EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (CP) -- Andrei Zyuzin is delivering some much-needed muscle for the New Jersey Devils.

 After spending two games in coach Larry Robinson's doghouse, the six-foot-one, 215-pound defenceman delivered some big hits Saturday night against the Carolina Hurricanes.

 That's the kind of hockey Robinson has been begging for, the kind that should keep Zyuzin in the lineup for a while.

 "I know what I have to do," Zyuzin told the Bergen Record. "I learned my lesson.

 "It's a big lesson for me, not playing two games. I felt really bad because I couldn't be out there and help my team. And it was my fault. Only my fault and no one else's."

 Mike Commodore, who has been paired with Zyuzin, was surprised with his partner's physical play.

 "To be honest, I knew he could skate, but I never knew that hitting was part of his game," Commodore said. "If he does that all the time, it would add a different dimension to his game.

 "He'd keep the guys on the other team on their toes because they'd be hearing his footsteps every time he's on the ice."