The Devils were met with a rude welcome to the playoffs in the first period of last night’s game in Tampa. The Lightning showed why they ended up the top seed in the Eastern Conference and overwhelmed the Devils in the first period and went up 2-0 in the opening 20 minutes. After a quick strike on a power play created by a boneheaded Miles Wood penalty in the opening moments of the second, the Devils found themselves in a 3-0 hole just 22 minutes into the game.
To their credit, the Devils absolutely did not fold.