Scout's Honor

Hockey Digest, Nov, 2000 by Everett J. Merrill

The New Jersey Devils won the Stanley Cup thanks to their veteran core, but they may keep it for years to come thanks to the league's top rookie class and best scouting department

THE RITUAL CALLS FOR THE veterans to hoist the Stanley Cup first while skating around the rink. It's a time-honored tradition that was preserved by the New Jersey Devils this summer after their victorious six-game series against Dallas.

Captain and playoffs MVP Scott Stevens was the first to skate with the prize. He then turned the Cup over to Randy McKay who passed it along to Ken Daneyko who handed it to goalie Martin Brodeur. And on and on it went until each veteran had his opportunity. Waiting patiently were four rookies who played critical roles in the Devils second Stanley Cup in six years.

They came through Anchorage, Albany, Helsinki, and Ann Arbor. They were taken in the first round of the NHL draft or passed over altogether. They are Scott Gomez, Colin White, Brain Rafalski, and John Madden--hardly recognizable names at the beginning of the season. However, by the time the grueling campaign was over the foursome had established themselves around the league and around the Devils locke room.

"They don't play like rookies," says Stevens. "They have speed. They have energy. They have been like an extra tank of gas in the trunk."

"They remind me of myself and my Montreal teammates in 1986," says forward Claude Lemieux. "We had [a record] seven rookies on our team. But I can honestly say these kids did more for us this season than we did for that team."

The 20-year-old Gomez captured the league's Calder Trophy as the top rookie. He is the first Alaskan-born player to play in the NHL, as well the league's first Hispanic player. Gomez finished with 19 goals and 51 assists and was the only Devils player to appear in all 82 regular-season games. Not bad for the 27th pick in the 1998 draft.

"We liked Scott so much, we traded two second-round picks to Dallas to get the last pick in the first round so that we wouldn't miss getting Scott," says Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello.

Gomez centered the Devils third line in the regular season, then filled in for an injured Petr Sykora at wing in Game Six of the Finals. His vision on the ice is what most impressed his teammates. "He knows what he's going to do with the puck before he gets it," says Stevens. "Most young players don't think until they get the puck and then they go into a panic mode."

The Devils are a rarity in the trade-happy NHL: Gomez was one of 13 homegrown Devils on the playoff roster who were taken in the draft. Defenseman Scott Niedermayer was the lowest choice by New Jersey when he was selected third overall in 1991. Backup goalie Chris Terreri represents the highest pick, number 87 in 1993. The foundation of the team was built when Daneyko was taken 18th in the 1982 draft.

Along the way Lamoriello made some shrewd picks. He drafted Europeans Patrik Elias (51st in 1994) and Sykora (18th in 1995) and in 1992 Sergei Brylin became the seventh Devil selected from Russia's Red Army team.

"The Devils do one of the best jobs in evaluating overseas talent," says a rival GM.

David Conte, the Devils director of scouting, denies that the the team have made a concerted effort over the past several years to specifically draft European players.

"I grew up in Canada, played college hockey in the U.S., and then played for five years in Europe," he says. "So, I know a little about all those areas. There's never been a plan to go after the European players. We draft for personality, not nationality."

At 5'9", Rafalski was considered too small for a defenseman by NHL standards. Even though he had a productive four years at the University of Wisconsin, he received no offers from the NHL and had to spend one season in Sweden and three in Finland before he finally got his chance at age 26. The Devils spotted Rafalski in Helsinki while scouting Finnish goalie Ari Ahonen, their top pick in the first round in 1999. Still, the Devils offered Rafalski no more than a tryout. He made the most of it when he signed a free-agent contract in summer 1999 and impressed the front office in training camp with his powerful skating. He was paired with Stevens for most of the 1999-2000 season.

The Michigan native finished second among Devils defensemen in the regular season with a plus-21 rating, which also tied him for first among NHL rookies. He appeared in 75 games and recorded five goals and 27 assists.

Conte was impressed by Rafalski's desire. "He's 5'9" in the program, but he's 6'1" in his heart," Conte says. "Brian found the right team, the right coach in Larry Robinson, and the right partner in Scott Stevens."

"I knew what I could do," says Rafalski. "It was just a matter of getting the chance to be able to show everyone else."

"There's no reason why he can't play in the NHL a long time," says Stevens. "Sometimes it's just a matter of getting your foot in the door."

White, 22, the Devils fifth pick in 1996 was recalled from New Jersey's minor-league affiliate in Albany in January. His aggressive style of play allowed the Devils to trade veteran Lyle Odelein to Phoenix. White finished with 69 "hits" in the playoffs.