2002–03 New Jersey Devils season

The 2002–03 New Jersey Devils season was the team's 21st season in the National Hockey League since the franchise relocated to New Jersey. After claiming the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference titles, the Devils won their third Stanley Cup championship in a seven-game series against the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.

2002–03 New Jersey Devils
Stanley Cup champions
Eastern Conference champions
Atlantic Division champions
Division	1st Atlantic
Conference	2nd Eastern
2002–03 record	46–20–10–6
Home record	25–11–3–2
Road record	21–9–7–4
Goals for	216
Goals against	166
Team information
General manager	Lou Lamoriello
Coach	Pat Burns
Captain	Scott Stevens
Alternate captains	Patrik Elias Scott Niedermayer
Arena	Continental Airlines Arena
Average attendance	14,858
Team leaders
Goals	Patrik Elias (28)
Assists	Scott Gomez (42)
Points	Patrik Elias (57)
Penalty minutes	Turner Stevenson (115)
Plus/minus	Jeff Friesen Scott Niedermayer (+23)
Wins	Martin Brodeur (41)
Goals against average	Corey Schwab (1.47)

In addition to the Devils reaching the Stanley Cup Finals, the other New Jersey team from one of the major professional sports leagues, the New Jersey Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA), have reached the NBA Finals where they lost in six games to the San Antonio Spurs.

Pre-season

No.	R	Date	Score	Opponent	Record	Time

Regular season

The Devils tied the Philadelphia Flyers for fewest goals allowed (166) and had the fewest power-play opportunities against (264), the fewest power-play goals against (32) and the best penalty-kill percentage (87.88%). The Devils also tied the Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings and Washington Capitals for fewest short-handed goals allowed, with four. Furthermore, the Devils also had the fewest power-play opportunities for (303), the fewest power-play goals for (36) and the lowest power-play percentage, at 11.88%.[1]

• January 17, 2003: Joe Nieuwendyk scored his 500th career goal against the Carolina Hurricanes in a 2–1 Devils victory. [2] He then recorded his 1,000th career point on February 23 in a win over the Pittsburgh Penguins. [3]

Season standings

Atlantic Division

No.	CR		GP	W	L	T	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	2	New Jersey Devils	82	46	20	10	6	216	166	108
2	4	Philadelphia Flyers	82	45	20	13	4	211	166	107
3	8	New York Islanders	82	35	34	11	2	224	231	83
4	9	New York Rangers	82	32	36	10	4	210	231	78
5	14	Pittsburgh Penguins	82	27	44	6	5	189	255	65

[4]

Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime loss; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points
         Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.

Eastern Conference[5]

R		Div	GP	W	L	T	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	P- Ottawa Senators	NE	82	52	21	8	1	263	182	113
2	Y- New Jersey Devils	AT	82	46	20	10	6	216	166	108
3	Y- Tampa Bay Lightning	SE	82	36	25	16	5	219	210	93
4	X- Philadelphia Flyers	AT	82	45	20	13	4	211	166	107
5	X- Toronto Maple Leafs	NE	82	44	28	7	3	236	208	98
6	X- Washington Capitals	SE	82	39	29	8	6	224	220	92
7	X- Boston Bruins	NE	82	36	31	11	4	245	237	87
8	X- New York Islanders	AT	82	35	34	11	2	224	231	83
8.5
9	New York Rangers	AT	82	32	36	10	4	210	231	78
10	Montreal Canadiens	NE	82	30	35	8	9	206	234	77
11	Atlanta Thrashers	SE	82	31	39	7	5	226	284	74
12	Buffalo Sabres	NE	82	27	37	10	8	190	219	72
13	Florida Panthers	SE	82	24	36	13	9	176	237	70
14	Pittsburgh Penguins	AT	82	27	44	6	5	189	255	65
15	Carolina Hurricanes	SE	82	22	43	11	6	171	240	61

