New Jersey Devils Celebrate 20th Anniversary of 2003 Stanley Cup Championship

It was an emotional night at Prudential Center on Saturday night February 25, 2023, as the New Jersey Devils organization celebrated the 20th Anniversary of the 2002-2003 Stanley Cup Championship team.

There was electricity in the building as members of the 2002-2003 Stanley Cup-winning team were on hand. It is hard to believe it has been 20 years since the Devils lifted the Stanley Cup. That was a special team as the Devils had been to the Stanley Cup Final three times in four years winning twice.

There were 18 members on hand from the 2003 Stanley Cup Championship team including Tommy Albelin, Jiri Bicek, Martin Brodeur, Sergei Brylin, Line Burns (wife of late head coach Pat Burns), Bob Carpenter (assistant coach), Ken Daneyko, Patrik Elias, Brian Gionta, Scott Gomez, Jamie Langenbrunner, Grant Marshall, Scott Niedermayer, Joe Nieuwendyk, Brian Rafalski, Mike Rupp, Scott Stevens, Turner Stevenson and Colin White.

Unfortunately, several members of the team including general manager Lou Lamoriello, Jeff Friesen, John Madden, and Jay Pandolfo could not make the event. Friesen had several big goals for the Devils including the game-winning goal against the Ottawa Senators in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final.

The 2003 New Jersey Devils finished second in the Eastern Conference behind the Senators with 108 points. New Jersey won the Atlantic Division with a record of 42-20-10-6. Along the way to the Stanley Cup, the Devils defeated the Boston Bruins, Tampa Bay Lightning, Senators, and Anaheim Mighty Ducks.

It was a different team than in previous years as changes started at the 2002 NHL Draft when the Devils traded for Jeff Friesen and Oleg Tverdovsky in exchange for Petr Sykora. It was a deal that general manager Lou Lamoriello thought needed to be done. The Devils lost to the Carolina Hurricanes in the first round of the 2002 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Thus Lamoriello felt changes needed to happen.

With the late Pat Burns behind the bench, the Devils were clicking on all cylinders that season. Jamie Langennbruner established himself as a leader on the Devils that season. He later became the captain of the Devils. But the leadership at the time of Stevens, Niedermayer, Rafalski, and Daneyko had these players focused every night.

It was in the Boston series that Daneyko sat for the first time in the playoffs. Knowing it was going to be his last year, the Devils in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final against Anaheim, dressed Daneyko for an emotional lift on home ice. That emotional lift paid off as Daneyko rode off in the sunset as a Stanley Cup Champion.

Martin Brodeur had a remarkable playoff run. He had a record of 16-8 in 24 games with a 1.65 GAA and .934 SV% including seven shutouts. In the Stanley Cup Final, Brodeur recorded three shutouts including one in Game 7 to win the Stanley Cup.

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Leading the way in the playoffs were Langenbrunner and Niedermayer each with 18 points. With Langenbrunner leading the team with 11 goals. Friesen was right behind him with 10 points. But nobody scored a bigger goal than Mike Rupp.

Rupp entered the Stanley Cup Final in Game 7 with Joe Nieuwendyk unable to go as he was dealing with an injury. He was looking to make an impact in the Final. The current NHL Network Analyst has been lobbying for the Devils to trade for Timo Meier, who opened the scoring in Game 7. Friesen iced the game with two goals on the night as the Devils lift the Stanley Cup for the third time in franchise history.

Again it is hard to believe it has been 20 years since that June night at the old Continental Airlines Arena. But when the Stanley Cup came out one more time, the crowd roared for Stevens and Line Burns. It was a nice touch by a class organization.

Current players Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes took the moment in because they know one day and maybe even this year they will have a chance to lift the Stanley Cup. That is their goal to bring this team back to its former glory.

It was a great night reliving the Devils glory one more time, but now it is time for this current team to write its own history. But on one February night, the 2003 New Jersey Devils and their fans got to relive something special they hope they see once again in this new building.