12. january 2010 / PATRIK ELIAS STUNS THE RANGERS WITH SHOOTOUT GOAL

Madison Square Garden fell silent on Tuesday night as Patrik Elias' dramatic fourth round shootout goal broke a 0-0 tie in a spirited battle between Atlantic Division rivals the New Jersey Devils and the New York Rangers. Martin Brodeur (45 saves) and Henrik Lundqvist (51 saves) were both spectacular between the pipes but Brodeur emerged victorious, registering shutout number 107. The Devils record now stands at 32-11-1 with a 6-1 shootout record.

Tuesday's contest had the look and feel of a playoff game with non-stop action at both ends complimented by intense physical play. "Both teams played really well defensively tonight," said Patrik. "We didn't give them much time to create chances with the exception of the powerplay," he added.

Despite the fast pace of the contest and several quality chances for both sides, no one could find a way to score through 65 minutes and the Devils headed into a shootout for the sevent time this season. Zach Parise, Jamie Langenbrunner and Travis Zajac were denied by Lundqvist while Brodeur shut down Erik Christensen, Ales Kotalik, Marian Gaborik and Brandon Dubinsky. This set up a game winning opportunity for Patrik Elias who is no stranger to clutch situations. Patrik weaved his way into the zone, skated in on Lundqvist and whipped a quick wrist-shot that beat him high to send the Rangers home with one-point.

"When I broke in I knew I wanted to shoot it high somewhere. I waited for one of us to make the first move and then threw it on net," said Patrik. Video on youtube.com.

(Dan Altano)