By Alan Robinson
The Associated Press

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - Nothing seems to come easy for the New Jersey Devils in the Stanley Cup finals.

Three years ago, they had a chance to clinch the Cup in Game 5 at home against Dallas, only to lose 1-0 on Stars forward Mike Modano's goal in the third overtime. New Jersey went on to win the Cup in six games.

A year later, the Devils led Colorado 3-2 after five games with, again, a potential Cup-clinching game on home ice. The Avalanche won 4-0, then won the Cup themselves two nights later with a 3-1 victory in Denver.

Devils forward Scott Gomez said he still isn't over losing that series and hopes the teammates who remain from that team feel the same way.

Now, the Devils are trying to rebound after losing two straight at Anaheim, evening a series they seemed to have under control after winning twice at home last week.

"We've been through this before, we always seem to want to go the hard way all the time," goalie Martin Brodeur said Tuesday. "This year's no different."

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NO 50 CENT TICKETS, EITHER

The Ducks arrived at their New Jersey hotel Tuesday night following a long day of flying to learn that several rap music stars were staying there.

The hotel lobby was lined with security for the groups and their entourages. The rap artists had larger security forces than the Ducks did.

Among those appearing at nearby Giants Stadium were Eminem and 50 Cent.

As they made their way into the hotel, the hockey players seemed as ambivalent about the entourages as the entourages were about the players.

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WEIR ROOTING FOR DUCKS

Masters champion Mike Weir, a close friend of Mighty Ducks forward Adam Oates, flew on a private plane from suburban Chicago to Anaheim for Game 4 Monday night. Weir is practicing for next week's U.S. Open.

Weir also plans to make the trip to Anaheim for Game 6 Saturday night.

Weir, who is from Canada, is a Red Wings' fan, but he and Oates have been close friends for such a long time that Weir is pulling for the Ducks.

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LAID OFF

Mighty Ducks defenseman Keith Carney said it can't be overstated how much the 10-day layoff affected the team before its series-opening losses in New Jersey.

The Ducks looked flat, skated poorly and had almost no good scoring chances in the two 3-0 losses.

"It catches up to you after 10 days," he said Tuesday. "The playoffs are played at such a high level and intensity and they're such a battle, when you're removed from that as long as we were, it takes a while to get it back.

"Now we're playing like we did in the first three rounds of the playoffs."

The Ducks outscored the Devils 4-2 in the two games at the Pond.

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THIRD (OR LATER) AND GOAL

Of the Ducks' 14 victories in the playoffs, they have gotten the winning goal in the third period or beyond 11 times. In 10 of the 11, the winner has come in the last five minutes of regulation play or overtime.

Thomas' overtime goal Monday night was his second winner of the playoffs; he also got one late in the third period in Game 2 against Detroit.

Petr Sykora and Mike Leclerc also have two winning goals each and Paul Kariya, Stanislav Chistov, Steve Rucchin, Sandis Ozolinsh and Ruslan Salei have one each.

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IS ANYBODY WATCHING?

With TV ratings down from even the smallish numbers of last year, and the home markets not exactly enthralled with the series, the NHL must be wondering: Is anyone watching the Stanley Cup finals?

One problem: The nation's two largest TV markets are involved, but their most popular teams aren't. The Rangers are the team of choice in New York, not the Devils. And the Ducks normally make only a small splash in the crowded waters of the Los Angeles sports world.

Except for large signs at the two arenas, there's little evidence in either Anaheim or New Jersey there's a championship series going on. There are street signs on the blocks close to the Pond, but they're in recognition of the World Series champion Anaheim Angels, who play down the street at Edison Field.

There are a few signs at the Disneyland complex wishing the Ducks good luck, but most of the out-of-town visitors to the resort seem oblivious to the finals.

All games have been sellouts, a rarity for two of the weakest-drawing franchises in the NHL. The Devils had only a handful of sellouts all season, while the Ducks were last in the NHL in attendance last season, and improved only slightly this season despite a second-half surge on the ice.

The Ducks are hoping the run to the finals will boost season ticket sales, which were only about 7,000 to 8,000 this season.

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NOTES

Road teams had won six consecutive finals overtime games until the Ducks won two in three nights at home. ... With the Devils losing roughly three of every five faceoffs, they may try to get center Joe Nieuwendyk on the ice for Game 5. He hasn't played in the series so far because of a lower body injury the Devils say is in his hip. He won more than half his faceoffs during the season. ... The two-day break was welcomed by the teams, which must travel cross-country twice each in a week's span. The Ducks' two victories at home assure there will be a Game 6 Saturday night in Anaheim. But, as Ducks forward Adam Oates said, "This time of the year, a lot of it is mental. It's the Stanley Cup finals, and there's three games left in the season. There's no such thing as fatigue."