“It feels great scoring eight goals,” said forward Vinny Prospal, who was one of eight Blueshirts to light the lamp. “The Lightning played well last night against Carolina, they have a dangerous hockey team, they have a lot of defense. So it feels great that we were able to do right from the start – shut them down and run up the score.”

All in all, the goals went to all the secondary scoring guys not named Marion Gaborik.  Brandon Dubinsky, Prospal, Chris Drury, Dan Girardi, Enver Lisin, Marc Staal, Aaron Voros, and Christopher Higgins, respectively lit the lamp, as the Rangers fought for the puck right from the start of the match, almost a continuation of Sunday night’s 6-2 win over the Canadiens.

“We are trying to stay consistent out there,” said coach John Tortorella. “We are trying to stay consistent with finishing checks and again defending the proper way. I though the first period both teams were giving up chances left and right and we are fortunate to score a few goals.”

Actually the game was quite tight in the first. After going up 2-0, Vinny Lecavalier was able to cut the lead in half at 17:21, but 1:12 later, Drury came up with his tally and it was all Rangers after that.

And the onslaught continued in the second and the third as the Ranger forecheck strangled the Lightning, keeping them pinned into their own zone for large portions of the period.

“Sometimes you get a stick on the puck where maybe a couple a weeks (ago) you weren’t getting your stick on the puck,” Tortorella said. “You end up scoring a few goals the prior game, you feel more confident about it. I am not going to sit and tell you an explanation why we are scoring goals here. It’s a good thing. We are continuing to try to play our game. The important thing was also playing away from the puck.”

So the Rangers will now continue onto Philly for a game on Thursday, as the Blueshirts continue to fight on in the east.

As for the Lightning, well, they will go back to the best place they have been all day.

“The only thing we did today was get on the bus on time,” said Tampa Bay coach Rick Tocchet. “The bus driver was the best thing we had.”

Notes:

• The first time New York tallied six-or-more goals in back-to-back games since the 2006-07 season (Mar. 31 at Philadelphia, 6-4; Apr. 1 vs. Toronto, 7-2); the last time the Blueshirts notched six-or-more goals in back-to-back home games was Nov. 12, 2003 vs. Pittsburgh (6-2) and Nov. 23, 2003 vs. Ottawa (6-2).
• New York have now posted a record of 24-19-7 (55 pts.) overall and 12-11-4 (28 pts.) at home this season; the Rangers have now tallied a point in 14 of their last 17 games (10-3-4).
• New York notched three goals in the opening frame tonight, marking the third straight period the Rangers tallied three goals in a period following three-goal performances in the second and third periods of Sunday’s 6-2 win vs. Montreal; it is the first time since the 1998-99 season the Rangers accomplished the feat (third period of a 6-6 tie on Nov. 17 at Toronto and all three periods of a 10-2 win on Nov. 10 at Tampa Bay). *Statistic courtesy of the Elias Sports Bureau
• The Rangers had eight different goal scorers and 16 different players register at least one point; the last time the Rangers had eight players score a goal in one game was a 10-5 win on Dec. 13, 1992 vs. Montreal;  New York’s 16 players with at least one point ties the franchise record for a single game, accomplished twice before – Oct. 25, 1984 at New Jersey (W, 11-2) and Feb. 17, 1985 vs. the NY Islanders (W, 9-3). *Statistic courtesy of the Elias Sports Bureau

31. New York Islanders – Toni Rajala – LW
CS: #:11E —– THN: # 49 —– McK: 45
ISS: # 31 (Martin St. Louis) —– RLR: # 34(Martin Straka)
TSN: # 56 (Sami Kapanen)
Rajala’s goal scoring exploits do not come from a Bobby Hull-like shot. Rather, he it comes from his excellent puck skills, hockey sense and shooting accuracy. He broke Alexander Ovechkin’s scoring record with 19 points in the U-18 tournament.

32. Tampa Bay Lightning – Kyle Palmieri – C
CS: # 20NA —– THN: # 26 —– McK: 42
ISS: # 23 (Brian Gionta) —– RLR: # 26 (Tuomo Ruutu)
TSN: # 25 (Chris Drury)
Palmieri is a team player who plays much bigger than his size (5-10/191). He plays a gritty style of hockey and is not afraid to play in traffic and is a strong two-way center.