Divisions: AT – Atlantic, NE – Northeast, SE – Southeast

P – Clinched Presidents Trophy; Y – Clinched Division; X – Clinched Playoff spot

Schedule and results

No.	R	Date	Score	Opponent	Record	Pts
1	W	October 10, 2002	2–1	@ Ottawa Senators (2002–03)	1–0–0–0	2
2	W	October 12, 2002	3–2	Columbus Blue Jackets (2002–03)	2–0–0–0	4
3	W	October 18, 2002	3–2 OT	Nashville Predators (2002–03)	3–0–0–0	6
4	L	October 19, 2002	1–3	@ Carolina Hurricanes (2002–03)	3–1–0–0	6
5	W	October 23, 2002	2–1	@ Atlanta Thrashers (2002–03)	4–1–0–0	8
6	W	October 25, 2002	2–1	@ Buffalo Sabres (2002–03)	5–1–0–0	10
7	W	October 26, 2002	5–1	Tampa Bay Lightning (2002–03)	6–1–0–0	12
8	L	October 29, 2002	1–2	Carolina Hurricanes (2002–03)	6–2–0–0	12
9	W	November 2, 2002	5–1	Chicago Blackhawks (2002–03)	7–2–0–0	14
10	L	November 5, 2002	2–3	Calgary Flames (2002–03)	7–3–0–0	14
11	W	November 7, 2002	1–0	@ Philadelphia Flyers (2002–03)	8–3–0–0	16
12	L	November 9, 2002	3–6	Edmonton Oilers (2002–03)	8–4–0–0	16
13	W	November 12, 2002	3–2 OT	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03)	9–4–0–0	18
14	W	November 15, 2002	5–1	Montreal Canadiens (2002–03)	10–4–0–0	20
15	L	November 16, 2002	1–3	@ Montreal Canadiens (2002–03)	10–5–0–0	20
16	W	November 19, 2002	4–3 OT	Buffalo Sabres (2002–03)	11–5–0–0	22
17	T	November 21, 2002	4–4 OT	New York Rangers (2002–03)	11–5–1–0	23
18	L	November 23, 2002	1–3	Tampa Bay Lightning (2002–03)	11–6–1–0	23
19	OTL	November 27, 2002	2–3 OT	@ Detroit Red Wings (2002–03)	11–6–1–1	24
20	W	November 29, 2002	2–1	@ Nashville Predators (2002–03)	12–6–1–1	26
21	W	November 30, 2002	5–4 OT	@ St. Louis Blues (2002–03)	13–6–1–1	28
22	W	December 2, 2002	1–0 OT	@ Philadelphia Flyers (2002–03)	14–6–1–1	30
23	OTL	December 4, 2002	2–3 OT	Vancouver Canucks (2002–03)	14–6–1–2	31
24	W	December 6, 2002	3–1	Pittsburgh Penguins (2002–03)	15–6–1–2	33
25	L	December 7, 2002	0–1	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2002–03)	15–7–1–2	33
26	W	December 10, 2002	2–0	St. Louis Blues (2002–03)	16–7–1–2	35
27	L	December 12, 2002	2–4	@ Columbus Blue Jackets (2002–03)	16–8–1–2	35
28	OTL	December 14, 2002	3–4 OT	@ Ottawa Senators (2002–03)	16–8–1–3	36
29	L	December 18, 2002	0–3	Ottawa Senators (2002–03)	16–9–1–3	36
30	W	December 19, 2002	3–1	@ Pittsburgh Penguins (2002–03)	17–9–1–3	38
31	W	December 21, 2002	5–3	Dallas Stars (2002–03)	18–9–1–3	38
32	T	December 23, 2002	2–2 OT	@ New York Rangers (2002–03)	18–9–2–3	39
33	L	December 27, 2002	2–3	@ Washington Capitals (2002–03)	18–10–2–3	39
34	W	December 28, 2002	2–1 OT	Washington Capitals (2002–03)	19–10–2–3	41
35	W	December 30, 2002	1–0	@ Boston Bruins (2002–03)	20–10–2–3	43
36	L	January 1, 2003	1–2	Florida Panthers (2002–03)	20–11–2–3	43
37	W	January 3, 2003	2–0	Toronto Maple Leafs (2002–03)	21–11–2–3	45
38	L	January 4, 2003	1–2	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2002–03)	21–12–2–3	45
39	W	January 7, 2003	3–2	Montreal Canadiens (2002–03)	22–12–2–3	47
40	W	January 10, 2003	2–1	@ Florida Panthers (2002–03)	23–12–2–3	49
41	T	January 11, 2003	3–3 OT	@ Tampa Bay Lightning (2002–03)	23–12–3–3	50
42	W	January 13, 2003	6–2	Florida Panthers (2002–03)	24–12–3–3	52
43	W	January 15, 2003	5–0	New York Islanders (2002–03)	25–12–3–3	54
44	W	January 17, 2003	2–1	@ Carolina Hurricanes (2002–03)	26–12–3–3	56
45	W	January 18, 2003	5–2	Carolina Hurricanes (2002–03)	27–12–3–3	58
46	W	January 22, 2003	5–4 OT	@ San Jose Sharks (2002–03)	28–12–3–3	60
47	W	January 24, 2003	3–1	@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03)	29–12–3–3	62
48	OTL	January 25, 2003	1–2 OT	@ Los Angeles Kings (2002–03)	29–12–3–4	63
49	W	January 28, 2003	1–0	Detroit Red Wings (2002–03)	30–12–3–4	65
50	W	January 30, 2003	5–1	Philadelphia Flyers (2002–03)	31–12–3–4	67
51	W	February 4, 2003	4–1	Buffalo Sabres (2002–03)	32–12–3–4	69
52	W	February 5, 2003	4–1	@ Washington Capitals (2002–03)	33–12–3–4	71
53	L	February 7, 2003	2–4	Atlanta Thrashers (2002–03)	33–13–3–4	71
54	W	February 9, 2003	3–2	Minnesota Wild (2002–03)	34–13–3–4	73
55	L	February 11, 2003	1–3	@ Colorado Avalanche (2002–03)	34–14–3–4	73
56	W	February 12, 2003	3–0	@ Phoenix Coyotes (2002–03)	35–14–3–4	75
57	L	February 15, 2003	1–4	Pittsburgh Penguins (2002–03)	35–15–3–4	75
58	T	February 18, 2003	2–2 OT	@ Philadelphia Flyers (2002–03)	35–15–4–4	76
59	L	February 19, 2003	3–5	Ottawa Senators (2002–03)	35–16–4–4	76
60	W	February 21, 2003	3–2	Boston Bruins (2002–03)	36–16–4–4	78
61	W	February 23, 2003	4–3	@ Pittsburgh Penguins (2002–03)	37–16–4–4	80
62	T	February 25, 2003	3–3 OT	New York Rangers (2002–03)	37–16–5–4	81
63	T	February 27, 2003	3–3 OT	@ New York Islanders (2002–03)	37–16–6–4	82
64	W	March 1, 2003	2–1 OT	Washington Capitals (2002–03)	38–16–6–4	84
65	L	March 4, 2003	2–3	@ Minnesota Wild (2002–03)	38–17–6–4	84
66	OTL	March 5, 2003	4–5 OT	@ Calgary Flames (2002–03)	38–17–6–5	85
67	W	March 8, 2003	4–2	@ New York Islanders (2002–03)	39–17–6–5	87
68	L	March 11, 2003	2–3	Atlanta Thrashers (2002–03)	39–18–6–5	87
69	L	March 13, 2003	3–4	@ Boston Bruins (2002–03)	39–19–6–5	87
70	W	March 15, 2003	3–1	New York Rangers (2002–03)	40–19–6–5	89
71	L	March 17, 2003	2–4	Philadelphia Flyers (2002–03)	40–20–6–5	89
72	W	March 18, 2003	1–0	@ Montreal Canadiens (2002–03)	41–20–6–5	91
73	W	March 21, 2003	3–1	Pittsburgh Penguins (2002–03)	42–20–6–5	93
74	W	March 22, 2003	4–2	@ New York Islanders (2002–03)	43–20–6–5	95
75	W	March 24, 2003	4–1	@ Florida Panthers (2002–03)	44–20–6–5	97
76	T	March 27, 2003	2–2 OT	@ Tampa Bay Lightning (2002–03)	44–20–7–5	98
77	T	March 28, 2003	1–1 OT	@ Atlanta Thrashers (2002–03)	44–20–8–5	99
78	W	March 30, 2003	6–0	New York Islanders (2002–03)	45–20–8–5	101
79	OTL	April 1, 2003	2–3 OT	Toronto Maple Leafs (2002–03)	45–20–8–6	102
80	T	April 3, 2003	1–1 OT	Boston Bruins (2002–03)	45–20–9–6	103
81	W	April 4, 2003	2–1	@ New York Rangers (2002–03)	46–20–9–6	105
82	T	April 6, 2003	2–2 OT	@ Buffalo Sabres (2002–03)	46–20–10–6	106

