March 30, 2008

NEWARK, NJ - More than 400 fans went to the practice rink inside the Prudential Center Sunday afternoon to see the New Jersey Devils' alumni team take on the club hockey team from New Jersey Institute of Technology in a charity game.

While the Devils' alumni skated to a lopsided 17-4 victory, the game was organized to help raise funds for the NJIT hockey program.

In that respect, the game was a success, because the Devils donated a check for $4,000 to help the cause, as well as the proceeds from ticket sales and various raffles that went on during the course of the day.

"I think it was great," NJIT Director of Athletics Len Kaplan said. "It was a tremendous treat for our kids to play against some of the all-time Devils' greats. The crowd was fantastic and enthusiastic. This is a great little arena here and I hope we get a chance to play here again next year. Our hockey program is still in its infancy, so this is a good way to get it going."

Bruce Driver, one of the key former Devil greats involved in running the events for the Devils' alumni, said that games like Sunday's are vital for the Devils' organization.

"We're reaching out to the community and getting involved," said Driver, who was a 12-year veteran with the Devils (1983-95) and a member of the 1995 Stanley Cup champions. "It's a great opportunity for us to play a local college hockey team. I think it's good experience for them and we always have a good time. When the Devils' owners decided to build an arena in this area, we met with a lot of the schools and programs in the area to get them real excited about the Devils coming here to Newark.

Added Driver, "We've developed relationships with all the different hockey clubs in the state, from youth hockey through high school and into college. We're seeing some growth in hockey in New Jersey and you can see it in the college level as well."

Driver played in the game and scored two goals.

The big producers for the Devils' alumni were Aaron Broten, an original Devil who played from 1982-90, who scored three goals and had four assists, and Brian Mullen, who played for the Rangers and Islanders among four teams in his 11-year NHL career and had three goals and three assists in the game Sunday.

Rob Skrlac, who also coordinates a lot of the alumni events with Driver, had two goals and five assists.

For NJIT, Patrick McMorrow scored two goals, while Matt Webb and Dave Caggiano had one each. Kevin McMorrow had two assists. Joe Cestaro and Steve Wojdyla shared the goaltending duties for the Highlanders and played admirably against the former NHL stars.

Other former Devils to participate included Sergei Starikov, Alexei Kasatonov, Valeri Kamensky, Tom Chorske, Randy Velichek, Boris Mironov and Al Loges.

Fans were able to secure some of the players autographs after the game as well.

(release courtesy Jim Hague)