Elias honored by Devils, who hope new Stanley Cup era is coming

NEWARK, N.J. -- Near the end of his speech on Saturday, Patrik Elias paused again to collect himself and a fan shouted, "One more year."

Elias quickly responded, "No."
This was the end of the journey for Elias that started in his native Czech Republic and finished with his number being retired by the New Jersey Devils in an emotional ceremony prior to their 2-1 win against the New York Islanders at Prudential Center.
Selected by the Devils in the second round (No. 51) of the 1994 NHL Draft, the forward played 20 seasons with them before finishing his career in 2016 as their all-time leader in nearly every offensive statistic, including goals (408), assists (617) and points (1,025).
"For someone growing up in Eastern Europe, in a communist country, there's no way I could ever dream of this day," Elias said.

This was also the end of an era for the Devils. Elias' No. 26 joined Scott Stevens' No. 4, Ken Daneyko's No. 3, Scott Niedermayer's No. 27 and Martin Brodeur's No. 30 in the Prudential Center rafters.
Those were the five obvious ones from the Devils' Stanley Cup years. Elias, 41, made his NHL debut in 1995-96, the season after they won the first of their three championships, and was a part of the other two in 1999-2000 and 2002-03. He also played in the Stanley Cup Final in 2000-01 and 2011-12.
But 2011-2012 was the last time the Devils were in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and Elias was the last link to their championships.
The next number the Devils retire will likely come from another generation, perhaps the one they are building now. After missing the playoffs the past five seasons, they are in position to end that drought with 20 games remaining.
The Devils (32-22-8) hold the first wild card into the playoffs from the Eastern Conference with 72 points, five more than the Columbus Blue Jackets, who hold the second wild card, and seven more than the Islanders. Seeing Prudential Center packed and electric for Elias' ceremony, co-owners Josh Harris and David Blitzer couldn't help envisioning what the building could be like in April.

"I expect them to be playing playoff hockey in a few months," Blitzer said. "This team is playing together. They have a terrific combination, in my opinion, of veterans and youth and everybody's helping each other out in that context and we're very excited to make the playoffs."
The Devils are young, fast and exciting with rookies Nico Hischier, Jesper Bratt and Will Butcher, and left wing Taylor Hall having a season worthy of Hart Trophy consideration. Hall, who had two assists Saturday, has scored at least one point in the last 21 games he's played and leads New Jersey with 26 goals, 40 assists and 66 points.
Elias addressed the current players during his speech, saying, "Believe in yourself and remember that you represent the Devils."
Though Elias has spent most of this season in the Czech Republic, coach John Hynes points to Elias as a role model for this group. Hynes, who is in his third season with the Devils, coached Elias for 16 games during 2015-16, when Elias was hampered by a knee injury. But Elias made an impression with how he handled himself after Ray Shero replaced Lou Lamoriello as general manager in 2015.
"He had tremendous success and then there was a regime change," Hynes said. "As big of a part as he was of the past success, his open-mindedness, his willingness to see what was going to go on, support what was going to go on, he understood the changes that were being made for the benefit of the organization is a big reason why our transition has been smooth and I think it speak volumes about how much he cares not just about Patrik Elias, but he truly cares about the Devils organization."

Elias credited Stevens, Daneyko, Niedermayer and Brodeur with instilling that in him.
"You cannot ask for better role models and leaders than these guys here," Elias said.
The current players watched the ceremony from the home bench and could see Devils royalty seated in chairs on the ice. In addition to Stevens, Danekyo, Niedermayer and Brodeur, there were a host of other Stanley Cup winners: Bobby Holik, Colin White, Mike Rupp, Jason Arnott, Petr Sykora and Sergei Brylin, who was a member of all three championship teams.
Forward Travis Zajac and defenseman Andy Greene are the lone remaining Devils from the last time they made the playoffs. Though Elias acknowledged he isn't as close with most of the rest of the current team, he feels a connection to it.
"I feel, and I hope I feel that way for the rest of my life, I'm going to be a part of this team," he said later. "For some reason, it didn't hit me like I shouldn't be a part of it or I shouldn't be thinking about them the way I do."
Elias paused to fight back tears at times during his speech, including when he spoke to his parents in Czech, but said his most emotional moment was standing there with his wife, Petra, and their two daughters watching his number being raised.
That was when what this night meant really hit him.
"Everything just kind of came together that this really happened," he said. "Your career, you watched those videos at the beginning [of the ceremony] and some of the early years and the accomplishments and you know that this is the end. This is the highest honor you can get from the team, from the organization and now [the number] is going to be there every time I come in … and I'm going to enjoy just looking up."