Playoffs

(E2) New Jersey Devils vs. (E7) Boston Bruins

The series opened at Continental Airlines Arena in New Jersey, and game one was a defensive battle in an ultimate 2–1 Devils victory behind two goals from Jamie Langenbrunner. New Jersey then took control of the series with a 4–2 victory in Game 2.

Down 2–0 in the series but heading home to FleetCenter, Boston shook things up, replacing Steve Shields, who allowed six goals in the first two games, in favor of Jeff Hackett. The shakeup did not do much, as the Devils shut out in the Bruins in Game 3, 3–0, with goalie Martin Brodeur stopping all 29 shots he faced. In game 4, Ken Daneyko was a healthy scratch and did not play that game. It was the first time in his career that he was a healthy scratch in the playoffs. Not wanting to end their season with a winless postseason and a loss in front of their fans, Boston came out firing by winning the game, 5–1 and knocking out Brodeur after the fifth goal in favor of Corey Schwab, who went six-for-six in net.

Unfortunately for the Bruins and their fans, they had only "stayed their execution" until game five in New Jersey, where Brodeur bounced back from his horrid Game 4 with a 28-save shutout in a 3–0 win as Langenbrunner added two more goals.

April 9	Boston Bruins		1–2		New Jersey Devils	Continental Airlines Arena	Recap
No Scoring		First period			15:35 – Jamie Langenbrunner (1)
No Scoring		Second period			11:38 – Jamie Langenbrunner (2)
Bryan Berard (1) – 03:29		Third period			No Scoring
Steve Shields 26 saves / 28 shots		Goalie stats			Martin Brodeur 26 saves / 27 shots

April 11	Boston Bruins		2–4		New Jersey Devils	Continental Airlines Arena	Recap
Glen Murray (1) – 08:52		First period			14:17 – Jeff Friesen (1) 19:34 – pp – Brian Rafalski (1)
Dan McGillis (1) – pp – 13:59		Second period			No Scoring
00:15 – pp – Jamie Langenbrunner (3) 14:24 – Joe Nieuwendyk (1)		Third period			No Scoring
Steve Shields 26 saves / 30 shots		Goalie stats			Martin Brodeur 24 saves / 26 shots

