Bodog Beat

Martin Brodeur notched his 37th win of the season. (AP Images)

The Devils are back in first place.

After ceding the top spot in the Eastern Conference to Pittsburgh two weeks ago, New Jersey reclaimed its perch when Patrik Elias tallied with 58 seconds to play in overtime on Friday night. The Devils beat the Tampa Bay Lightning, 2-1, in Newark, N.J., to climb over their idle Atlantic Division rivals from Pennsylvania.

Elias converted on a 2-on-1 break with Zach Parise. His shot got by new Lightning goalie Karri Ramo, who faced 32 shots. Martin Brodeur won his 37th game of the season and only had to contend with 22 shots from Tampa Bay.

New Jersey paid -240 on the puckline (meaning a winning hockey bet of $240 would net $100). The Devils have 84 points, one more than both Montreal and Pittsburgh.

In other NHL action on Friday:

Edmonton 2, Columbus 1: Although the Blue Jackets tied the game on a Dan Fritsche goal with less than a second to go in the third period, the Oilers eventually came away with the win when Andrew Cogliano scored in overtime. His goal came 1:53 into OT as the Oilers notched a road win that paid +125.

Atlanta 3, Minnesota 2: The Thrashers finally won a game. Erik Christensen’s shootout goal snapped an eight-game skid for Atlanta, which was a home underdog at +120.

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