Post Game Thread: New Jersey Devils at Montreal Canadiens – 11 Mar 2023

42 comments

1. Not a great game but it’s two points. And Carolina lost so that is huge. Something really needs to be done about that second line though. It doesn’t look like Meier has any chemistry with Hughes whatsoever.

2. https://i.imgur.com/MFpDHCX.jpg

3. Tomorrow’s game is one of the most important games they’ll play all season. Let’s get some sleep get the boys home and remember everyone who’s there tomorrow, go fucking wild

4. Schmid the Kid is on a HEATER

5. Not loving how Nico looked getting off the ice. Jack was obviously concerned

6. Would it be crazy to separate hughes and meier? We would call it a 3rd line, but in reality it would be 1A, 1B, 2, and 4.

7. An ordinary win that good teams earn

8. Who else saw shmid lining up a shot on goal right when the buzzer went??

9. Would love Lindy to go back to Bratt on the second line. That line was great until he split it up

10. Hope Nico is ok. I’ve taken slapshots off the tongue before that aren’t even close to NHL quality and they fucking suck ass. That’ll swell up nice. Hopefully it’s just a contusion.

11. I love winning games we are supposed to win. Keep on rolling

12. Take the 2 and leave. Something looks off with Hughes, hope he’s okay. Hughes, meier and Bratt need more games together, let them figure out how each play and develop chemistry. Neither of those 3 are 3rd liners and shouldn’t be there, but you also can’t break up Nicos line. Let them figure it out. Schmeat is so fucking good.

13. Did I hear it right?

    Did I hear Bill say the words “whirling” “twirling” in relation to Dawson?

    If yes…I love it.

14. Palat has been a force of nature the last game and a half. Guy must have been 3 teeth and half a lip too heavy

15. 2 points behind first place, and we play them next.

    LETS. GO.

16. After that big lead in faceoffs we ended up tied. That is telling as to how it went.

17. I find it amazing how Schmid has come up from this “backup goalie hero” to an actual option and someone you want to play against the best.

    First line was on fire, rest ehhh…

    I really got no recipe for the second line, like they got no proper zone entries and no shots. I’d move Bratt back just for Jacks comfort, Boqvist is not playing bad but him slotting in into the line has not resulted in any better forechecking or staying power. So you can probably just go back to how it was. No real benefit like this, besides the line beaing weird.

    3rd and forth I’d call solid, not blowing it out of the park today but not a worry like the 2nd line.

    A win is a win tho, and we’re even with those struggle close to the canes. So I’m still very very happy with things 🙂

    MEANINGFUL MARCH BOYS AND GIRLS

18. Can someone who is less lazier than me pull these numbers: when was the last time the Devils scored first and kept a lead all throughout the game?

19. Tomorrows game is going to be a dog fight. The rock needs to be a packed house tomorrow and loud as all hell! Let’s go Devils!!!

20. That game was kinda boring, but a win is a win

21. Hope Nico is all good, gutsy block to preserve the 2 goal lead.

    I’m interested to see like combos for tomorrows game. They’ve won a couple in a row with this look, but something is clearly off with the second line. It’s nice that we don’t have to rely on them, but the funnest part of the season has been watching hughes light it up so I hope to see that again soon

22. Jack needs Yegor. DONT care what anyone else has to say about it.

23. A better all around effort. Montreal made the Rags go to a SO last time so winning in regulation was nice. Way less turnovers besides the Sevo one leading to a goal.

24. Wins are wins and I’m glad for the two points, but it’s been a while since the Devils have played in a way that gave me much confidence for the rest of this season. Everything besides the first line and Akira just seems off. We’ll see how they do against an actual good team tomorrow, but I’m finding it hard to be overly confident when it’ll be Vitek desperately attempting to rediscover his groove.