April 13	New Jersey Devils		3–0		Boston Bruins	FleetCenter	Recap
No Scoring		First period			No Scoring
Scott Stevens (1) – 01:11		Second period			No Scoring
Jay Pandolfo (1) – 12:00 John Madden (1) – en – 18:54		Third period			No Scoring
Martin Brodeur 29 saves / 29 shots		Goalie stats			Jeff Hackett 19 saves / 21 shots

April 15	New Jersey Devils		1–5		Boston Bruins	FleetCenter	Recap
No Scoring		First period			19:47 – pp – Joe Thornton (1)
No Scoring		Second period			02:24 – pp – Dan McGillis (2) 17:15 – Dan McGillis (3)
Scott Niedermayer (1) – 01:37		Third period			01:45 – Martin Lapointe (1) 03:37 – Marty McInnis (1)
Martin Brodeur 19 saves / 24 shots Corey Schwab 6 saves / 6 shots		Goalie stats			Jeff Hackett 24 saves / 25 shots

April 17	Boston Bruins		0–3		New Jersey Devils	Continental Airlines Arena	Recap
No Scoring		First period			08:31 – pp – John Madden (2)
No Scoring		Second period			No Scoring
No Scoring		Third period			07:41 – Jamie Langenbrunner (4) 19:08 – en – Jamie Langenbrunner (5)
Jeff Hackett 28 saves / 30 shots		Goalie stats			Martin Brodeur 29 saves / 29 shots

New Jersey won series 4–1

(E2) New Jersey Devils vs. (E3) Tampa Bay Lightning

The series opened at Continental Airlines Arena in New Jersey, where the Devils scored three third-period goals to break a scoreless tie en route to a 3–0 game one victory with goalie Martin Brodeur posting a 15-save shutout in the process. Game two was a little tenser, with New Jersey rallying from a third-period deficit and winning the game 2:09 into overtime, 3–2, on a goal by Jamie Langenbrunner.

In game three at St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, the Lightning jumped out to a 3–0 first-period lead. Then, Scott Stevens was injured by a puck that hit him in the face from a slapshot by Pavel Kubina. Following that, New Jersey tied the score before scoring in the third period on a goal by Dave Andreychuk to win the game, 4–3 for Tampa. Stevens recovered and returned for game four, and the Devils responded by winning, 3–1, to push the Lightning to the brink. The Devils ended the series with a 2–1 triple-overtime victory in game five, with Grant Marshall scoring the game-winning goal 11:12 into the sixth period.

April 24	Tampa Bay Lightning		0–3		New Jersey Devils	Continental Airlines Arena	Recap
No Scoring		First period			No Scoring
No Scoring		Second period			No Scoring
No Scoring		Third period			07:41 – Jamie Langenbrunner (6) 11:28 – John Madden (3) 17:09 – Turner Stevenson (1)
Nikolai Khabibulin 29 saves / 32 shots		Goalie stats			Martin Brodeur 15 saves / 15 shots

April 26	Tampa Bay Lightning		2–3	OT	New Jersey Devils	Continental Airlines Arena	Recap
Chris Dingman (1) – 12:25		First period			No Scoring
Martin St. Louis (6) – sh – 19:38		Second period			19:26 – pp – Brian Rafalski (2)
No Scoring		Third period			10:26 – Grant Marshall (1)
No Scoring		First overtime period			02:09 – Jamie Langenbrunner (7)
Nikolai Khabibulin 33 saves / 36 shots		Goalie stats			Martin Brodeur 26 saves / 28 shots

April 28	New Jersey Devils		3–4		Tampa Bay Lightning	St. Pete Times Forum	Recap
No Scoring		First period			04:19 – pp – Vaclav Prospal (4) 09:21 – Martin St. Louis (7) 16:16 – Fredrik Modin (2)
John Madden (4) – pp – 06:38 Grant Marshall (2) – 07:34 Jeff Friesen (2) – 15:06		Second period			No Scoring
No Scoring		Third period			06:08 – Dave Andreychuk (3)
Martin Brodeur 25 saves / 29 shots		Goalie stats			Nikolai Khabibulin 24 saves / 27 shots

April 30	New Jersey Devils		3–1		Tampa Bay Lightning	St. Pete Times Forum	Recap
11:30 – Jassen Cullimore (1)		First period			Scott Gomez (1) – 04:52 Patrik Elias (1) – 16:33
No Scoring		Second period			No Scoring
Scott Stevens (2) – pp – 13:13		Third period			No Scoring
Martin Brodeur 25 saves / 26 shots		Goalie stats			Nikolai Khabibulin 23 saves / 26 shots

May 2	Tampa Bay Lightning		1–2	3OT	New Jersey Devils	Continental Airlines Arena	Recap
Nikita Alexeev (1) – 11:18		First period			13:27 – pp – Scott Niedermayer (2)
No Scoring		Second period			No Scoring
No Scoring		Third period			No Scoring
No Scoring		Third overtime period			11:12 – Grant Marshall (3)
John Grahame 46 saves / 48 shots		Goalie stats			Martin Brodeur 38 saves / 39 shots

New Jersey won series 4–1

(E1) Ottawa Senators vs. (E2) New Jersey Devils

The series opened at Corel Centre in Ottawa, where the Senators took game one in overtime, 3–2, when Shaun Van Allen tipped in a pass from Martin Havlát 3:08 into overtime. New Jersey tied the series, 1–1, with a crucial victory in game two, 4–1. It marked the first time Ottawa goalie Patrick Lalime allowed more than two goals in twelve postseason games.

