Stanley Cup Playoffs 2012: Devils Will Blast Back After NY Rangers' Dirty Play

Fire ignites faster with fuel.

In the 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs, the New Jersey Devils find themselves down 2-1 to the New York Rangers. While the Devils have been outscored in the series, 8-3, they’ll use their new-found motivation to knock out their Atlantic Division rivals.

In the second period of Game 3, New York’s Brandon Prust landed an elbow to the back of Anton Volchenkov’s head. Unsurprisingly, New Jersey wasn’t fond of Prust substituting checking for throwing bows.

Now, a chunk of fans believe Volchenkov took a dive. Decide for yourself—here’s the video:

Dirty hit or dive, either way, New Jersey believes the hit was dirty, and that’s all that matters. They’ll use the shot as fuel.

Devils head coach Peter DeBoer said of the move: “It’s head-hunting, plain and simple.”

Volchenkov’s opinion didn’t differ from his coach’s.

“It's pretty dirty; it's an elbow to my head," Volchenkov said. "It's emotions maybe. He tried to hit me but missed a little bit and elbowed me in the head. It's hockey."

Using another team’s antics as motivation isn’t exactly a revelation—especially this year. Earlier this NBA postseason, Boston Celtics star Kevin Garnett thanked the Atlanta Hawks owner for an extra boost after he called Garnett the dirtiest player in the league.

The most recent occurrence of such a claim came from Dwyane Wade. Wade didn’t approve of the Indiana Pacers' Game 2 celebration and said that he’d use their poor sportsmanship to drive him.

Now, the common response to Wade’s whining was, "This is the playoffs—he shouldn’t need any more motivation." But it’s different for the Devils.

When a player takes a cheap shot at your teammate, adrenaline kicks in. It isn’t just a game anymore—it’s about protecting and/or getting revenge for a brother.

Again, New Jersey doesn’t believe Volchenkov took a dive. They believe a shot was taken at their brother, and they won’t allow the Rangers to advance because of it.

David Daniels is a featured columnist at Bleacher Report and a syndicated writer.

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