    Edit: third line hasn’t been bad either. Mostly just the second that I find so worrisome

25. Is it me or was that game wildly boring?

26. [Morreale] [Longest point streaks in NJD franchise history: Taylor Hall (19 GP in 2017-18) Brian Gionta (15, 2005-06) Patrik Elias (15, 1999-00) Elias (13, 2000-01) Petr Sykora (13, 2000-01) Dawson Mercer 12 games](https://twitter.com/mikemorrealeNHL/status/1634743192913362947)

27. Second game in a row where Smith played pretty solidly. What twilight zone shit is going on?

28. Love how the boys find a way to win but I’d like to see more dominance and control throughout a full game

29. Fun fact: “Akira” is Japanese for, “..the fuck outta here with that shit”

30. 5th road game already this month and it’s only the 11th (6th game total). It’s not going to look pretty during a stretch like that. Tomorrow won’t be any easier, but hopefully can grind out the W.

31. I hope they play a Schmid tomorrow night. He has been in the zone while V2 has not looked good at all lately. I know they won’t play him 2 nights in a row but still feel like they should!

32. * Hope Nico is okay. First line is fucking dominant and we can’t lose him now, but he’s played after worse, so I have faith.
    * Speaking of the first line, Dawson Mercer Point Streak Continues!
    * And I want to say, so many of the first line’s shifts makes me feel like they can go against any of the best lines in the league. They looked so fucking mint almost the entire game. I fucking love it.
    * Akira Schmid is so god damn clutch. I’m assuming Vitek is starting tomorrow. I hope the atmosphere, the importance of the game, gets Vitek in the right mindset to have a The Vitek game. A good game tomorrow can completely turn around his slump.
    * *Timo needs time to cook*. I don’t know who he needs to cook with, but he needs time to cook. You can’t mess up the first line and I really think you shouldn’t have fucked with the third line, so lets try going back to Jack, Jesper (Bratt), and Timo for tomorrow.
    * **What deity do I need to speak to? What quest do I need to go on? What final monster do I need to defeat to get Jack Hughes’ mojo back.**
    * Brendan Smith has played two great back to back games.
    * Haula and Palat have some really good chemistry. Glad they’re both finding their games as we get to the final stretch here.
    * Fourth line also looked fairly good. Still pinned in a few times, but probably as much as the second line was maybe less.
    * I wonder if we play Shango or Bahl or even Lazar tomorrow? Given the back to back and the loaded March schedule.
    * We’ve kept our nine point lead against the Rangers and obviously everyone knows how important tomorrow is for us. We have a really big opportunity tomorrow. I know the players aren’t standings watching like we are, but hope they come out like fucking beasts and give us sixty full minutes of monster play.
    * We absolutely need one of our best games of the season from every single player on the ice tomorrow.
    * First period was fire. Second period was sparky. Third period was a dying campfire, but a win is a win is a win and two points in regulation means a lot as we get closer to the end of the regular season.

33. The Devils didn’t score 6 goals and gave up more than 2 shots on goal. I’m worried about this team. Do they even really want to win?

34. Glad they got the win, but the Hughes line looks god awful and ruff just keeps it together. And the third line was the second least impactful behind it. Give Hughes and meier Bratt, put Boqvist on the third line where he belongs.

    Also, jack hasn’t scored in 6 games, and is not pointless in 3 straight. Wanna see him heat up and hit 100 points

35. 2 points behind Carolina.

36. Should we file a missing persons report for Jack Hughes?

37. Schmid got us the last 4 points. Our offence hasn’t really clicked so it’s important to win these tight games.

38. The Hughes line looked bad again. Meier carries the puck too much to play with Hughes whose greatest strength is creativity on the puck. As a result, Hughes presses and is trying to do too much. I’d split them up and bring back Bratt.

39. Anyone hear anything about Hischier? That blocked shot looked painful.

40. Meier need to play on the right side. Didn’t we try this off wing crap with kovalchuk? How did that work out at first.

41. This might be controversial but i think mercer and meier should switch spots. And probably bratt and boquist, too.

    Tatar, nico, mier

    Bratt, hughes, Mercer

    Palat, haula, boquist

42. Going to my first devils game in like 12 years tomorrow. Any advice?