Stanley Cup Finals 2012: What New Jersey Needs to Do to Climb out of 3-0 Hole

The last team to win the Stanley Cup after falling in a 3-0 hole was the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs. 

History is scary for New Jersey Devils' fans as the team finds themselves in quite a predicament heading into their Game 4 tilt against the Los Angeles Kings.

But the Devils community shouldn't lose faith until the final buzzer sounds. There are a few things the Devils can do to come back and make a series out of these Stanley Cup Finals.

First and foremost, the Devils need to be much more effective on the power play. If they want any semblance of confidence at any point during Game 4, they need to score a power play goal, something they haven't been able to accomplish all series.

The Kings have completely shut down the Devils' special teams unit in these last three games. It wasn't hard to see that the Devils' incompetence with a man advantage would eventually put them at a disadvantage. Peter DeBoer needs his team to improve upon their 15.4 percent success rate if they're going to get back in this series.

This series has been nothing short of an embarrassment for Zach Parise and Ilya Kovalchuk.

The Devils gave Kovalchuk the moon and then some when they signed him to a 15-year, $100 million contract after the 2010 season. After notching 18 points in the team's first three playoff series, Kovalchuk has been invisible for the Devils in the Stanley Cup.

In 69:59 of total ice time, he's taken just five shots on goal. Five shots on goal from a player who has played 70 minutes is unacceptable, especially on the biggest stage in hockey. Don't be surprised if New Jersey is calling for his head in the offseason if the Devils can't come back.

Parise has fared a bit better on the offensive end, registering 11 shots on goal in this series, but it's his defensive contribution that needs to be addressed. The Devils' captain has been dominated by Anze Kopitar in this series, especially in Game 3. Kopitar burned by Parise at will multiple times, sparking Kings' rushes to the net.

If Parise and Kovalchuk don't step up, the Devils aren't going to make it back to New Jersey.

New Jersey also needs to revert back to the ways of its earlier postseason forecheck. It was the forecheck that got them to this point, and if they're going to go any further, it will be the forecheck that gets them back in the series. The Kings have been pestering the Devils at the top of the forecheck and sparking odd-man rushes as a result. 

The Devils need to take care of the puck better. They've given the puck away a total of 30 times in three games, a contrast to the Kings' 24 (11 of the 24 came in Game 3). DeBoer needs to tell his boys to make cleaner, crisper passes to work the puck closer to the net because Jonathan Quick isn't going to let up a goal on anything long.

The video below shows exactly what the Devils need to fix. Leading up to Kopitar's goal, they turned the puck over in the offensive zone, which led to a Kings' rush. Even after the rush was sparked, Parise had a chance to mark Kopitar and keep him from getting a shot off, but he was unable to do so and Kopitar blew right by him.

Martin Brodeur and company are going to need a miracle to win the Stanley Cup, but if they can be successfully carry out the aforementioned aspects of the game, they'll have a much better chance.