Game three at the Continental Airlines Arena in New Jersey saw an amazing defensive battle, but New Jersey won the game, 1–0, on a first-period goal by Sergei Brylin. Martin Brodeur posted a 24-save shutout for the Devils in the process. New Jersey appeared to have the series in control when they broke a 2–2 tie in game four with three third-period goals en route to a 5–2 win, and they led in the series, 3–1. But, it wasn't over yet, as Minnesota (twice) and Vancouver rebounded from 3–1 series deficits earlier in the playoffs.

Ottawa returned home for game five, not wanting to lose in front of their fans. They staved off elimination with a 3–1 victory. The tense action resumed back in New Jersey for game six, as the teams entered overtime tied, 1–1, and all the Devils needed was a goal to knock out the Senators. The death blow did not come in game six, as Chris Phillips scored the game-winning goal 15:52 into overtime in the 2–1 Senators victory. This would be the Devils only home loss of the playoffs.

Determined not to suffer the same misfortunes as Colorado, St. Louis, and Vancouver, the Devils broke through in game seven, winning the game, 3–2, as Jeff Friesen knocked in the series-winning goal with just over two minutes to play to send New Jersey to the Stanley Cup Finals. In the decisive game, the Devils benefited from a two-goal performance by Jamie Langenbrunner, his first goals of the series.

May 10	New Jersey Devils		2–3	OT	Ottawa Senators	Corel Centre	Recap
No Scoring		First period			06:10 – Chris Neil (1) 07:23 – Todd White (4)
Joe Nieuwendyk (2) – 14:19 Jay Pandolfo (2) – 16:51		Second period			No Scoring
No Scoring		Third period			No Scoring
No Scoring		First overtime period			03:08 – Shaun Van Allen (1)
Martin Brodeur 27 saves / 30 shots		Goalie stats			Patrick Lalime 32 saves / 34 shots

May 13	New Jersey Devils		4–1		Ottawa Senators	Corel Centre	Recap
Tommy Albelin (1) – 04:15 Jeff Friesen (3) – 17:21		First period			No Scoring
John Madden (5) – 16:33		Second period			02:02 – Radek Bonk (4)
Jay Pandolfo (3) – 14:29		Third period			No Scoring
Martin Brodeur 30 saves / 31 shots		Goalie stats			Patrick Lalime 17 saves / 21 shots

May 15	Ottawa Senators		0–1		New Jersey Devils	Continental Airlines Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			10:48 – Sergei Brylin (1)
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Patrick Lalime 23 saves / 24 shots		Goalie stats			Martin Brodeur 24 saves / 24 shots

May 17	Ottawa Senators		2–5		New Jersey Devils	Continental Airlines Arena	Recap
Karel Rachunek (1) – 19:45		First period			07:25 – pp – Grant Marshall (4)
Vaclav Varada (2) – 07:08		Second period			16:43 – Jay Pandolfo (4)
No Scoring		Third period			00:41 – pp – Jeff Friesen (4) 04:17 – Patrik Elias (2) 07:35 – sh – John Madden (6)
Patrick Lalime 15 saves / 20 shots		Goalie stats			Martin Brodeur 26 saves / 28 shots

May 19	New Jersey Devils		1–3		Ottawa Senators	Corel Centre	Recap
No Scoring		First period			No Scoring
Scott Stevens (3) – 06:19		Second period			03:59 – sh – Todd White (5)
No Scoring		Third period			07:59 – Martin Havlat (5) 12:28 – pp – Jason Spezza (1)
Martin Brodeur 15 saves / 18 shots		Goalie stats			Patrick Lalime 21 saves / 22 shots

May 21	Ottawa Senators		2–1	OT	New Jersey Devils	Continental Airlines Arena	Recap
No Scoring		First period			No Scoring
Radek Bonk (5) – pp – 17:49		Second period			No Scoring
No Scoring		Third period			02:41 – pp – Joe Nieuwendyk (3)
Chris Phillips (2) – 15:51		First overtime period			No Scoring
Patrick Lalime 30 saves / 31 shots		Goalie stats			Martin Brodeur 32 saves / 34 shots

May 23	New Jersey Devils		3–2		Ottawa Senators	Corel Centre	Recap
No Scoring		First period			03:33 – Magnus Arvedson (1)
Jamie Langenbrunner (8) – 03:52 Jamie Langenbrunner (9) – 05:46		Second period			No Scoring
Jeff Friesen (5) – 17:46		Third period			01:53 – Radek Bonk (6)
Martin Brodeur 24 saves / 26 shots		Goalie stats			Patrick Lalime 24 saves / 27 shots

