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ersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Devils have the honor of winning the Stanley Cup three times, in 1995, 2000, and 2003. The club was founded in Kansas City, Missouri in 1974. After only two seasons, it moved to Denver, Colorado and then settled in New Jersey in 1982. The Devils have earned a playoff spot in each of the last nine seasons, and in 17 of the last 19 seasons under current general manager Lou Lamoriello. The Devils have played their home games at the Continental Airlines Arena since their move to New Jersey. The team is expected to move to the Prudential Center in 2007. Pruddential center is under construction in the city of Newark. The New York Rangers and the Philadelphia Flyers are their main rivals. The Atlantic Division title is won either by the Devils or Flyers every season since 1995. The teams in Kansas City, Missouri, and Washington, D.C. were added in the NHL in 1974. Since the Kansas City metropolitan area includes portions of Missouri and Kansas, the Kansas City franchise was to be called the Mohawks. However, there were objections from the Chicago Black Hawks. The team was renamed the Scouts after a statue in the city. The Scouts took the ice for the first time in Toronto on October 9, 1974. They lost 6-2 to the Maple Leafs. The Scouts had to wait nine games before making their home debut because a rodeo was being held in Kansas City’s brand-new Kemper Arena. The Scouts won only 27 of 160 games. They failed to make the playoffs in either season in Kansas City. The team began to suffer from the economic downturn in the Midwest. The Scouts sold just 2,000 of 8,000 season tickets for their second season.They were almost $1 million in debt. These on- and off-ice disappointments led the franchise moved to Denver and was renamed the Colorado Rockies. In Colorado, the team made a fresh start by winning its first game 4-2 over Toronto. They picked up momentum and appeared to be a possible playoff contender. But things collapsed in February, and the Rockies finished the 1976-77 season with a record of 20-46-14. On May 27, 1982, the team was purchased by John McMullen, New Jersey shipping tycoon. The team would now be playing right in the middle of the New York New Jersey Connecticut tri-state area. It has been home to the three-time defending Stanley Cup champion New York Islanders, as well as the New York Rangers. On June 30, 1982, the team was renamed the New Jersey Devils. The Devils’ first game ended in a 3-3 tie to the Pittsburgh Penguins. The team tasted their first win, a 3-2 victory, in New Jersey when they defeated their new trans-Hudson rivals, the New York Rangers. The team finished with a 17-49-14 record. This record put them three points above last place in the Patrick Division. The 1987-88 Devils garnered the first winning record in the franchise’s 13-year history. On the final day of the regular season, they were tied with their nemesis, the Rangers, for the final playoff spot in the Patrick Division. Although the Rangers and Devils both finished with 82 points, the Devils had one more win, sending them to the playoffs for the second time in franchise history. The team made it all the way to the conference finals, but lost to the Boston Bruins in seven games. The following season, the Devils once again slipped below .500 and missed the playoffs. Despite the setback, the team returned to the Eastern Conference Finals during the lockout-shortened 1994-95 season. They were able to defeat the Philadelphia Flyers four games to two. They swept the heavily favored Detroit Red Wings and were successful in winning New Jersey’s first-ever Stanley Cup, and the first professional sports championship in the state’s history. Claude Lemieux was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoffs MVP. The Devils established an NHL record by posting 11 road victories in one playoff season. The Devils reached the top again in 1999-00 and were successful in winning the Stanley Cup for the second time. They defeated the defending champion Dallas Stars in six games. A highlight of the Devils’ second championship run was their come-from-behind victory in the conference finals. They trailed the Philadelphia Flyers three games to one, but rebounded to win the series. This was both the first time in Devils playoff history and in NHL Conference Finals history that a 3-1 deficit was surmounted. Team captain Scott Stevens was named the winner of the Conn Smythe Trophy. The Devils won their first round Stanley Cup playoff series against the New York Rangers four games to none on April 29, 2006. They were successful in extending their winning streak to fifteen games and marking the first time the Devils defeated their cross-river rival in a playoff series. For more information about New Jersey Devils Tickets visit: http://www.ticketluck.com/sports-tickets/New-Jersey-Devils/index.php
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