Devils Win Stanley Cup

Dallas
Stars

"This is an unbelievable feeling," Martin Brodeur said. "This time around I think I realized it a little more."

Patrik Elias fed a backhanded pass from the corner to Arnott, who was left alone in front of Ed Belfour. The mistake proved deadly as Arnott lift the puck over Belfour for the Stanley Cup-winning goal.

"We worked hard, played our best," Belfour said. "We just fell short."

It didn't come easy for the Devils, who lost a heartbreaking triple overtime in Game 5 and let the Stars close of tying the series.

The Devils captain Scott Stevens became the sixth defenseman to capture the Conn Smythe Trophy as most valuable player of the playoffs.

"Scottie's been a tower of strength," coach Larry Robinson said. "He's got that 'C' for a reason."

"This feels unbelievable," Stevens said. "It's been a long hard road. We stuck together. Everybody believed in each other and we are finally back. Winning the Stanley Cup is unbelievable."

The game was very physical and both teams lost a player. Darryl Sydor suffered a knee injury and Petr Sykora was taken off the ice on a stretcher after being elbowed to the head by Derian Hatcher.

The Stars became the first defending champion to lose in the Finals since the 1984 New York Islanders.

"I'm probably more proud of my team this year than last," Stars coach Ken Hitchcock said. "Yes, we won last year, but this team went through so much and at the end was an eyelash away from bringing it back for a Game 7."