Devils finally back in playoffs

As five years of hockey frustration ended for the Devils, players embraced, raised their sticks to salute their long-suffering fans and just imagined what the future held.

The Devils are back in the playoffs for the first time since 2012, knowing they have a shot at the Stanley Cup, like 15 other teams after clinching a postseason berth with a 2-1 win over the Maple Leafs at Prudential Center on Thursday night.

No tee times this year. No vacation. The real hockey starts next week.

“There’s certain moments in your life and certain moments in a season that you want to be able to celebrate,” Devils coach John Hynes said. “This is one of them. It’s a significant accomplishment for us to be able to get ourselves back into the Stanley Cup playoffs.”

What the Devils did this season was remarkable. They finished last in the Eastern Conference last season with 28 wins and 70 points.

Their win over the Maple Leafs was their 44th of the season and gave them 97 points with a game to go in the regular season. Patrick Maroon did most of the important work against the Leafs, setting up second-period goals by Pavel Zacha and Miles Wood to provide the margin of victory.

After that, it was just a matter of holding off the playoff-bound Maple Leafs, who pushed in the third period.

Keith Kinkaid, the mainstay in goal since the end of January, made 31 saves as the Devils won their fourth straight and extended their points streak to eight games (7-0-1). He preserved the lead with a stop in close on Auston Matthews with just over seven minutes to play.