The wild winds of change

NEWARK - The Devils were 81 seconds from moving on. Then the Carolina Hurricanes pulled the rug out from under them. Eric Staal finished off the stunning comeback by scoring with only 31.7 seconds remaining in regulation to give the Hurricanes a 4-3 victory in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals at Prudential Center. One of the most devastating losses in team history knocked the Devils out of the playoffs in the first round for the second straight season. The Devils have won only two playoff series since they won the Stanley Cup in 2003. The Hurricanes advance to face Boston in the conference semifinals. The Devils clung to a 3-2 lead on Brian Rolston's power-play goal 8:47 into the second period until Jussi Jokinen tied it from the right circle with 1:20 left. Then Staal beat Martin Brodeur to the stick side on a wrist shot from the right circle for his fifth of the season. A tight series ended with another nail-biter that would come down to some tense final minutes. Jamie Langenbrunner and Jay Pandolfo also scored for the Devils. Brendan Shanahan added two assists. The Devils' killers also had a big night, killing off all four Carolina power plays. After Rolston's goal gave the Devils the lead, their penalty killers had to come up big in spoiling three consecutive Hurricanes' power plays, including a 5-on-3 for 1:08 after Dainius Zubrus was sent off for tripping at 10:47 and Shanahan was whistled for hooking at 11:39. The Hurricanes fired four shots on Brodeur during the two-man advantage and he stopped them all. Jokinen came the closest to scoring on a right-circle one-timer that went off Brodeur's left pad and the right post with 7:25 left in the period. Then the Devils had an opportunity to build on their lead during a four-minute power play because of Tim Gleason's high-sticking double minor on Zach Parise. They could not put another one past Ward, leaving them with a perilous one-goal lead. The Devils did not get off to a good start. Carolina grabbed the lead 1:02 into the game on a goal from Tuomo Ruutu. Hurricanes center Matt Cullen carried the puck into the Devils' zone on the right wing and left a drop pass for Ruutu, who let go a wrist shot from the right circle that went under Brodeur's right arm and in off the far post. It was Ruutu's first goal of the series and came on the Hurricanes' second shot of the game. Devils captain Langenbrunner, who missed Games 3, 4, and 5 with a right knee injury, answered 1:29 later to tie the game. Travis Zajac tracked down a dump-in in the right corner and passed to Parise behind the net. Hurricanes defenseman Joe Corvo opted to go after Parise, which left Langenbrunner alone at the left edge of the crease. Parise fed Langenbrunner for the slam dunk into the left side of the net and his second goal of the series. It came on the Devils' first shot of the game. Pandolfo's goal with 6:33 left in the opening period gave the Devils a 2-1 lead. Shanahan made the key play, taking a hit from Carolina defenseman Dennis Seidenberg outside the Hurricanes' blue line as he nudged the puck over to John Madden, creating a 2-on-1 rush. Madden carried into the Carolina zone on the left wing before passing in front for Pandolfo, who cut in from the right wing to redirect the puck inside the right post on his backhand for his first of the series. Staal was slow getting back to cover Pandolfo on the play. The Devils had a chance to add to their lead when Anton Babchuk was sent off for tripping Parise 1:23 into the second period, but they failed to convert on the resulting power play. That became a glaring missed chance when Ray Whitney scored to tie it 19 seconds after Babchuk's penalty expired. Whitney partially fanned on Staal's pass from behind the net. It went off his stick blade and his left skate before skidding between Brodeur's pads. Video review upheld the goal because Whitney made no distinct kicking motion. Rolston put the Devils back ahead with his power-play goal at 8:47. A poor decision by Carolina's Patrick Eaves to leave a drop pass inside the Devils' blue line resulted in a turnover that eventually led to Rolston's goal. Game 7 recap The hero Eric Staal: Scored the winning goal with 31.7 seconds left in regulation. The goat Martin Brodeur: Gave up two goals in the final 1:20 to let a 3-2 lead slip away. The bottom line The Devils suffered one of the worst playoff losses in their history and failed to advance out of the first round for the second consecutive season.