Devils’ Claude Reigns Over Wings In Game 1

Claude Lemieux scores when it counts. New Jersey’s opponent doesn’t. That’s classic Devils playoff hockey, and it’s given them early control of the Stanley Cup finals.

Lemieux, an ordinary regular-season performer who excels in the postseason, snapped a tie at 3:17 of the third period Saturday night as the Devils opened the NHL championship series with a 2-1 victory over the Detroit Red Wings.

The Devils’ patient trapping defense limited Detroit’s vaunted attack to a season-low 17 shots - including just one in the final nine minutes - on goalie Martin Brodeur.

“We’re playing very well in our end to contain the puck-carrier and keep him to the outside,” New Jersey coach Jacques Lemaire said. “We did what we’ve been doing. That’s our success. That’s our game.”

The Devils will try to do it again Tuesday night in Game 2 before the series shifts to New Jersey for Games 3 and 4.

And Lemieux will try to continue doing what he does best. Of his 51 goals in 133 postseason games, 14 have been game-winners. That puts him seventh on the all-time NHL playoff list behind Wayne Gretzky, Maurice Richard, Mike Bossy, Glenn Anderson, Jean Beliveau and Yvan Cournoyer. “It’s an honor to be on the all-time list with all these guys

“It’s an honor to be on the all-time list with all these guys I idolized as a youngster,” said Lemieux, who has 12 goals - including three winners - this postseason after scoring only six goals all regular season. “Hopefully, I can get a lot more.”

A tough player better known as a checker during his 10-year career, he had 10 goals, including four winners, to help Montreal capture the Stanley Cup in 1986.

The Red Wings, trying to win the Stanley Cup for the first time since 1955, outshot opponents 508-288 and averaged 36.3 shots a game through the first three rounds. Detroit’s previous low for shots this season was 22 back on Jan. 24.

“Once they got the lead, it’s kind of a tough catch-up game,” Detroit coach Scotty Bowman said. “It’s the sixth straight game we gave up the first goal and it’s a tough formula. We did tie the game the first time. To do it again, it’s tough. We ran out of gas in the third period.”

New Jersey set an NHL playoff record with its ninth road victory.

“We don’t really have a choice, because we have had to play a lot of games on the road,” the Devils’ Tom Chorske said. “But that is something to be proud of because we have worked really hard.”

The Red Wings lost for the first time in nine home postseason games.

John MacLean set up Saturday’s winning goal by stealing the puck from defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom in the left faceoff circle. MacLean took a shot but the puck hit defenseman Paul Coffey and deflected right to Lemieux at the high point. Lemieux then beat goalie Mike Vernon between the pads with a slap shot.

“Claude has the hot stick right now and he just found another opening,” MacLean said. “Give him all the credit in the world, because he’s been doing this for the whole playoffs.”

Detroit, making its first appearance in the finals since 1966, is trying to end the league’s longest Stanley Cup dry spell. The Devils, who joined the NHL in 1974 as the Kansas City Scouts and had a six-year stint in Denver before settling in New Jersey in 1982, are in their first title series.

“For most of the guys on this team, this was their first Stanley Cup finals game, so we had a lot of butterflies,” New Jersey’s Ken Daneyko said. “For the first 5 minutes, we looked like our skates were stuck to the ice. But we survived and, after that, we just played our game. To win Game 1 is huge.”

Bowman, however, said losing it isn’t devastating. He noted that in three of the previous four years, the home team lost the opener but won the finals.

“We’ve just got to play a lot better,” he said.

Though Detroit captain Steve Yzerman asked fans on Friday to buck tradition and stop throwing octopuses, the Red Wings used pregame ceremonies to emphasize the creature.