The New Jersey Devils are heading into the playoffs for the first time since 2012 and not surprisingly half the roster has never competed in a NHL postseason game.

The newbies in the Cup chase include leading scorer Taylor Hall Authentic Joel Iyiegbuniwe Jersey , No. 1 overall pick Nico Hischier, No. 1 goaltender Keith Kinkaid and probably nine of the 20 players expected to be in the starting lineup on Thursday night against the Lightning in the opening game of the first-round series.

There are 13 players on the roster who have never played in a Stanley Cup playoff game.

New Jersey also has its share of experienced players. Center Brian Boyle has played in 106 playoff games, going to the Finals with the Rangers. Defenseman Sami Vatanen went to the playoffs the past four seasons with Anaheim. Defenseman Ben Lovejoy won a Cup in Pittsburgh.

Their advice to the kids has been to embrace the challenge, expect the hockey to be more intense and to enjoy the games.

For the young players, most of them are just expecting hockey.

”I don’t think you change anything,” forward Blake Coleman said. ”There is a reason teams make the playoffs and there is no reason to venture too far from anything. The only difference is you get a little more familiar with who you are playing.”

Coleman said every player in the Devils’ locker room has participated in some type of playoff game throughout their careers, whether it be in juniors, or the minor leagues or even younger.

”It’s fun,” said Coleman, who had 13 goals in his first full NHL season. ”It’s always going to be pressure games. It’s going to be no different than what we played in the last 15 when they were all must-win games down the stretch and we found ways to be successful.”

Will Butcher, who set a team rookie record for a defenseman with 44 points, said being a part of a playoff team is fun. He enjoyed practice on Wednesday when the Devils opened the workout to fans.

”I am not going to expect different,” Butcher said. ”It might be, but for me this is just a hockey game. You go out Authentic Chris Herndon Jersey , you prepare, you play and do all the things you have done all season long and be ready to go. That’s our mindset as a team. We’re going into play another hockey game.”

Butcher said his approach to the series is viewing each game as a one-game series. First to four advances.

Veteran goaltender Cory Schneider, who played in three series with the Canucks before being traded to New Jersey in a draft-day deal in 2013, said the intensity is higher in playoff games.

”It seems like every single play matters and it does,” Schneider said. ”You also have to keep perspective that no matter what happens whether you win a game or lose one, it’s on to the next one. You can’t get caught up in the mood swings.”

Defenseman Mirco Mueller was around the playoffs with the San Jose Sharks, but never got into a game.

”I have seen the intensity and the level it is played at, so that might help a little,” said Mueller, who moved into the starting lineup in the past month. ”It will be new and there is a lot of noise around it, the first round starting. I guess it will just be hockey once it starts, with a lot more at stake.”

Hischier can’t wait for the playoffs. The 19-year-old Swiss center who had 20 goals and 52 points in his rookie season, said the Devils can play with anyone if they play their game.

”We’re hungry for more right now,” he said. ”It’s fun to be in there (the playoffs) Cheap Isaac Yiadom Jersey , but now we want more.”

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More NHL hockey: Before making the five-hour drive from Cleveland to Buffalo's training camp, receiver Corey Coleman was advised to leave behind the baggage of his two seasons with the Browns.

The injuries, dropped passes, and constant reminders of how Coleman failed to play to the Browns' first-round draft-pick expectations can all be set aside.

The Bills are offering him a clean slate.

"We all go through things in life that don't go our way," Bills general manager Brandon Beane said Monday, a day after acquiring Coleman in a trade. "I don't know all what went right or wrong for Corey in Cleveland. But we view it as a fresh start here to earn and compete."

For the relatively small price of a 2020 seventh-round draft pick, Beane took what he called a "low-risk" gamble in a bid to add breakaway speed and play-making potential to one of his team's most unsettled positions.

In Cleveland, first-year GM John Dorsey parted ways with a player who came to symbolize the overall dysfunction of the Browns' previous regime.

By trading down in the draft order to select Coleman with the 15th pick in the 2016 draft, the Browns passed on an opportunity to choose eventual Philadelphia Eagles starting quarterback Carson Wentz.

Hand injuries limited Coleman to playing just 19 games, during which he caught 56 of the 131 passes thrown in his direction for 718 yards and five touchdowns. That was a significant drop in production for a player who scored an NCAA-leading 20 touchdowns receiving and led the Big 12 with 1,363 yards receiving at Baylor in 2015.

Coleman's tenure in Cleveland will be best remembered for his drop late in the fourth quarter in last season's finale at Pittsburgh that sealed the Browns' 0-16 finish.

None of that now matters in Buffalo, where the Bills lack established depth at receiver behind starter Kelvin Benjamin.

Including Benjamin, acquired in a mid-season trade from Carolina, Buffalo's four returning receivers combined for 57 catches for 681 yards and six touchdowns last season. Jeremy Kerley Authentic Alexander Alexeyev Jersey , an eighth-year player, was the team's most notable offseason free-agent addition, while the Bills also used two late-round draft picks to select Ray-Ray McCloud III and Austin Proehl.

Beane revisited previous discussions he had with the Browns regarding Coleman, and elected to make the trade two weeks into training camp.

"I just thought now was the opportunity to get him in here to start learning this offense versus waiting any longer," he said.

Nothing, however, is guaranteed.

"He's not going to automatically get anything," Beane said. "He's got to come here and compete. That's what I told him on the phone last night."

Pending a physical, Coleman is expected to make his practice debut Tuesday. It's too early to determine whether he'll play in Buffalo's preseason-opener against Carolina on Thursday.

Kerley welcomed the added competition Coleman brings to the Bills.

"Here, it's a better opportunity for him to compete. It's a better opportunity for everyone. Competition is good," Kerley said. "It's going to definitely help us boost up a little bit."

As for Coleman's past, Kerley said the best advice is to forget it.

"Whatever happened in Cleveland, that's over with," Kerley said. "You're in a different place Durham Smythe Jersey Dolphins , a different atmosphere, different coaches, different situation. You kind of get to redeem yourself."

The trade caught Coleman's now-former teammate, receiver Jarvis Landry, by surprise.

The three-time Pro Bowler, who came to Cleveland in a March trade from Miami, mentored Coleman during their few months together. Landry convinced the 24-year-old to change his diet and schooled him on what it takes to succeed.

"Just continue to work hard, continue to grind at it," said Landry, who spoke to Coleman after the trade became official. "I think he's got a great grasp of that. And who knows, maybe in Buffalo that continues to carry over, and he has a hell of a career."

Coleman also had issues off the field.

He was named in a police report regarding an alleged felonious assault last year, but never charged. He was also sent home from the Browns' trip to Houston for missing curfew while he was injured.

The Bills were assured Coleman doesn't face possible NFL disciplinary action resulting from the alleged assault.
AP Sports Writer Tom Withers in Cleveland contributed to this report.
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