Devils forward John Madden is a solid all-around player, but he might be best known for two things: penalty killing and shorthanded goals.

Madden's skills will get challenged to the max Saturday when the Devils face Mario Lemieux and company.

	Madden is tenacious when killing penalties, and he'll have his hands full Saturday against the Penguins.

"I think we'll have two lines that will face him," he told ESPN.com on Friday. "We'll ask one guy to keep an eye on him at all times and don't let him out of reach."

Madden plays on a line with Randy McKay and Jay Pandolfo, and they surely will see plenty of Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr, the NHL's leading scorer. How will Madden, at 5-feet-11 -- at least that's what it says in the program -- handle the two large offensive forces?

"Hitting Mario is a disadvantage for me," Madden admitted. "He's a quick player for 6-foot-5, but I have to try and play good positioning and take advantage of my quickness.

"You can't go fishing for the puck."

Additional pressure will be placed on Madden and other fowards because the Devils' defense took a hit Thursday night when both Brain Rafalski and Scott Niedermayer left the Ottawa game with injuries. Niedermayer definitely won't play and even if Rafalski does, he won't be 100 percent. And that affects how the Devils deal with Pittsburgh's top line because Rafalski and his partner Scott Stevens usually face all opponents' top units.

"Along with Scott Stevens, all three would definitely fit into our game plan with Lemieux," he said. "So, what we're going to do without or defense corps, I have no idea. Stevens will be out there, but he can't do it himself."

Last season, Madden killed a lot of penalties, but he also led the league with six shorthanded goals. Most assume shorthanded tallies come from great hands, timing and a whole lot of luck. Madden admits that luck has a lot to do with it, but preparation can make a huge difference.

"A lot has to do with watching a lot of video and seeing what guys tend to do with and without the puck," he said. "Do they pinch? Are they lazy on dump-ins? You also have to get a little lucky and be able to bury chances. I've had as many chances as last year but only have two goals."

Madden looks forward to the challenge of doing what no other team has done consistently, namely shut down Lemieux and Jagr, especially on the power play. Interestingly, Madden actually thinks that the Penguins are a bit vulnerable on the power play.

"If you can get the puck out, you can get a 2-on-1 situation," he said. "Lemieux, Lang, Jagr are on the goal line, so if you can beat one guy and then all they might have back is Kovalev."

Sounds good, but that's one big "if".

Brian A. Shactman covers the NHL for ESPN.com and can be reached at brian.shactman@espn.com.