"Matt Corrente and Alexander Urbom are the young defensemen most people believe have a legitimate shot at earning spots on the Devils' roster this fall. But there is one other rookie blue liner who surely merits watching in training camp. Eric Gelinas has already beaten some long odds to make it this far and he isn't satisfied. "I think I can compete with players like Urbom and Corrente," Gelinas said today. "I think I'm as good as them. We're all different players. They're good players, too." Gelinas, 19, was the Devils' second pick (54th overall) in the 2009 entry draft. That was 34 selections behind center Jacob Josefson and 19 spots before the Devils took Urbom. The Ontario native was partnered on defense today with Anton Volchenkov and he is hopeful of playing in his first NHL game when the Devils face the Rangers Thursday night at the Garden. "For sure. It's going to be my first NHL game of my career," Gelinas said. "I can't wait to play that game, especially against the Rangers, a team that has a lot of history. It will be fun." Read more: http://www.nj.com/devils/index.ssf/2010/09/the_improbable_rise_of_devils.html