33. Colorado Avalanche – Calvin de Haan – D
CS: # 25NA —– THN: # 22 —– McK: 28
ISS: # 36 (Brian Campbell) —– RLR: # 20 (Tomas Kaberle)
TSN: # 23 (Tomas Kaberle)
Calvin is a solid puck-moving defenseman who plays an intelligent game and showed this season that he can thrive when given extra ice time. Once he adds some muscle to his wiry frame (6-0/170), de Haan has the chance to become a solid all-around d-man.

34. Atlanta Thrashers – Chris Brown – LW
CS: # 30NA —– THN: # 61 —– McK: # 40
ISS: # 34 (Taylor Pyatt) —– RLR: # 101 (Anthony Stewart)
TSN: # 39 (Jamie Langenbrunner)
Brown’s combination of size (6-2/191) and very good skating ability sets him up to be a power forward in the NHL – which will be an excellent addition to Ilya Kovalchuk and Evander Kane. Brown is also very responsible in his own as well, doing the little things to help defend.

35. Los Angeles Kings – Zach Budish – RW/C
CS: # 22NA —– THN: # 44 —– McK: 50
ISS: # 51 (Keith Tkachuk) —– RLR: # 29(Ryan Getzlaf)
TSN: # 42 (David Backes)
The Kings could look to add to their defense corps, but it is worth their while to reach a bit on Budish. He is former first round projection who suffered an ACL injury while playing football in high school. The injury hurt his draft position, but he is expected to be ready to play at the University of Minnesota. His size (6-4/230), heavy shot and all-around game could make Budish one of the steals of the draft – if he lasts into the second round.

36. Phoenix Coyotes – Tim Erixon – D
CS: # 5E —– THN: # 32 —– McK: 30
ISS: # 55 (Kenny Jonsson) —– RLR: # 23 (Ron Hainsey)
TSN: # 28 (Mattias Ohlund)
The solid two-way defenseman is the son of former Ranger Jan Erixon. While there isn’t any one part of his game that stands out, he is solid in all aspects of the game – as seen by his playing in the Swedish Elite League at the age of 18.

37. New York Islanders – Robin Lehner – G
CS: # 1E Goalie—– THN: # 52 —– McK: 57
ISS: # 6 Goalie (Not Available) —– RLR: # 69 (Mathieu Garon)
TSN: 47 (Henrik Lundqvist)
With Rick DiPietro a perennial injury waiting to happen, GM Garth Snow needs to address his goaltending situation. Lehner draws comparisons to fellow Swedish netminder Henrik Lundqvist. However at 6-3/220, Lehner is bigger than The King and is more willing to cut down the angles and challenges shooters with his butterfly style.

38. Dallas Stars – Dmitry Orlov – D
CS: # 9E —– THN: # 55 —– McK: 33
ISS: # 29 (Dan Hamhuis) —– RLR: # 61 (Patrice Brisebois)
TSN: # 44 (Trevor Daley)
With Sergei Zubov nearing the end of his career, the Stars look to fellow Russian Orlov as a replacement. Dmitry is an offensive d-man who likes to rush the puck as well as join the rush late. While he still needs to polish up his game in the defensive end, Orlov will contribute immediately on the PP because of his shot and hockey sense.

39. Ottawa Senators – Richard Panik – RW
CS: # 13E —– THN: # 31 —– McK: 54
ISS: # 35 (Marian Hossa or P. Stefan) —– RLR: # 60 (M. Hossa or L. Kasper)
TSN: # 38 (Marian Hossa)
As you can see, both ISS and RLR believe Panik can be a boom or bust type player. While his play is inconsistent, he does have the offensive package (scoring touch, puck handling and speed) and size (6-2/202) to be an impact player. He has all the tools, now he needs to find a box to put them in.

40. Edmonton Oilers – Charles-Oliver Roussel – D
CS: # 36NA —– THN: # 35 —– McK: 53
ISS: # 42 (Wade Redden) —– RLR: # 14 (Brad Stuart)
TSN: # 37 (Kris Letang)
Roussel is a solid two-way blueliner who kicked his game up a notch during the post-season. He plays a well-rounded game, and while he doesn’t have one calling card aspect to his game, he does not have any major weaknesses either.

