Devils 4 Isles 1
Just when a contract breakthrough may be bringing Brendan Morrison and perhaps Patrik Elias back to the Devils, rookie Scott Gomez broke through himself.
Taking full advantage of the absence of the two restricted free agents, Gomez scored his first NHL goal,then assisted on the next two as the Devils came back for a 4-1 victory over the Islanders at the Meadowlands last night.
“Without them here, everyone has to pick it up. Hopefully, I’m making the most of it,” Gomez said after he grabbed a share of the team scoring lead with seven points in his first six NHL games, making certain he won’t be one of the players to sit if Morrison and Elias return, perhaps this week.
Gomez had been frustrated by hitting repeated posts in search of his first goal, but last night he took a set-up from Sergei Nemchinov and finished with a flourish.
“God, if I didn’t make that, I’d really lose sleep,” the 19-year-old center said.
If Morrison and Elias are on their way back, it will be to a somewhat different team, with Gomez already taking a leading role.
Although GM Lou Lamoriello has steadfastly insisted that he has made his “final” offers to Morrison and Elias, believed to be around 600G per season, he may have shown a degree of flexibility in recent negotiations that could lead to a deal with Morrison, at least.
“We’re having discussions with the club. From that perspective, it’s positive,” said Kurt Overhart, the agent for Morrison. “We had a positive discussion. We’re working on it.”
Morrison and Elias were each believed to be seeking deals in the 900G range, after initially seeking $1 million salaries, well below the NHL average of $1.3 million.
Morrison last season made a total of 850G, but that included a 250G signing bonus, and 150G in games-played bonuses. He played 76 games last year, and his 13-33-46 total was second among rookies in both points and assists. Morrison was tied for third on the team with 20 power play points.
Morrison saw his former collegiate linemate, Bill Muckalt, sign a three-year deal with Vancouver for $2.9 million over three years, and Muckalt didn’t manufacture Morrison’s stats last season. Elias made only 325G in salary last season, with another 70G coming from games-played bonuses.
Meanwhile, the Devils continued to thrive, stretching their unbeaten streak to four (3-0-1) with their third straight victory at home.
The Islanders took the lead 3:05 into play off a giveaway by Lyle Odelein, whose clearing attempt was kept in at the center of the blue line by Tony Hrkac, batting the puck to Chris Ferraro. Ferraro skated into the slot and before Martin Brodeur could set for the shot, slapped his first of the season past his glove.
Gomez tied the score at 1:35 of the second with his first NHL goal. During a power play, Brian Rolston hit Nemchinov, just off the bench, for a break down the middle. Zdeno Chara’s sliding dive limited Nemchinov’s chance for a hard shot, but left Gomez free on the left for a backhand pass across the goalmouth, and Gomez finished emphatically before being mobbed by his teammates.
Gomez notched an assist as Krzysztof Oliwa put the Devils in front 3:43 into the third. Oliwa’s shot form the right circle trickled through Felix Potvin for his third of the year, second-most on the team.
Gomez, the 19-year-old Hispanic Alaskan who was the Devils second first-rounder in 1998, then set up Bobby Holik’s sixth of the year, a power-play goal with 4:35 remaining.
Scott Stevens recorded his 800th career point by hitting the empty net during an Islander power play with 1:38 remaining.
“The guys knew with an empty net, I like to be out there. They all called it,” Stevens said of reaching the milestone.