New Jersey won series 4–3

Stanley Cup Finals

For the Devils, this was their fourth Stanley Cup Finals appearance, after making the Finals previously in 1995, 2000, and 2001. As for the Mighty Ducks, it was their first ever Stanley Cup Finals appearance in franchise history after defeating the Detroit Red Wings, Dallas Stars, and Minnesota Wild. The Devils had a strong start in game one at the Meadowlands as they shut out the Ducks 3–0. Game two was pretty much Deja Vu for the Devils as they once again blanked the Ducks 3–0. Down 2–0 in the series, the Ducks responded at home in Anaheim with a 3–2 overtime victory. Then, in game four, Anaheim tied the series at two in a 1–0 overtime win. Back at the Meadowlands, game five was much more competitive and high tempo. While both teams went back and forth with three goals each, the Devils would add three more goals to win 6–3. Facing elimination in game six, the Ducks did not disappoint their fans as they won game six 5–2. However, during that game, Scott Stevens laid a vicious check on Paul Kariya, knocking him to the ground. Kariya quickly recovered and scored the game-winning goal, tying the series at three games apiece. The Devils ended the series with an exclamation mark as they shut out the Ducks 3–0 once more to capture their third Stanley Cup championship in nine seasons. While the Devils did win the cup, Jean-Sébastien Giguère of Anaheim won the Conn Smythe Trophy, making it the first time in sixteen years that a player from the losing team won the Conn Smythe Trophy.

May 27	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim		0–3		New Jersey Devils	Continental Airlines Arena	Recap
No Scoring		First period			No Scoring
No Scoring		Second period			01:45 – Jeff Friesen (6)
No Scoring		Third period			05:34 – Grant Marshall (5) 19:38 – en – Jeff Friesen (7)
Jean-Sebastien Giguere 27 saves / 29 shots		Goalie stats			Martin Brodeur 16 saves / 16 shots

May 29	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim		0–3		New Jersey Devils	Continental Airlines Arena	Recap
No Scoring		First period			No Scoring
No Scoring		Second period			04:42 – pp – Patrik Elias (3) 12:11 – Scott Gomez (2)
No Scoring		Third period			04:22 – Jeff Friesen (8)
Jean-Sebastien Giguere 22 saves / 25 shots		Goalie stats			Martin Brodeur 16 saves / 16 shots

May 31	New Jersey Devils		2–3	OT	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim	Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim	Recap
No Scoring		First period			No Scoring
Patrik Elias (4) – 14:02		Second period			03:39 – Marc Chouinard (1) 14:47 – Sandis Ozolins (2)
Scott Gomez (3) – 09:11		Third period			No Scoring
No Scoring		First overtime period			06:59 – Ruslan Salei (2)
Martin Brodeur 30 saves / 33 shots		Goalie stats			Jean-Sebastien Giguere 29 saves / 31 shots

June 2	New Jersey Devils		0–1	OT	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim	Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim	Recap
No Scoring		First period			No Scoring
No Scoring		Second period			No Scoring
No Scoring		Third period			No Scoring
No Scoring		First overtime period			00:39 – Steve Thomas (3)
Martin Brodeur 25 saves / 26 shots		Goalie stats			Jean-Sebastien Giguere 26 saves / 26 shots

June 5	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim		3–6		New Jersey Devils	Continental Airlines Arena	Recap
Petr Sykora (3) – 00:42 Steve Rucchin (5) – 12:50		First period			03:35 – Pascal Rheaume (1) 07:45 – pp – Patrik Elias (5)
Samuel Pahlsson (2) – 06:35		Second period			03:12 – Brian Gionta (1) 09:02 – Jay Pandolfo (5)
No Scoring		Third period			05:39 – Jamie Langenbrunner (10) 12:52 – Jamie Langenbrunner (11)
Jean-Sebastien Giguere 31 saves / 37 shots		Goalie stats			Martin Brodeur 20 saves / 23 shots

June 7	New Jersey Devils		2–5		Mighty Ducks of Anaheim	Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim	Recap
No Scoring		First period			04:26 – Steve Rucchin (6) 13:42 – Steve Rucchin (7) 15:59 – pp – Steve Thomas (4)
Jay Pandolfo (6) – 02:18		Second period			17:15 – Paul Kariya (6)
Grant Marshall (6) – pp – 10:46		Third period			03:57 – pp – Petr Sykora (4)
Martin Brodeur 17 saves / 22 shots Corey Schwab 2 saves / 2 shots		Goalie stats			Jean-Sebastien Giguere 26 saves / 28 shots

June 9	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim		0–3		New Jersey Devils	Continental Airlines Arena	Recap
No Scoring		First period			No Scoring
No Scoring		Second period			02:22 – Mike Rupp (1) 12:18 – Jeff Friesen (9)
No Scoring		Third period			16:16 – Jeff Friesen (10)
Jean-Sebastien Giguere 22 saves / 25 shots		Goalie stats			Martin Brodeur 24 saves / 24 shots

New Jersey won series 4–3

Media

Television coverage was carried on Fox Sports Net New York with Mike Emrick and Chico Resch with the play-by-play calling while Matt Loughlin served as the color commentator. The radio broadcasts were on WABC–AM 770, with John Hennessy handling the play-by-play duties with Randy Velischek color commentating.