41. Nashville Predators – Ethan Werek – C
CS: # 32NA —– THN: # 34 —– McK: 38
ISS: # 26 (Gary Roberts) —– RLR: # 46 (Nik Antropov)
TSN: # 41 (Alexi Ponikarovsky)
Werek originally wanted to go the NCAA route, but decided to play in the OHL with Kingston. He is the hard-nosed type of player every team wants. He will do the dirty work needed in front of the net to score. Werek made Canada’s 2008 World Junior A Challenge team and their 2009 U-18 team.

42. Nashville Predators – Stefan Elliott – D
CS: # 17NA —– THN: # 27 —– McK: 39
ISS: # 38 (Sergei Gonchar) —– RLR: # 41 (Paul Martin)
TSN: # 35 (Tom Gilbert)
With the back end of their back-to-back picks, Nashville drafts Elliott with an eye towards his offensive contributions. His puck-handling and passing skills make him a valuable weapon on the PP. Elliott likes to join the rush and will work deep in the offensive zone. He is still a work in progress in the defensive zone and he needs to be more physical.

43. San Jose Sharks – Ryan O’Reilly – C
CS: # 39NA —– THN: # 39 —– McK: 26
ISS: # 50 (Shawn Horcoff) —– RLR: # 39 (Sammy Pahlsson)
TSN: # 27 (Maxime Talbot)
The Sharks continue to misfire in the playoffs as the team is just missing that something extra. This is where O’Reilly can fit in. He has excellent hockey sense and is a team leader who very well may be a captain in the NHL. He is solid in his own end, and is one of the best penalty killers and faceoff men in the OHL. His offensive game in the NHL will be more as a playmaker than goal scorer.

44. Florida Panthers – Josh Birkholz – RW/C
CS: # 43NA —– THN: # 57 —– McK: 67
ISS: # 37 (Matt Cullen) —– RLR: # 97 (Torrey Mitchell)
TSN: # 52 (Dan Hinote)
The soon-to-be University of Minnesota freshman is a strong two-way forward who has good quickness and speed. Josh will use his speed to beat defenders wide as he cuts to the net. Birkholz has good size (6-1/182), but he needs to use it more as part of an overall need to be consistently more consistent.

45. Atlanta Thrashers – Brayden McNabb – D
CS: # 51 NA —– THN: # 54 —– McK: 60
ISS: # 43 (Hal Gill) —– RLR: # 66 (Matt Walker)
TSN: # 54 (Sean O’Donnell)
GM Donnie Waddell has the chance to make up for his mistake for trading Brayden Coburn for Alexei Zhitnik. The 6-4/200 McNab is a stay-at-home defenseman who does have the ability to move the puck and see the ice. McNabb plays a physical game, but doesn’t run around to throw hits. He does need to work on defensive positioning because speedy forwards can beat him wide.

46. Ottawa Senators – Edward Pasquale – G
CS: # 3NA Goalie —– THN: # 40 —– McK: 80
ISS: # 1 Goalie (Not Available) —– RLR: # 98 (Dany Sabourin)
TSN: Honorable Mention (Not Available)
Despite the acquisition of Pascal Leclaire and the development Brian Elliott, the Sens still need to address the position. Pasquale has good size (6-3/218) and athletic ability. When he is on his game, he will let the puck come to him rather than trying fight off shots. He is still needs to work on his consistency and stickhandling.

47. New York Rangers – Alex Chiasson – RW
CS: # 34NA —– THN: # 76 —– McK: 47
ISS: # 85 (Not Available) —– RLR: # 67 (Jochen Hecht)
TSN: 46 (Colby Armstrong)
At 6-3/187, Chiasson has the size to be your prototypical power forward. While he needs to work on his skating, Chiasson is a hard worker who goes to the net and does all of the little things you want from a physical forward – including being a strong forechecker. Chiasson will jump from the USHL to Boston University. McK scout Kevin Wey said he has “the most upside of any USHL prospect in the 2009 Draft.”

48. St. Louis Blues – Tomas Vincour – RW
CS: # 42NA —– THN: # 63 —– McK: 98
ISS: # 49 (Nik Antropov) —– RLR: # 83 (Tomas Kopecky)
TSN: # Not Rated (Not Available)
Vincour is still a work in progress, but he is a strong mix of skill and size (6-2/203) and is a hard worker. The Czech native has spent the last two seasons playing in the WHL and is ahead of most European born players when it comes to adapting to North American hockey. He is at his best on offense when he uses his hands and his hockey sense below the faceoff dots.

