Opposing captains have not produced in Final

NEWARK -- Against the backdrop of the Stanley Cup Finals lies a tale of 27-year-old American captains; one was the subject of trade rumors in late February, the other might not be with his club next fall.

Both the Kings' Dustin Brown, of Ithaca, and the Devils' Zach Parise, of Minneapolis, were drafted in the first round in 2003, and their paths have brought them to this best-of-seven series, which Los Angeles led three games to one before Saturday night's Game 5 at Prudential Center.

But only one will raise the Cup above his head. And whichever captain can break out of a disturbing slump might be the one to skate around the ice with the silver chalice.

Parise, a dynamic left wing, had seven goals and seven assists in the 22 games leading up to Saturday night's game and the unrestricted free agent will undoubtedly be the most sought-after forward next month. Brown, a bruising right wing, had seven goals and 17 points in 18 games and has two more years remaining on his contract.

However, neither has been productive offensively through the first four games of the Finals: Parise, who had 31 goals and 69 points this season, has been held without a point; Brown has one assist.

"Zach's game is so much more than the stat line. He's the heartbeat of our team. He's the identity of our team," Devils coach Peter DeBoer said. "He forechecks, he backchecks, he kills penalties. He really is our barometer. He's the guy that makes us go, whether he's scoring or not. Again, I don't measure his game on goals and assists. He's creating opportunities. They're eventually going to go in. He's had these types of situations before.

"It's tough right now for anybody to score. But I'm not concerned about his game. I know it's going to come."

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Parise, who declined to discuss his free agency, agreed. "We did have good chances," he said. "You hope those keep coming and we'll capitalize on them. That's our job and we understand that. We take it personal. Trust me, if it was because of a lack of effort, you guys could yell at us all you want. But we're trying, we're working hard, we're trying to make things happen. If we keep doing that, we feel it's going to work for us."

Brown, with just 31 points in the first 62 games of the regular season as the Kings battled for the last playoff berth in the Western Conference, admitted hearing the trade rumblings, which began a few days before the Feb. 27 trade deadline. Pittsburgh was interested. So was Boston, St. Louis. Maybe the Rangers.

Nothing happened. Except that Brown caught fire. He posted 39 points (15-24) in the next 37 games, including the playoffs and set the tone in the first few series with thunderous hits against Vancouver, St. Louis and Phoenix, all of whom were vanquished by the lower-seeded Kings.

But the Devils have proven to be tougher so far, forcing overtimes in the first two games and winning Game 4 in Los Angeles.

"I think there was a letdown after not sealing the deal with our home crowd," Brown said. "Everyone wakes up and understands the situation we're in, not only the opportunity but the responsibility to be better in Game 5."

Brown understands that it's not easy to clinch the Cup. "It's been a long, long playoffs," he said. "Emotionally and physically, you're going to be tired. I think it's pretty much an even playing ground when you consider fatigue because each team has gone through three series and is battling as hard as they can. It's really about just finding the next gear. The team that does normally wins."