barr has done a tremendous job instituting a new aggressive penalty kill system, led by the dynamic shot-blocking duo of Bryce Salvador and Anton Volchenkov and a slew of aggressive forwards, even including Ilya Kovalchuk into the mix. 

The Devils' power play has been coming on strong with Marek Zidlicky and Ilya Kovalchuk manning the points. The return of Travis Zajac gives the Devils another offensive weapon on both the PP and PK, specifically in the faceoff circle. The Devils' power play can throw out two powerful units loaded with goal scorers, such as Zach Parise, Patrik Elias, Petr Sykora, and David Clarkson.

Panthers: Florida's strength is its power play, which is ranked 7th in NHL at an 18.5 % efficiency rating. The Panthers power play unit is led by Brian Campbell as the quarterback and fellow point-man Jason Garrison, who leads the team with nine power play goals.  

The Panthers can throw out clutch goal scorer Kris Versteeg, set-up man Stephen Weiss and veteran Mikael Samuelsson to form an extremely dangerous man-advantage unit that will challenge the number one ranked Devils' penalty kill. However, the Panthers do have a subpar Penalty Kill ranked 25th in the league at only a 79.5% efficiency rating.

The PK unit led by defensemen Mike Weaver and Jason Garrison must be more aggressive and block shots from the likes of Kovalchuk, Zidlicky, Sykora, and Elias in order to have success. Adding PK specialist John Madden into the fold will help but the Panthers need more contributions from their forwards such as Marcel Goc and Tomas Kopecky.   

Special teams could prove the difference in this series. The Devils come in with the top ranked PK unit and loaded with offensive weapons on their power play. The Panthers bring a top end power play that can pose a serious threat from anywhere on the ice. However, Florida has a weak PK which ultimately may cost them the series. The HF Advantage goes to the DEVILS. 

Coaching

Devils: Head Coach Pete Deboer, entering his first post season as an NHL bench boss, has a few decisions to make before Game 1 in Florida. Does Coach Deboer re-insert rookie Adam Larsson as his 6th defenseman or keep Peter Harrold, who has filled in nicely since his callup from Albany, in the lineup.

With the unfortunate wrist injury to Jacob Josefson, sidelined for at least the first round, there are a few options here to consider in order to fill the vacancy on the 4th line. Stephen Gionta would be at center, with Ryan Carter going from left wing to center. Eric Boulton would replace him at left wing. Harrold would be used as a winger, which he has done in the past for the LA Kings.

Another Albany callup, such as Brad Mills, Steve Zalewski or Mattias Tedenby, may also be a possibility as the series moves along. My move would be to keep Harrold in the lineup as the 6th defenseman and use Gionta on the 4th line for Game 1 and hope to catch lightning in a bottle.   

Panthers: Rookie Head Coach Kevin Dineen will also be entering his first Stanley Cup playoff series behind the bench. Coach Dineen has had a wonderful first season leading his Panthers to their first ever Division title and returning them to the playoffs for the first time since 2000.

However, unlike his coaching counterpart, Dineen has a much bigger decision to make before this series gets underway. Who will be manning his cage for Game 1? Jose Theodore or Scott Clemmensen? If the coach goes solely on playoff experience, then Jose Theodore is his man, with over 50 playoff games under his belt. However, the smart pick would be to go with ex-Devil Scott Clemmensen, who is the hotter goalie right now and has had previous success against his former club.

In what may be a tip of his hand, Coach Dineen chose Clemmensen to start in net for the division clinching game.

Both coaches have done a tremendous job leading their respective clubs into the playoffs, with important decisions and adjustments to be made for both clubs before and throughout this series. The The HF Advantage is EVEN.

"X" Factor

Devils: Captain Zach Parise has not had much playoff success in his seven year stint with the Devils. In what could be his last run with the Devils, due to his impending free agency, Parise needs to step up and be the leader he is capable of being, scoring the clutch goals and making the big plays when the game is on the line. 

Panthers: Longtime Panther Stephen Weiss has waited nine seasons to play in his first playoff game. It's now his time to lead his team to playoff glory. Weiss is the #1 center on a team that relies heavily on their top line for their offensive production. For Florida to win this series and make some noise, Stephen Weiss will need to be their most reliable and consistent offensive player.

Conclusion

Florida and New Jersey matched up pretty evenly over the regular season, splitting the four games. The Playoffs, however, will be a different story. The Devils hold clear advantages in their Forward group,Goaltending, and Special Teams. Expect to see both Florida goaltenders in the nets over the course of this series and possibly some overtime games as well. But when its all said and done, the Devils come into the series as the hotter and more balanced team and will finally advance past the first round for the first time since 2007. 

HF Series Prediction: DEVILS IN 5