NHL Playoffs: 5 Reasons Why the New Jersey Devils Have a 3-1 Series Lead

The New Jersey Devils took a commanding lead in their second-round series with the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday night. Their victory, which put them ahead of the Flyers 3-1 in the series, was not as close as the scoreboard might have indicated. For the third straight game, New Jersey dominated.  They're doing it by giving the Flyers more than they can handle from the opening faceoff to the final horn.

The Devils have been in control of almost every facet of the series, but five particular parts of their game have stood out. If New Jersey can replicate these aspects again on Tuesday night, they'll be moving on to the Eastern Conference Finals.

Aggressive Forechecking

All series long, head coach Pete DeBoer has stressed the importance of an aggressive forecheck against the Flyers. The Devils have won almost every race to the puck in their offensive end. They've finished their hits and have kept Philadelphia off balance.  

When the Flyers have gotten to the puck first, they've felt the pressure so much that they've had trouble getting it out of the zone. They have given the puck away 44 times in the first four games of the series. Many of those turnovers occurred in the Flyers' zone.

Those turnovers in the offensive zone have resulted in scoring opportunities for the Devils, and they have capitalized. Many of New Jersey's goals in this series have been results of their forecheck. They've put constant pressure on the Flyers, and it's resulting in mistakes by Philly.

The Devils have cashed in on these mistakes, and that's always a recipe for success in the NHL's second season.

Star Power

The Devils have also had success against the Flyers because their stars have been playing well. In the playoffs, stars sometimes fade in the spotlight (see Ilya Kovalchuk against the Flyers in 2010...or Game 1).  

Kovalchuk's mysterious drop-off in play was explained away with a back injury, and he sat Game 2 out. In Game 3, New Jersey's star winger came back with a vengeance. He scored a goal and had two assists, the second leading to the game winner in overtime. Kovalchuk has not been the only star to shine in this series.

Captain Zach Parise has performed up to his usual standards against Philadelphia. He may not be scoring a goal a game like Claude Giroux did against the Penguins, but he's winning every battle and causing mayhem behind Philadelphia netminder Ilya Bryzgalov. He truly sets the tempo for his team every night.

Keep Calm and Play on

Anyone who watched the Flyers defeat the Penguins in the first round saw that Philly had gotten into Pittsburgh's heads. They frustrated the Penguins to the point where Pittsburgh started to vent on Philly players on the ice. This put Pittsburgh in the penalty box and allowed the Flyers' power play do what it (usually) does best.

In Game 4, the Flyers got a little taste of their own medicine. Scott Hartnell showed his frustration in the penalty box by throwing his gloves. Giroux put a late hit on Dainius Zubrus to end the second period that put the Devils on the power play to start the third.  

Throughout all of Philadelphia's frustrations, the Devils have stayed calm. They have not bitten when the Flyers have provoked them. As Philly comes out even more desperate in Game 5, it is important that New Jersey continues this. You never know when an ill-advised penalty could turn into a goal that could turn the series around.

Depth Attack

Another key to the Devils' success has been their ability to roll all four of their lines with confidence.  Pete DeBoer played around with the lines when Kovalchuk returned. He put the star on the second line to create more depth, but that does not mean the Devils lack depth.

Rookie Adam Henrique has played very well in his second playoff series. Seasoned veterans Patrik Elias and Petr Sykora have also produced for their team. The Devils have looked good all the way down to their fourth line. Steven Gionta, called up at the end of the season, has been buzzing all series long.  He may be small, but he hasn't been playing like it.

That's not to mention that New Jersey's defensemen have suddenly begun to find the net. The Devils lacked blue line scoring all season, but Adam Larsson scored in Game 2, Bryce Salvadore scored in Game 3 and Marek Zidlicky scored in Game 4.

Powerful Penalty Kill

Finally, the New Jersey Devils have completely shut down the Flyers' once-ridiculous power play. In the first round, Philadelphia scored on almost 50 percent of their power play opportunities. Meanwhile, the Devils, who had the highest penalty kill percentage in regular season history, struggled to keep the Florida Panthers in line. That has all turned around in this round.

The Devils' penalty killers have kept the Flyers from scoring in 15 out of 18 opportunities. Philadelphia fans may long remember the two penalties that New Jersey killed off in the overtime period of Game 3. In fact, on the second one, the Devils had more scoring opportunities than the Flyers.

The Devils are very aggressive on the penalty kill. Their constant pressure has forced the Flyers to try and get too tricky and pass the puck more than they want to.

They haven't allowed Philadelphia to get comfortable all series. If they can do it one more time, they'll be through to the Conference Finals.