Player statistics

Regular season

Scoring

Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	+/-	PPG	SHG	GWG
Patrik Elias	LW	81	28	29	57	22	17	6	0	4
Jamie Langenbrunner	RW	78	22	33	55	65	17	5	1	5
Scott Gomez	C	80	13	42	55	48	17	2	0	4
Jeff Friesen	LW	81	23	28	51	26	23	3	0	4
Joe Nieuwendyk	C	80	17	28	45	56	10	3	0	4
John Madden	C	80	19	22	41	26	13	2	2	3
Brian Rafalski	D	79	3	37	40	14	18	2	0	0
Scott Niedermayer	D	81	11	28	39	62	23	3	0	3
Brian Gionta	RW	58	12	13	25	23	5	2	0	3
Turner Stevenson	RW	77	7	13	20	115	7	0	0	0
Scott Stevens	D	81	4	16	20	41	18	0	0	2
Sergei Brylin	LW	52	11	8	19	16	-2	3	1	1
Jay Pandolfo	LW	68	6	11	17	23	12	0	1	4
Oleg Tverdovsky	D	50	5	8	13	22	2	2	0	1
Colin White	D	72	5	8	13	98	19	0	0	1
Jim McKenzie	LW	76	4	8	12	88	3	0	0	2
Jiri Bicek	RW	44	5	6	11	25	7	1	0	1
Christian Berglund	LW	38	4	5	9	20	3	0	0	0
Ken Daneyko	D	69	2	7	9	33	6	0	0	0
Mike Rupp	C	26	5	3	8	21	0	2	0	3
Tommy Albelin	D	37	1	6	7	6	10	0	1	0
Pascal Rheaume	C	21	4	1	5	8	3	0	1	1
Grant Marshall	RW	10	1	3	4	7	-3	0	0	0
Mike Danton	C	17	2	0	2	35	0	0	0	0
Steve Guolla	C	12	2	0	2	2	1	0	0	0
Richard Smehlik	D	12	0	2	2	0	-1	0	0	0
Craig Darby	C	3	0	1	1	0	-1	0	0	0
Raymond Giroux	D	11	0	1	1	6	-2	0	0	0
Andrei Zyuzin	D	1	0	1	1	2	-1	0	0	0
Martin Brodeur	G	73	0	0	0	10	0	0	0	0
Corey Schwab	G	11	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Goaltending

Player	MIN	GP	W	L	T/OT	GA	GAA	SO	SA	SV	SV%
Martin Brodeur	4374	73	41	23	9	147	2.02	9	1706	1559	.914
Corey Schwab	614	11	5	3	1	15	1.47	1	223	208	.933
Team:	4988	82	46	26	10	162	1.95	10	1929	1767	.916

Playoffs

Scoring

Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG
Jamie Langenbrunner	RW	24	11	7	18	16	1	0	4
Scott Niedermayer	D	24	2	16	18	16	1	0	0
John Madden	C	24	6	10	16	2	2	1	1
Jeff Friesen	LW	24	10	4	14	6	1	0	4
Patrik Elias	LW	24	5	8	13	26	2	0	2
Jay Pandolfo	LW	24	6	6	12	2	0	0	1
Scott Gomez	C	24	3	9	12	2	0	0	0
Brian Rafalski	D	23	2	9	11	8	2	0	0
Joe Nieuwendyk	C	17	3	6	9	4	1	0	0
Scott Stevens	D	24	3	6	9	14	1	0	1
Brian Gionta	RW	24	1	8	9	6	0	0	0
Grant Marshall	RW	24	6	2	8	8	2	0	1
Colin White	D	24	0	5	5	29	0	0	0
Sergei Brylin	LW	19	1	3	4	8	0	0	1
Mike Rupp	C	4	1	3	4	0	0	0	1
Pascal Rheaume	C	24	1	2	3	13	0	0	0
Oleg Tverdovsky	D	15	0	3	3	0	0	0	0
Turner Stevenson	RW	14	1	1	2	26	0	0	0
Tommy Albelin	D	16	1	0	1	2	0	0	0
Martin Brodeur	G	24	0	1	1	6	0	0	0
Jiri Bicek	RW	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Ken Daneyko	D	13	0	0	0	2	0	0	0
Jim McKenzie	LW	13	0	0	0	14	0	0	0
Corey Schwab	G	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Richard Smehlik	D	5	0	0	0	2	0	0	0

Goaltending

Player	MIN	GP	W	L	GA	GAA	SO	SA	SV	SV%
Martin Brodeur	1491	24	16	8	41	1.65	7	622	581	.934
Corey Schwab	28	2	0	0	0	0.00	0	8	8	1.000
Team:	1519	24	16	8	41	1.62	7	630	589	.935

[6]

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = Plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
      MIN = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T/OT = Ties/overtime losses; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

Awards and records

Awards

Regular Season
Player	Award	Awarded
Martin Brodeur	Vezina Trophy	End of regular season
Martin Brodeur	William Jennings Trophy	End of regular season
Martin Brodeur	NHL First All-Star Team - Goaltender	End of regular season

Nominations

Regular Season
Player	Award	Place
Martin Brodeur	Hart Memorial Trophy	Finalist
John Madden	Frank J. Selke Trophy	Runner-Up

53rd NHL All-Star Game

New Jersey Devils NHL All-Star representatives at the 53rd NHL All-Star Game in Sunrise, Florida, at the Office Depot Center.

