There’s no place like home for the holiday’s, and that’s exactly where the New Jersey Devils need to be.
Welcome to 10 Observations. Think of it like 32 Thoughts, but with just 10, after a Devils game. Let me know in the comments if you like it.
To the hockey.
A mental reset is long overdue. The Devils have had little to no time to get away from the rink and reset their minds amid the struggles they’re having on the ice.
Sure, they’ve had off days. However, they need a break, and the impending holiday is the best time to do it.
By no means is it an excuse for New Jersey. The 31 other teams in the league are dealing with the same schedule. Yet, the Devils have fallen far from grace, winning eight games in a row early in the season, and then crumbling mightily since then.
The struggles continued on the eve of Christmas Eve against the New York Islanders at UBS Arena in a 2-1 loss.
10 Observations
I’ve seen the Luke Hughes discourse online. I’m not here saying that I agree with the comments. He was previously put in a tough situation amid a plethora of injuries, playing the most minutes on the blueline and on his offside. Yet, with Brett Pesce back in the lineup, I thought he’s looked strong. He still really struggles to find shooting lanes. He’s the shin-guard king, meaning he has the tendency to see his shots blocked, and that happened again on Tuesday against the Islanders. However, I thought he was overall strong in transitioning the puck and creating scoring chances. Defensively, he was fine, and is mostly buoyed by Pesce. Overall, I think we’ll see a stronger Luke with Pesce back on the blueline.
Speaking of Pesce, he’s just a shot blocking machine. He had four tonight, which led not only all Devils, but all skaters, including the Islanders. They missed him, and he changes the entire blueline dynamic.
Jacob Markstrom was actually really strong against the Islanders. He made some aggressive early saves, played above his crease, looked strong laterally, and didn’t bury himself in the net, leaving plenty of net for shooters to find. The workload he faced against the Islanders in the first period set up his confidence that seemingly had a ripple effect in his game, and for the first time this season, I didn’t wince at every shot he faced. Yet, Markstrom perhaps became too aggressive, which allowed the Islanders to tie the game while he was scrambling on the far left wall. Those mistakes can’t happen.
Before the Devils became deflated when the Islanders tied the game, they were picking each other up and working well in layers. For instance, Dawson Mercer turned the puck over in the offensive zone. Emil Heineman picked the loose puck up for a scoring chance. However, Brenden Dillon’s physicality removed puck from body, and the Devils skated the puck away from danger. That was an encouraging sign.
The Nico Hischier line was flat out dominant. They accrued a 67.51 xGF% according to HockeyStats, and it showed on the ice. When the Devils opened the scoring, it was Mercer heavy on the forecheck winning a puck battle, Meier steals the puck and then plays distractor, Hischier dumps the rubber to Pesce, and the Devils score. When New Jersey is strong on the forecheck, they’re at their best. That line encapsulated it. If only the rest of the lineup followed suit.
Boy, this is more of an Islanders perspective observation, but I’ve never seen a collision with a referee like we did in the second period. Marshall Warren tying to retreat to his own end of the ice runs over an official, and it completely took him out of the play. Everyone was fortunately okay, but that was ugly for a second.
Okay, one solution I have in the goal scoring department should seem simple. The Devils generated a bunch of chances by shooting far pad on David Rittich, which created rebound after rebound. Yet, no one was on the opposing goaltenders doorstep to clean up the garbage. Plant a body, preferably a strong one, on the goaltenders flank, win a puck battle, and deposit rebounds. You need garbage goals.
The Devils had a number of opportunities to score on breakaway chances. One from Jack Hughes when a puck was bouncing, it finally settled last minute, and Rittich came up with a save. Another against Connor Brown, who made a nice move, but again, Rittich stayed with Brown the entire way. It was a display of strong goaltending. However…
Jesper Bratt doesn’t look right. He has one goal all season at even strength. Likewise, Bratt has just one goal in his last 23 games. He had a primary scoring opportunity when he used his elite skating to force Rittich out of position, however, instead of lifting the puck over his pad, he sailed it through the crease. Perhaps it’s confidence. He says he needs to just “stick to the process.” Perhaps a few eggnogs and a clear mind is the medicine he needs. We’ll see how he operates post-holiday.
I said Rittich a lot in this post, and that’s for good reason. He made 3.54 saves above expected, and that was part of the difference on Tuesday.
Here’s an extra. Happy holiday’s folks, enjoy the next few days!
James is the New Jersey Devils beat reporter for New Jersey Hockey Now on Sportsnaut and the PHWAs New … More about James Nichols