49. Colorado Avalanche – Olivier Roy – G
CS: # 2NA Goalie —– THN: # 38 —– McK: 68
ISS: # 2 Goalie (Not Available) —– RLR: # 56 (Manny Legace)
TSN: # Honorable mention (Marc-Andre Fleury)
New GM Greg Sherman will look to another Roy (no relation to former Colorado goalie Patrick Roy) to solidify their goaltending position. Roy is looking to follow fellow Cape Breton netminders Marc-Andre Fleury and Ondrej Pavelec. Roy is a butterfly goalie who plays up at the top of the crease.

50. Toronto Maple Leafs – Cody Eakin – C
CS: # 29NA —– THN: # 64 —– McK: 46
ISS: # 46 (Darcy Tucker) —– RLR: # 49 (Mike Comrie)
TSN: # 53 (Darren Helm)
Eakin’s history of injuries probably cost him a shot at the first round (including two concussions). With that said, he is big-time goal scorer whose offense is fed by his speed, quickness and good hockey sense. At 5-11/176, he can’t afford to be overly physical, but he is aggressive and is an effective forechecker.

51. Carolina Hurricanes – Mac Bennett – D
CS: # 40NA —– THN: # N/R in Top 100 —– McK: 52
ISS: # 64 (Not Available) —– RLR: # 73 (Tobias Enstrom)
TSN: # 56 (petr Svoboda)
Bennett is a bit of project because he made a verbal commitment to the University of Michigan for 2010-11. An injury cost him some time this season (as well as scouting exposure), but he is a solid two-way d-man who is a tremendous skater – so much so that ISS says it is reminds them of Paul Coffey.

52. Tampa Bay Lightning – Matthew Hackett – G
CS: # 1NA Goalie —– THN: # Not Rated in Top 100 —– McK: 55
ISS: # 3 Goalie (Not Available) —– RLR: # 174 (Not Available)
TSN: # 43 (Mike Smith)
The Lightning’s goaltending situation is still up in the air so it would be worth it for Brian Lawton to draft the nephew of former NHLer Jeff Hackett. There a lot of GMs who regret passing on the 6-2/170 goalie in last year’s Draft. Hackett’s play during the season forced Plymouth (OHL) to trade Jeremy Smith – a former second round draft pick of the Nashville Predators. Hackett plays his angles well, which allows him to use his size to his advantage.

53. Vancouver Canucks – Tomas Tatar – C
CS: # 14E —– THN: # 51 —– McK: 35
ISS: # 41 (Ales Hemsky) —– RLR: # 35 (Jiri Hudler)
TSN: # 49 (Sergei Samsonov)
Replacing the Sedins continues in to the second round as Vancouver drafts Tatar. The 5-11/176 center is a potential top six forward based on scoring ability, skating and strong puck-handling skills. Tatar saved his best for big games as his 7 goals helped led Slovakia to the semi-finals in the World Juniors and he scored 5 goals in 13 games in Slovak Extraleague play.

54. New Jersey Devils – Jean-Francois Berube – G
CS: # 10NA Goalie —– THN: # 43 —– McK: 109
ISS: # 11 Goalie (Not Available) —– RLR: # 45 (Martin Biron)
TSN: # Honorable Mention (Not Available)
Martin Brodeur’s injury showed that the Devils need to start thinking about life after Brodeur. New Jersey has not had much luck in drafting a successor (see Ari Ahonen). Berube is a bit of a wildcard because he has been stuck behind Jake Allen in Montreal (QMJHL). Berube will be the main benefactor of Steve Mason’s super rookie season because Mason only played 6 games in his draft year. When he is on his game, Berube’s positioning is solid and het lets the puck come to him rather than fighting the puck.

55. Washington Capitals – Eric Gelinas – D
CS: # 38 NA —– THN: # 46 —– McK: 36
ISS: # 82 (Not Available) —– RLR: # 25 (Cam Barker)
TSN: # Honorable mention (Not Available)
Gelinas is an attractive prospect because of his size (6-3/185) and strong skating skills. He is more of an offensive defenseman at this point in his career and is valuable player on the PP. He is still a work in progress in his own end, but he does use his long reach well. One concern is that he only had 2 goals and 4 assists in his final 23 games last season.