• Martin Brodeur, G, (Eastern Conference All-Stars)
• Scott Stevens, D, (Eastern Conference All-Stars), Captain, Starter

Draft picks

The Devils' draft picks at the 2002 NHL Entry Draft at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario.

Rd #	Pick #	Player	Nat	Pos	Team (League)	Notes
1	20	No first-round pick[7]
2	51	Anton Kadeykin	Russia	D	Elemash Elektrostal (Vysshaya Liga)
2	53	Barry Tallackson	United States	RW	University of Minnesota (WCHA)	[8]
3	64	Jason Ryznar	United States	LW	University of Michigan (CCHA)	[9]
3	84	Marek Chvatal	Czech Republic	D	Oceláři Třinec (Czech Extraliga)	[10]
3	85	Ahren Nittel	Canada	LW	Windsor Spitfires (OHL)
4	117	Cam Janssen	United States	RW	Windsor Spitfires (OHL)
5	154	Krisjanis Redlihs	Latvia	D	Liepājas Metalurgs (Latvian Hockey League)
6	187	Eric Johansson	Canada	C	Tri-City Americans (WHL)
7	218	Ilkka Pikkarainen	Finland	RW	HIFK (SM-liiga)	[9][11]
8	250	Dan Glover	Canada	D	Camrose Kodiaks (AJHL)
9	281	Bill Kinkel	United States	LW	Kitchener Rangers (OHL)

Roster

2002–03 New Jersey Devils
Goaltenders 30 – Martin Brodeur  35 – Corey Schwab		Defensemen 2 – Richard Smehlik  3 – Ken Daneyko  4 – Scott Stevens  – C 5 – Colin White  6 – Tommy Albelin  7 – Raymond Giroux  7 – Andrei Zyuzin  10 – Oleg Tverdovsky  27 – Scott Niedermayer  28 – Brian Rafalski		Wingers 8 – Steve Guolla  9 – Jiri Bicek  12 – Jeff Friesen  14 – Brian Gionta  15 – Jamie Langenbrunner  17 – Christian Berglund  18 – Sergei Brylin  19 – Jim McKenzie  20 – Jay Pandolfo  24 – Turner Stevenson  26 – Patrik Elias  29 – Grant Marshall		Centers 9 – Craig Darby  11 – John Madden  16 – Mike Rupp  21 – Pascal Rheaume  22 – Mike Danton  23 – Scott Gomez  25 – Joe Nieuwendyk  GM: Lou Lamoriello Coach: Pat Burns

[12]

See also

• 2002–03 NHL season

References

• "New Jersey Devils game log". ESPN. Retrieved 2007-06-24.
• "2002-03 Team Standings". ESPN. Retrieved 2007-06-24.
• "2002-03 Player Statistics". hockeyDB. Archived from the original on 2 July 2007. Retrieved 2007-06-24.
• "NHL attendance". ESPN. Retrieved 2007-06-24.
• "Devils team photo". NewJerseyDevils. Retrieved 2007-06-24.

1. https://www.hockey-reference.com/leagues/NHL_2003.html
2. "Nieuwendyk gets 500th goal in Devils' win". The Washington Post. 2003-01-18. Archived from the original on 2016-04-14. Retrieved 2020-06-24 – via Highbeam Research.
3. "Nieuwendyk hits 1,000 in victory over Penguins". The Vindicator. 2003-02-24. p. C6. Retrieved 2020-06-24.
4. Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2009). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book/2010. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 163.
5. "2002–2003 Standings by Conference". National Hockey League. Retrieved March 26, 2012.
6. "2002-03 New Jersey Devils Statistics – Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved 2009-06-02.
7. The Devils traded their 2001 first-round pick (later transferred to Buffalo and used on Daniel Paille), along with Randy McKay and Jason Arnott for Joe Nieuwendyk and Jamie Langenbrunner on March 19, 2002.
8. No source exists to indicate why the Devils drafted twice in the second round of 2002.
9. The Devils acquired the 2002 third-round pick from Atlanta for Phoenix's 2001 fourth-round pick (used on Milan Gajic) and the Devils' 2002 seventh-round pick (later transferred to San Jose and used on Tim Conboy) on June 24, 2001.
10. The Devils had traded their original 2001 third-round pick (used on Beat Schiess-Forster) to Phoenix for the Coyotes' 2002 third-round pick (Marek Chvatal) on June 23, 2001.
11. No source exists to indicate where the Devils acquired the pick to draft Pikkarainen.
12. https://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/NJD/2003.html