Pucks and Pitchforks
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New Jersey Devils: Best Game 7 Wins In Franchise History

By Nick Villano

The New Jersey Devils pose with the Stanley Cup after defeating the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in game seven of the 2003 Stanley Cup Finals at Continental Airlines Arena on June 9, 2003 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Devils defeated the Ducks 3-0 to win the Stanley Cup. (Photo by Dave Sandford/Getty Images/NHLI)
The New Jersey Devils pose with the Stanley Cup after defeating the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in game seven of the 2003 Stanley Cup Finals at Continental Airlines Arena on June 9, 2003 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Devils defeated the Ducks 3-0 to win the Stanley Cup. (Photo by Dave Sandford/Getty Images/NHLI) /
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Ken Daneyko – New Jersey Devils: (Al Bello/Allsport) /

3. 2001 VS. Toronto Maple Leafs

We see contentious series all the time, but some of the hate we saw on the ice in the late 90s and early 2000s isn’t like what we see today. Once again, the Devils fell in the series 3-2, but they won Game 6 on the road to force Game 7 at home. This made this Game 7 slightly better than the last one.

Earlier in the series, Tie Domi checked Scott Niedermeyer and caused him to get stretchered off the ice. That brought extra juice to each game. The Devils wanted to eliminate this team in the worst way after what they did to one of their top players. They wanted revenge, and they got it by sending Domi and the Leafs home in Game 7.

It wasn’t necessarily an exciting Game 7, but it was a breath of fresh air. It started off stressful, as the Leafs went into the first intermission with the lead, but a monster second period spelled the end for the Maple Leafs. Patrik Elias scored two goals and Scott Stevens made it 4-1 for his first goal of the postseason.

The crowd started chanting “67”, which marks the last time the Maple Leafs won the Stanley Cup. This series had everything. A controversial goal (Martin Brodeur was knocked over before the Maple Leafs scored the Game 5 game-winner), an illegal hit that set the tone for the series, overtime wins and heartbreaking losses. In the end, it was the Devils who blew out Toronto to move on to the Eastern Conference Finals.

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