56. New York Islanders – Kenny Ryan – RW
CS: # 56NA —– THN: # 66 —– McK: 29
ISS: # 59 (Brooks Laich) —– RLR: # 47 (Andrew Ladd)
TSN: # Honorable Mention (Not Available)
The Isles continue stocking up their organization with the selection of the solid two-way RW. Ryan, who will be attending Boston College, is a very good skater who has speed to beat defenders wide. He uses those assets to be a solid forechecker who has the ability to get back and help out in the defensive zone.

57. San Jose Sharks – Anton Lander – LW
CS: # 19E —– THN: # 50 —– McK: 75
ISS: # 47 (Mikko Koivu) —– RLR: # 64 (Niklas Sundstrom)
TSN: # Honorable Mention (Not Available)
Muck like Ryan O’Reilly, Anton Lander is a hard worker who features very good leadership abilities who plays hard until the final whistle. He has some scoring ability, but he is more of a passer than scorer. His skating and hockey sense make him an effective forechecker and solid contributor on defense.

58. Toronto Maple Leafs – Scott Stajcer – G
CS: # 5NA Goalie —– THN: # N/R in Top 100 —– McK: 34
ISS: # 4 Goalie (Not Available) —– RLR: # 115 (Not Available)
TSN: # Scott Stajcer (Not Available)
While Swedish free agent goalie Jonas Gustavsson is on the Leafs radar, Brian Burke should look to give new goalie coach Francois Allaire another toy to play with. Stajcer has good size (6-2/180) and switches between a stand-up and butterfly style of play. He is a solid athlete who has to pay attention to letting the puck come to him rather than doing too much to fight off the puck.

59. Chicago Blackhawks – Alex Hutchings – RW
CS: # 44NA —– THN: # 48 —– McK: 74
ISS: # 61 (Not Available) —– RLR: # 43 (Chris Kunitz)
TSN: # 58 (Chuck Kobasew)
His speed, skill and hockey sense make up for his lack of size (5-10/173). Despite his slight stature, Hutchings will go into the corners and play in traffic thanks to his skating skills. He has the ability to play in all situations, including both special teams.

60. Detroit Red Wings – Philippe Paradis – LW/C
CS: # 26NA —– THN: # 60 —– McK: 48
ISS: # 88 (Not Available) —– RLR: # 40 (Matt Stajan)
TSN: # 40 (Max Pacioretty)
Paradis uses his size (6-1/196) to be a grinding player who is developing a solid all-around game – after starting in Shawinigan as an offensive player. Paradis has developed into a forward who plays in all situations – including PP and PK. RLR says he is “capable of being a ‘Gordie Howe hat trick’ guy”.

61. Pittsburgh Penguins – Taylor Beck – LW
CS: # 67NA —– THN: # 48 —– McK: 66
ISS: # 53 (Scott Hartnell) —– RLR: # 130 (Not Available)
TSN: # Honorable Mention (Not Available)
Beck is a perfect complimentary player for a team that has the offensive talent the Penguins have. The 6-1/205 Beck isn’t fleet of foot, but he makes up for it with very good puck-handling ability. A McK scout compares Beck’s style to that of Milan Lucic and they believe he will be a better NHL player than junior player.

Fifty-six seconds into the second period, down 1-0, starting goalie Kevin Weekes stopped a routine dump-in shot. What wasn’t routine was Weekes not getting up and not lifting himself off the ice.

“When he got hurt, he was down. Usually you get hurt you’re able to see his face. I went back because I didn’t have my mask with me it was in the locker room. I told Matty to get my mask and after that I was like, ‘Did he get up?’ and ‘No he’s still down.’ So now I figure, let’s take the baseball cap off and put the work helmet on,” Brodeur said.

Weekes was helped off the ice by Dainius Zubrus and Mike Mottau, not moving his left leg at all as he headed to the locker room.

Brodeur stopped the first shot he saw from Lukas Krajicek, but the Lightning’s power play five minutes into the second proved to be more difficult to handle.

Steven Stamkos scored from the left faceoff hash marks after Martin St. Louis, Matt Lashoff and he executed text-book perfect puck cycling on the man advantage. In three passes, the Devils penalty kill unit was cleared out of the way for Stamkos to have a clear shot at Brodeur.

Being down 2-0, the recent incarnation of the Devils would have looked as flat as a sheet of Plexiglas. But the Devils stayed together, and the fate of luck started to return to their favor.

Brendan Shanahan had a wrist shot from the left circle that hit the crossbar and bounce off the back of Tampa goalie Karri Ramo. Ramo covered the puck behind him and swiped the puck out of the way. Play continued despite video replays looked like the puck crossed the goal line while it was under Ramo’s glove.

