Devils Draw First Blood

New Jersey
Devils

"It takes a lot of pressure off whenever you score two quick goals like we did," Martin Brodeur said. "You get two goals up and the other team has to score three to pass you. It gave us a confident feeling."

Scott Nierdermayer scored just 55 seconds into the game and Petr Sykora and Bobby Holik scored in a 26-second span late in the first period. Claude Lemieux also scored, while Mark Recchi tallied the Flyers' lone goal.

"We had some good quality shots. We had a lot of real good quality shots," Recchi said. "A couple of bounces here or there and it could have gone either way. We generated enough. Hopefully, next game we can sneak some by."

"It takes the life out of you when they get two quick ones like that," Flyers defenseman Chris Therien said. "We kept fighting but their goaltender made some good saves."

The Flyers outshot the Devils 36-24, but Brodeur did a great goaltending job for New Jersey.

"Marty made some big saves for us and they missed a couple of opportunities," Devils coach Larry Robinson said. "They used their speed well and got more shots than I would have liked. They got way too many chances so we'll have to shore that up."

Game 2 is on Tuesday at Philadelphia.

"You've got to win games on the road," Devils' Claude Lemieux said. "In the playoffs, you may or may not have home-ice advantage, so you have to win away games. Our guys have been really solid and playing really well. We've had a lot of patience and confidence on the road. You want to keep that up. That's how you win championships."