And so now we wait. We wait for the Devil of the next generation — perhaps the Devil of this generation — who will join the memorialized Patrik Elias, Scott Stevens, Scott Niedermayer, Ken Daneyko and Martin Brodeur at the top of the Rock.
Maybe Taylor Hall, maybe Nico Hischier, two kids — hey, Hall is just 26 — with talent enough to have thrived back when the Devils turned 16W into the Exit of Champions and a parade of brilliance was on display night after night, year after year.
Those were the days of the Devils’ lives, and they were honored in New Jersey before their 2-1 win in Saturday’s match against the Islanders when Elias’ No.