Tampa Bay’s effort to clear the shot out of their zone took a funny bounce off the boards and almost careened back into an empty net. Ramo threw his stick at the puck to knock it out of harm’s way, an automatic penalty shot.

At 13:05, the officials reviewed Shanahan’s first shot attempt, and if it were a goal there would have been no penalty shot awarded, but video was inconclusive. Coach Brent Sutter sent Shanahan to take the penalty shot.

Shanahan took the puck straight up the ice to a thunderous standing ovation, and without a tricky move or a slight of hand, he shot the puck straight between the legs of Ramo to get the Devils back in the game at 2-1.

“We’re just waiting for a break and something to feel good about. I was happy to be in that situation,” Shanahan said.

The other Devils were also happy the veteran was in that situation.

“Shanny’s goal really seemed to energize the bench and really take a little bit of weight off our shoulders,” Captain Jamie Langenbrunner said. “I think Shanny’s goal kind of brought us back together a little bit. When you’re struggling like we were, unfortunately it’s tough to be around each other a little bit. It’s hard for everybody. That goal got us really excited and back together and I think hopefully it’ll catapult us back in the right direction and we’ll roll from there.”

With new-found confidence and camaraderie, New Jersey continued to make detailed plays that set them up for success.

Less than two minute later, Tampa Bay turned the puck over in the neutral zone, and Jay Pandolfo, filling in for the injured Patrik Elias, skated in against two Lightning defenders but was unbothered. Pandolfo skated to the front of the crease and roofed a shot over Ramo to tie the game at two.

Pandolfo has only been seen in 12 of the last 33 games since the arrival of Shanahan to the club. The long-time Devil has stayed with team mentally and physically, preparing to help at any point.

“It was great. He’s been one of the best teammates a guy can have, a team could have. To see him get a little success in obviously a tough year for him, and the way he’s handled it is I guess what we can expect from Pando. Coming out of the line up but still working as hard as he does to keep himself ready and ready to go when he’s given a chance. He scored a huge goal and it was great to see,” Langenbrunner said with a smile.

The captain himself was ready to jump in the scoring, and with less than a minute and a half to go in the second, Langenbrunner found an open spot to Ramo’s right and fired a shot that deflected off the goaltender’s stick, giving New Jersey its first lead of the night.

The game would not be that easy for the home team, though.

With just under three minutes gone in the third period, Johnny Oduya whiffed on a one-timer opportunity, and Tampa’s Ryan Malone swiped the puck away and took the puck coast-to-coast. Malone took a backhand shot that went over Brodeur to tie the game up again.

“I just felt it wasn’t going to be easy. It couldn’t be. To get a win after a six game losing streak … We went in to the third period up 3-2, and you just had a feeling it wasn’t going to be 4-2, 5-2, 6-2. It was going to be one of those you have to earn,” Shanahan said.

The Devils kept working, putting in enough effort to outshoot the Lightning 27-10 in the second and third periods.

New Jersey took the advantage again at 10:35. With a faceoff in the offensive zone, Travis Zajac won the draw and pushed the puck back to Paul Martin at the point. Martin passed to Parise on the right wing, who fired a shot at the net. Zajac, screening Ramo, tipped the puck across the crease to Langenbrunner, who was ready to put the puck behind the goaltender.

Back and forth it went, and with six minute left in regulation, Tampa struck back when a shot from Matt Pettinger bounced off Brodeur and straight to Martins Karsums, who was ready for the rebound.

“They got a couple shots early and scored a goal. After that they didn’t get any shots, and then got a breakaway goal. I felt something bounce in front of me and they get an empty net goal. I couldn’t wait for that game to end,” Brodeur explained about his evening.

He didn’t have to wait much longer.

One minute, twenty one seconds into the overtime session, Zajac and Parise teamed up to win the game.

“I guess we caught them on a line change there, and Paul (Martin) got me the puck, and me and Zack, we sort of had a 2-on-1 there. He drove the net and I was able to slide it across to him and he was able to put it away,” Zajac said.

Parise had a little different take on his 43^rd goal of the season.

“(Travis) yelled at me to go there. I came over to him and he yelled at me to go the net, and I did, and that was a great pass by him. It was unbelievable,” Parise said.

No matter who takes the credit, the goal revitalized a team that looked like it was repeating the late-season slide of last year that derailed any momentum going into the playoffs.

