Seeking way out of trap

The Devils' infamous neutral zone trap system has confounded attacks for years.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - How many traps can you name?

There are mouse traps and crab traps. Tourist traps and speed traps. Booby traps, rat traps and trap doors.

For fans of the television series WKRP in Cincinnati, there was Venus Flytrap.

Ask Lightning players, though, and the only trap on their minds is the one used by the Devils.

"They play it to a T," center Tim Taylor said.

The Devils played it to T to the second power in Game1 of the East semifinals. New Jersey made it so difficult to get into the offensive zone during Thursday's 3-0 victory, the Lightning mustered just 15 shots, a franchise low for a playoff game.

Granted, Tampa Bay made it tougher on itself by standing around in the neutral zone and failing to use its speed to chase the puck when it was dumped in. And when a forecheck developed, it was halfhearted at best.

Still, the Devils were disciplined and tenacious, and Tampa Bay fell (sorry) right into the trap.

Taylor played for Devils coach Pat Burns in Boston, and isn't surprised he carried on New Jersey's trap tradition that dates to the early 1990s, when Jacques Lemaire, the perfecter of the modern trap, was behind the bench.

"He demands that his players play it," Taylor said Friday. "If you don't, they don't play. So they get everyone on board."

The trap has been around since the 1970s, and was first used by the Canadiens, for whom Lemaire played and Burns coached.

Its essence is relatively simple. One team cuts the ice in half, forcing the other to one side of the defensive zone as it tries to break out with its passing and skating lanes cut off.

The trap uses a forechecking forward creating a barrier to the first pass between defensemen. Another forward forces the puck carrier toward the boards and a third stays on the boards to cut off the up-ice escape. That creates a pocket; a trap.

The defensemen in the neutral zone cut off the passing lanes. The idea is to create turnovers and attack with a quick transition.

The trap can be beaten. One way is for the puck carrier to pass diagonally to a forward up ice. But with passing lanes guarded, the pass must be hard and accurate.

Another is for a fast puck carrier to outskate the first forechecker and carry the puck out of the zone. New Jersey, filled with skilled veterans, makes those breakouts difficult.

"They make it look like you have room to skate and then they cut you off," Taylor said. "They outman you. They are very good at it."

"They key is speed," Lightning defenseman Dan Boyle said. "We have to skate. It's a big responsibility to skate with the puck. You think you have a lot of time to do things, but with a snap of the fingers, they take it away."

The problem with the trap is aesthetic. Teams such as the Devils, without a lot of offensive firepower, don't always capitalize on their chances. That makes for low-scoring games.

Many call New Jersey's games downright boring.

"They're right. I can't argue with you," Devils center John Madden said. "For me, if I was to sit down and watch a game with a lot of defense, and the way we play hockey, it would still be exciting for me. But to the average fan or anyone who enjoys the end-to-end rushes and all that, it can't be exciting at all, and that's the truth."

Still, Madden said, "It's very rewarding that you're not giving up much. When you are not getting chances to win the game, it's very frustrating and you could see it on their faces when it's not going their way. It's not as much of a rush as scoring a goal or a big hit, but it's reassuring your game plan is working."

What was so disappointing for the Lightning Thursday was it thought it did a good job getting through the trap, but a poor job creating offense from the neutral zone. For whatever reason, the team did not attack, the feet weren't moving, and battles for the puck were lost.

"It wasn't our game," coach John Tortorella said. "If we go out there tentative and feeling our way, we're done. We have to play our style. We have to stay within the patience of a playoff game but not the patience of just watching and not playing with any emotion and that was a big stumbling block (Thursday) night."

Tampa Bay hopes some lights came on in Friday's video session. Game2 today at Continental Airlines Arena is crucial to reestablishing its relentless puck pursuit and staying in the series.

"We're all on the same page," Tortorella said. "We're certainly going to try to get something done."

They simply can't afford to fall (here we go again) into that trap.

Today's lineup

Lightning