(Reuters) – The New Jersey Devils defeated the New York Rangers in the Eastern Conference final to earn a berth in the National Hockey League’s (NHL) Stanley Cup final.
* Founded as the Kansas City Scouts in 1974, then became the Colorado Rockies in 1976 before settling in New Jersey as the Devils in 1982.
* Currently play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference and have won three Stanley Cups as the Devils, most recently in 2003.
* Finished the 2011-12 NHL regular season 48-28-6, fourth in their division and sixth in a 15-team conference where the top eight teams qualify for the postseason.
* Defeated the third-seeded Florida Panthers in the first round of the playoffs, knocked off the fifth-seeded Philadelphia Flyers in the second round before eliminating the top-seeded New York Rangers in the conference final.
* The Devils will play the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Kings in the best-of-seven Stanley Cup final starting May 30 in Newark, New Jersey.
* Peter DeBoer is in his first year as the Devils head coach and has guided the team to their first Stanley Cup final since they last won the championship in 2003.
* Starting goalie Martin Brodeur, who was on all three of the Devils’ Stanley Cup-winning teams, is the NHL’s all-time leader in wins (656) and shutouts (119).
* The team’s captain is American left wing Zach Parise and he has been with the team since they selected him in the first round of the 2003 NHL Draft.
(Compiled by Frank Pingue; Editing by Julian Linden)
