You have to give the New Jersey Devils credit. They have less than a one percent chance of making the playoffs, but they aren’t playing like it.
On Saturday night, the Devils rallied from a 3-0 deficit to capture a point in a 4-3 shootout loss to the Montreal Canadiens.
Just 24 hours later, the Devils traveled to Montreal and defeated the Canadiens 3-0, ending the Canadiens’ eight-game winning streak.
The win also extended the Devils’ winning streak to 11 games at the Bell Center. It’s been nearly a decade since the Devils have lost a game in Montreal. Their efforts against a team that’s likely to be a contender for the foreseeable future should provide cautious optimism for next season.
One reason to be optimistic about next season is Jack Hughes’ play since the Olympic break.
Dawson Mercer started the comeback on Saturday night, but Hughes built on it when he and Jesper Bratt teamed up for a beautiful shorthanded goal to make it a 3-2 game.
Hughes also picked up the primary assist on Timo Meier’s game-tying goal with the extra attacker out. Yesterday, Meier cleaned up the rebound of a Hughes shot to give the Devils a 1-0 lead.
Hughes was hearing it from the Canadiens’ faithful, which is no surprise since he scored the golden goal to defeat Canada at the Olympics. But he didn’t let that affect him. Not even in the least bit.
The Devils played a better game in the second half of the back-to-back, and Hughes was at the forefront. He led Devils skaters with an expected goals share (xG%) of 78.77 percent, first among Devils skaters.
Hughes facilitated play and set up Connor Brown for a couple of grade-A chances, but Brown did not have much shooting luck over these last two games.
In the first game, Hughes was a menace on the penalty kill. Aside from the shorthanded goal he scored, he had a couple of scoring chances on the kill.
Hughes finished the weekend with a goal and three assists, bringing him to 13 goals and 31 points in his last 15 games. He elevates the Devils’ ceiling when playing at this level, and that’s why you should be cautiously optimistic about next season.
Dawson Mercer has had an interesting season. He started hot, disappeared for a couple of months, but is having a nice close to the season, much like the team.
As mentioned above, Mercer got the comeback started on Saturday with a wicked snipe. Jakub Dobes went down in the reverse VH early, and Mercer took advantage by going top shelf.
Mercer had a strong second game in Montreal, even though he didn’t score. He nearly tallied a shorthanded goal via a one-timer when the Devils had a 2-on-1 in the second period, but Jacob Fowler made the save. He nearly had another shorthanded tally in the third period, but fired the shot wide.
Aside from creating chances, Mercer was tremendous on the penalty kill on Sunday night. He had an active stick and created pressure up high, forcing the Canadiens to turn over the puck.
Mercer also played well at five-on-five, finishing with an xG% of 64.31 percent on Saturday and 54.89 percent in the 3-0 win yesterday. He needs two goals in the Devils’ final five games to hit 20 goals and 40 points. It’s been a step in the right direction this season.
It may not mean anything for this season, but perhaps it will in the long run. The Canadiens are one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference, but you could argue that the Devils outplayed them in both games.
They certainly did on Sunday night, totaling an xG% of 62.66 percent at five-on-five. They also held the Canadiens to just two high-danger chances at that game state for the entire game.
Perhaps the Canadiens let their foot off the gas after they clinched a playoff spot earlier in the day, but I doubt it. They’re still playing for seeding, and they likely wanted the two points.
Even on Saturday, the Devils played quite well. They fell behind 3-0 because Dobes was outstanding in net, but the Canadiens weren’t skating them into the ground. The Devils were even out-chancing the Canadiens before they scored two quick goals to go up 3-0.
With some tinkering to the roster this offseason, the Devils can be right in the thick of the playoff race next season. This 12-5-1 stretch has shown the Devils still have a core that can win. They just need better support around them.
Jacob Markström only faced eight shots through two periods on Sunday night, but the Canadiens did make a push in the third. They fired 10 shots on goal and totaled 17 scoring chances at all strengths, thanks to some power-play time, but Markström made all the saves. It was his first shutout in a calendar year, and he looked quite good doing it. His rebound control was spot on, and he was tracking the puck well. He finished with 18 saves on 18 shots and stopped 2.5 goals above expected. It was one of his cleanest starts of the season.
The Devils’ penalty kill went 4/4 in Montreal and was a significant reason they extended their winning streak to 11 games at the Bell Center. They held the Canadiens to just three shots on goal and one high-danger chance on the power play. They were getting sticks in passing lanes and mostly kept the Canadiens to the perimeter. It was one of their best performances of the season.
Sheldon Keefe said he’s been looking for something more out of his fourth line. That’s why he inserted Marc McLaughlin and Brian Halonen into the lineup, but they struggled this weekend. Along with Paul Cotter, the fourth line finished with an xG% below 10 percent across the two games. Improving the team’s fourth-line depth should be on the to-do list for whoever is the GM this offseason.
Not to go full hockey man, but it was nice to see Brenden Dillon stand up for Jack Hughes in the third period after Hughes took a hard, but clean, hit. Dillon got a questionable instigator penalty for it, but Hughes showed his support by going to the penalty box and hugging Dillon. That kind of camaraderie means something.
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