The Devils have four remaining games to continue the winning trends, including a game Saturday in Buffalo against a Sabres team fighting for the playoffs.

“You need something to get you going in the right direction hopefully tonight will be it. We have a tough game tomorrow against a team that needs every point they can get, so it’ll be a tough battle for us,” Langenbrunner said.

New Jersey proved on Friday that the battle isn’t out of them yet.

Both Elias and Langenbrunner used a quick puck maneuver to get past Lightning goalie Mike Smith, which opened up the net to an easy backhanded shot for Elias and wrister for the captain.

The Devils, still reeling from the news that star goaltender Martin Brodeur will be out for the next three to four months, wanted to show the league they are not done for the season.

Weekes, in his second start replacing Brodeur, jumped in the air after stopping the puck with his chest against Tampa’s third skater, Vaclav Prospal.

Vincent Lecavalier was able to wrist a shot past Weekes during the shoot out, but Weekes was able to stop Jussi Jokinen’s backhanded shot on Tampa Bay’s second attempt.

“His hands are magic,” Weekes said of Jokinen.

But the magic Wednesday night came from the Devils’ bench.

“Today we talked about how this is an opportunity for the guys in this room to prove we’re still a great team,” said Langenbrunner.

New Jersey’s anemic offense finally broke through after 116:12 of play without a goal Wednesday night. But for every positive Devils play, the Tampa Bay Lightning had an answer.

With less than five minutes to play, Jay Pandolfo lifted a puck up over goalie Mike Smith’s head to give the Devils a 3-2 lead.

Moments later, Sheldon Brookbank took a delay of game penalty, allowing Martin St. Louis to improve the league-worst power play’s statistics with the tying goal.

Paul Ranger passed the puck along the blue line to Lecavalier, who put the puck on goal. St. Louis slid the rebound along the ice just to the right of Weekes’ leg pad, tying the game at three.

“Tonight, we played hard again,” Sutter said. “We scored the goals we needed to. Unfortunately, we took a few penalties in the last few minutes. We took one and we’re scored against in the last five minutes. It’s a tough penalty to take.”

The Devils took a time out to regroup, and put ample pressure on the Lightning goalie, but were unable to end the game in regulation.

In overtime, the elongated cheer of “Weekes” continued to crescendo with every shot saved by the goalie. In his second solid start, Weekes stopped all four shots he faced in over time and 20-23 faced in regulation.

“He played very well. He gave his team a chance to win. He was very solid,” Devils Head Coach Brent Sutter said.

New Jersey also took four overtime shots and, unable to convert, forced the shootout.

Tampa Bay took a 1-0 lead in the first period when Jokinen had an unobscured look at the goal from the left circle and got the puck past Weekes. Mark Recci and Evgeny Artyukhin assisted on the goal.

The Devils were unable to answer in the penalty-free first, but kept firing at the net.

In the second period, the Devils were awarded the first power play of the game when Gary Roberts was sent to the box for elbowing.

The Newark crowd told the home team what they thought of the power play when Anssi Salmela let the puck out of the offensive zone. Tampa Bay kept control of the puck for almost 30 seconds of the Devils power play.

New Jersey intensified its offensive pressure when David Clarkson took the puck from Dainius Zubrus along the right boards and lifted the puck over Smith’s right shoulder.

The goal, coming at 16:05 in the second, was assisted by Zubrus and Colin White.

The power play unit redeemed itself when Jokinen got called on a high stick with less than two minutes left in the period.

Elias took a pass from Zubrus and rifled it over Smith’s head to give the Devils a 2-1 lead going into the third period.

Half way into the final session, with Petr Vrana in the box for slashing, Jokinen played a give-and-go with Andrej Meszaros and ripped a one-timer over Weekes’ outstretched glove to tie the game at two.

The Devils’ defense continued to play with their signature toughness, blocking 12 shots in front of Weekes.

“I’m very appreciative of that,” Weekes said. “They sacrifice themselves, and that says a lot.”

“Our defense has played well. There’s no issues there at all. Overall it’s been pretty flawless with communication,” Sutter said about the back line adjusting to the goalie switch.

“In reality, the secret of the Devils, one of the main principals, is it’s always about the collective,” Weekes said about the team effort.

New Jersey will need their strength in numbers when they travel to Detroit for a game against the defending Stanley Cup winners Saturday.