More than a few people believed that Scott Clemmensen should have been the Florida Panthers’ starter in the 2012 playoffs. The former New Jersey Devils backup will get a chance to thwart his old team after all, but it won’t be under the best circumstances. The Devils took just 6:16 to score three goals on six shots against Jose Theodore, prompting Kevin Dineen to give him the hook.
Clemmensen’s had some success against his former team now that he’s a Florida netminder and he finished the regular season stronger than Theodore, who was serenaded with a “Jose Jose Jose” chant that sounded a lot like the Montreal Canadiens’ “Ole!” ode.
This isn’t the only time Theodore’s had a really tough start in his playoff career. You might remember that Theo’s days with the Washington Capitals essentially came to an end when he allowed two goals on two shots by the Pittsburgh Penguins. Theo gave way to Semyon Varlamov and Varly went on to have a red-hot playoff start.
It might not be fair to judge Clemmensen too much one way or another if tonight’s contest follows this series’ first two games, though. In Game 1, the Devils built a 3-0 first period lead and held on for a 3-2 win. In Game 2, the Panthers took slightly longer to make it 3-0 themselves before getting a 3-2 victory of their own.
Florida has plenty of time to break this pattern, but Clemmensen will need to be sharp for the Panthers to have any chance.