All that worry about Ilya Kovalchuck didn’t seem to stop the New Jersey Devils in Game 2. Missing one of their best offensive players, New Jersey still managed to swing back at the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday, evening the series with a 4-1 victory on the road.

That’s good news as the series shifts back to New Jersey as the team may still be without their star. Kovalchuck is still nursing a lower-body injury and may not be available for Game 3 Thursday night.

The Russian forward had 37 goals and 83 points during the regular season, and has scored three times in the playoffs. He missed Game 2, but told trainers he was feeling better during practice. But the team is weighing keeping him out and giving him a week’s rest before Game 4 on Sunday.

”Kovy is a big piece of the puzzle,” said Devils center Travis Zajac told the Associated Press. ”He can score at any time. When you don’t have that, you have to play a mistake-free game.”

The Devils have been fine without him, recovering from a 1-0 defecit in Game 2 with four third period goals. They’ve done it by limiting Philadelphia’s powerful man-advantage game that served it so well in the opening round against Pittsburgh. New Jersey has allowed only one power play goal in 11 chances this series, that after allowing nine to the Florida Panthers in the opener.

“We’ve got it back on track where we want it right now and we have to continue that,” head coach Peter DeBoer said.

It’s worked against the Flyers. In eight total meetings this season, including the playoffs, Philadelphia has converted just four of its 44 power play chances this year. In fact, New Jersey could be leading the series 2-0 right now if not for losing the first game in overtime.

”I think there is a pressure with being a favorite in a series,” DeBoer told the Associated Press. ”We felt that in the Florida series, and I don’t think there is any doubt that it is on Philadelphia. That is something that isn’t easy to deal with, when you are supposed to win and, not only win, but win convincingly.

”We like the spot we are in and we are just going to keep working.”

That inefficiency has frustrated the Flyers so far. Scott Harnell, Jaromir Jagr and Claude Giroux had only four combined shots in Game 2. It was Giroux’s first scoreless game this postseason since Game 1 against the Penguins.

“I wasn’t forechecking. I wasn’t hitting. It seemed like my legs weren’t moving, and when you don’t have a guy on your line going, it’s tough to get the other guys going as well,” he told the Philadelphia Inquirer. “I have to be better. I have to get emotionally into the game. It felt like it was just too easy for them.”

The Devils have the momentum, and home ice advantage for the rest of the series, but are still wary of feeling comfortable.

”You can’t get overwhelmed by one win,” goaltender Martin Brodeur told the AP. ”People always look at that. That’s (why) the mood swings are important. You have to be leveled off about them. You feel so good about yourself that sometimes you slack off a bit. We can’t get caught up. We played well, but we expect the Flyers to come a lot harder tomorrow and do what they do.”

The Devils are favored by 1 1/2 goals, according to Bovada, with a -115 moneyline.