EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) – Martin Brodeur knows appearances sometimes can be just as important as playing well during the postseason.

That’s why the New Jersey goaltender didn’t react much after being pulled in the third period of the Devils’ 5-1 loss to the Boston Bruins in Game 4 of their first-round playoff series.

It was only one game, and the Devils hold a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series entering play Thursday night at Continental Airlines Arena.

“I can’t allow my team to see me throwing sticks and see me getting mad,” Brodeur said after a short practice Wednesday. “It’s important for me to stay cool.

“I can’t think about myself. I’m part of the blame and I go back onto the bench to be the backup.”

The performance Tuesday night was the only bad one Brodeur has had in the first four games. He allowed just three goals over the first three games.

Coach Pat Burns also didn’t seem worried about Game 5. He knows only two teams in the history of the NHL playoffs have come back from 3-0 deficits.

“No loss is good for a coach,” Burns said. “It would have been nice to have the day off, but I am not overly concerned. They still need three wins and we need one.”

If there is a positive for the Bruins in this series, it’s their ability to get chances. Brodeur stopped most of them in the first three games, but Boston was able to cash in Tuesday.

“We’ve got to go into their building with the same mentality,” said defenseman Dan McGillis, who leads the Bruins with three goals after scoring just three in the regular season. “He (Brodeur) is going to be really pumped up.

“I’m sure he’ll be a little hurt with losing this game and we’ve got to go in there and do the same things.”

Goaltender Jeff Hackett can expect a big first period from New Jersey, much like in Game 4.

The Devils fired 14 shots at him in an effort to sweep the series.

“I think they were hungry to try to finish the series,” Hackett said. “They know how important it is to keep series short. If you’re looking for a long run in the playoffs, the less games you play the more energy you have down the line.”

Devils forward Patrik Elias, who started a scrum in the closing seconds by bumping with Hackett, said the Bruins deserved to win Tuesday.

“They came out ready and played a good hockey game and played better than us,” said Elias, looking for his first goal of the series. “It’s just one game in a long series.

“We played the way we wanted to over the first three games and got the job done. We deserved to be on top 3-0, and that’s the way we have to play tomorrow.”

Brodeur said Game 5 should be interesting.

“I’m sure they believe they have momentum now,” he said. “It all depends on how high you get or how low. We can’t get too down. We have to play better than we did last night.”

AP-ES-04-16-03 1854EDT