Heading into their first-round series against Tampa Bay, the Devils faced a task that seemed simple. If they could manage to neutralize the Lightning’s trio of star forwards — Vincent Lecavalier, Martin St. Louis, and Brad Richards — they would certainly prevail, with rock-solid netminder Martin Brodeur leading the way. Although the Devils did in fact emerge victorious, things didn’t unfold as expected.

The Devils managed to eliminate Tampa Bay largely because they boasted far superior scoring depth. Fourteen different Devils contributed offensively in Round 1, as opposed to only nine mem7bers of the Lightning, and that proved to be the difference in the series. Unfortunately for the Devils, their second round opponent will be far more difficult to contain.

New Jersey will begin a best of seven series Thursday night with the Ottawa Senators, who also boast a talented trio of elite-level forwards: Dany Heatley, Daniel Alfredsson, and Jason Atlantic Spezza. One critical difference is that Ottawa’s supporting cast up front is far superior to the Lightning’s, and another is that Ottawa’s starting goaltender (Ray Emery) is substantially better than Tampa starter Johan Holmqvist. But the most critical differentiating factor is that Ottawa’s defense, from one through six, is the finest in the Eastern Conference.

Here’s a look at how these teams match up:

OFFENSE Devils center Scott Gomez scored an NHL-leading nine points against Tampa, with two other Devils (Patrik Elias and Brian Rafalski) among the NHL’s top 10 point-getters. And super sophomore Zach Parise leads all NHLers with six playoff goals, with Brian Gionta just one behind him. Although the Devils are known primarily as a defense-first club, their offense’s ability to prey on Lightning goalie Johan Holmqvist was what made the difference in the first round.

While the Devils’ scoring depth was impressive, the Senators were nothing short of sensational in their five-game defeat of Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins. In all, 17 different Senators registered points against the Pens, with captain Alfredsson (six points in five games) leading the way. There is no question as to whether Ottawa’s top line can match the Devils’ goal-for-goal, and the teams are relatively even on the second and fourth lines. But New Jersey, with John Madden and Jay Pandolfo anchoring what is usually one of the NHL’s finest checking lines, holds a slight edge up front.

Advantage: Devils

DEFENSE If there’s one area where a team holds a meaningful edge in this series, it’s the Senators’ superior blue line corps. Anchored by Wade Redden, the Sens’ defense boasts a lethal combination of speed and toughness, skill and smarts. Hard-hitters Chris Phillips and Anton Volchenkov will make life extremely difficult for the Devils’ first- and secondline forwards, while Joe Corvo, Andrej Meszaros, and Tom Preissing can be counted upon to carry the puck out of harm’s way consistently and without needless drama.

At the other end of the ice, the Devils’ defensive zone is no longer the fearsome place it was when Scott Stevens patrolled their blue line. Smooth skaters Paul Martin and Rafalski are New Jersey’s ice time leaders, both known more for their passing and playmaking ability than their capacity to deliver bone-crushing hits. That task is normally reserved for Colin White, but a back injury forced him to miss four of the Devils’ six playoff games thus far, and there’s little reason to believe that he’ll be able to make much of an impact in this postseason.

Advantage: Senators

GOALTENDING Much will be made in the coming days about the Devils’ edge in goal, with Brodeur expected to outshine Sens netminder Ray Emery. Although Brodeur — a top candidate for both the Hart and Vezina trophies — certainly holds a huge edge in experience, the difference isn’t as severe as one might think. Brodeur struggled through the first four games against Tampa and started to exhibit signs that his extraordinary regular season workload took a predictable toll.

Meanwhile, Emery is a tremendous competitor, and after an excellent sophomore campaign, he played well against Sidney Crosby and company. While the Sens have backup Martin Gerber as a valuable safety net in case Emery falters or gets hurt, having to go to their secondary option (Scott Clemmensen) would be a disaster for the Devils.

Advantage: Devils

SPECIAL TEAMS Both the Devils’ and Senators’ power plays delivered an impressive 25% success rate in the first round, but it’s worthwhile to compare their opponents’ regular season penaltykilling effectiveness before putting too much stock in those numbers. While the Penguins (82.1%, 17th in the NHL) were competent in that regard, the Lightning’s 78.4% success rate was third-worst in the league, which surely conspired to make New Jersey’s power play look better than it actually was.

The teams were relatively equal when killing penalties in round 1 as well, with the Sens’ success rate (85.7%) coming against the NHL’s fifth-best power play and the Devils’ (84.6%) coming against the NHL’s ninth-best. But because the Sens’ defense is superior — and because their success came against a better Penguins team — Ottawa holds a small but meaningful edge here.

Advantage: Senators

PREDICTION Come playoff time, it’s always difficult to go against the Devils. With Brodeur between the pipes, they are unfailingly dangerous. But Ottawa’s superior blue line corps, and the confidence they gained with their quick dispatching of the Penguins, will prove to be the tipping points in what should be a very competitive second-round series.

Prediction: Senators in six.

Mr. Greenstein is the editor in chief of InsideHockey.com.