On the day of the trade deadline, the Devils made an exchange with the St. Louis Blues - Cam Janssen (a St. Louis native, who had been on the long term injury reserve list after he suffered a separated shoulder during the September 17th pre-season game against the Philadelphia Flyers) for defenseman Bryce Salvador. With their new addition, the Devils dropped their first two games after the trade, only to come back and win the next three games, which places them in the number one spot in the Eastern Conference.

On Saturday night, the Devils swept the Toronto Maple Leafs series, a feat that was last done ten years ago in the 1997-98 season. Zach Parise notched his 30th goal of the season, marking his second 30-goal season in a row in his third year in the NHL. He also has a rating of +23, the club's highest, which puts him in seventh place in the league. Martin Brodeur tied with Evgeni Nabokov with league wins, and is just two wins shy of his seventh 40-win season. Patrik Elias notched a point in each of the Devils' last 14 games (2G, 13A). All of these important markers took place after their latest win.

Luckily for the Devils, the trade for Salvador came at the right moment when a couple of unforeseen injuries and problems started to plague the Devils' defensemen shortly after the trade deadline. Both Paul Martin and Colin White were injured and out of the line-up with "body soreness."

Karel Rachunek had been scratched multiple games before coach Brent Sutter allowed him to return to the line-up. Since returning, he has proven to his team that he is worthy of a spot on the blue line, with his fellow Czech teammate, Elias, praising him off the ice to the media.

With just 13 games left in the regular season, New Jersey must focus on one game at a time. In the past, many teams have made the mistake of looking forward to the postseason, rather than the present. That can prove costly and the Devils will try not to have that scenario play out. Two years ago, they took away the number one spot in the Atlantic Division from the New York Rangers at the conclusion of the 2005-06 season. Now, there is one question that needs to be answered. Will Lou Lamoriello take his role behind the bench during the postseason once again? We'll find out the answer to that question in the upcoming weeks.