The Devils were all dressed up and ready for the playoffs this morning as they anxiously awaited Game 1 of their Eastern Conference quarterfinal against the Florida Panthers tonight at BankAtlantic Center.
Each player received a special gray T-shirt and a red hooded sweatshirt (cue Adam Sandler song) for the playoffs and several were wearing them this morning.
On the front of both are the Devils’ logo and the player’s number. On the back are a pair of dice and the phrase, “Swarm it up.”
Hats were also ordered, but they have not arrived yet.
The players were being pretty secretive about the meaning and origin of the gear, but goaltender Martin Brodeur said they were a gift from Ilya Kovalchuk.
“Kovy wanted to get something for the boys,” Brodeur said.
“It wasn’t just me,” Kovalchuk insisted. “It was a couple of guys.”
“Swarm it up” is the team’s defensive zone philosophy.
“That’s what we talk about doing in the defensive zone,” Patrik Elias said. “We want everybody to get good pressure, get the swarm going.”
No one was willing to reveal the meaning of the dice. There are 16 visible dots – the number of wins needed to capture the Stanley Cup – but the players would not confirm that was the symbolism there.
“It’s a secret,” Kovalchuk said.
“It’s symbolic,” backup goaltender Johan Hedberg said. “It’s like a Dan Brown novel.”
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All Things:Other First Round 2012 Playoff Matchups... GO DEVILS!!!!!!!!!
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Originally Posted by Palffy3314 
