Devils’ Victory Forces Game 7

Jason Arnott and the New Jersey Devils didn’t rest on their laurels of being Stanley Cup champions. They played like it and avoided elimination.

Arnott had a goal and an assist Monday night as the Devils forced a seventh game with a 4-2 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The final game of the Eastern Conference semifinals will be played Wednesday night at East Rutherford, N.J., where the Maple Leafs are 2-1 in the series.

“We are the champions and we want to play like it,” Arnott said. “We knew we had poor outings before and we didn’t want to be put out that way. We wanted to go out strong. Now we’re back in it.”

Devil Coach Larry Robinson put it in a different light when describing the passion his team showed.

“It’s not because we’re the Stanley Cup champions. It’s because we’re the New Jersey Devils,” Robinson said. “We like to pride ourselves in having a lot of heart and never saying die and playing for each other, and that’s what we did tonight.”

The Devils won by rediscovering a determined, gritty effort that appeared lacking over the last few weeks. Since opening their first-round series with three victories against the Carolina Hurricanes, the Devils are 4-5.

Monday night, the Devils opened the scoring five minutes into the game and, despite a number of undisciplined penalties, never relinquished the lead.

After Toronto’s Mats Sundin scored a power-play goal 2:17 into the third period to cut New Jersey’s lead to 3-2, Arnott sealed the victory less than four minutes later.

Toronto goalie Curtis Joseph made the initial stop, blocking Patrik Elias’ spin-around backhand shot from the slot, but the rebound rolled to Arnott, who fired a low shot just inside the near post.

Not surprisingly, the game did not end without incident.

Toronto’s Darcy Tucker was penalized after he drove to the net with the puck and bowled over New Jersey goalie Martin Brodeur with 1:47 to play.

The Devils tried to get even when, with 25.9 seconds remaining, New Jersey’s Randy McKay traded punches with Joseph.

McKay said he retaliated after Joseph got in the first blows, including a slash across the back of his leg and shove to the back of the head.

“The first [hit] I can accept,” McKay said. “The second one, he really came at my head, so I just figured it was enough.”