Canucks 4, Devils 3: 3rd period woes continue

The Devils led the Canucks multiple times in the final frame but were unable to hold on, which has been a common theme of late.

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The New Jersey Devils were unable to get back on track Monday night, losing their third consecutive game to the Vancouver Canucks. Here are a few observations from the game:

Kovacevic answered the bell 🔔

The spotlight was on Johnathan Kovacevic after Sheldon Keefe’s comments Saturday night. Whether they were deserved or not (I don’t think they were), the hope was that Kovacevic would take them the right way and use them as motivation to take his game up a notch. He certainly did that against the Canucks.

I thought Kovacevic was one of the best players on the ice. He challenged Canucks for every inch all game long, made life difficult on forwards in the corners and around the net, and made a few terrific plays to take away chances.

None better than his goal-saving stick work in the 2nd period, swatting a puck off the line at the last second to keep the game at a 1-0 score. A multi-goal deficit sans Jack Hughes would’ve felt like a death sentence.

By the eye, Kovacevic played a hard, sound game with few hiccups defensively. Penalties aside, the only thing I really noticed was when Kovacevic went for a hip check, and the forward slipped past it and took the open space to get a decent shot off. Otherwise, it was a clean performance.

The numbers back that up. Shot attempts were 22-11 Devils during Kovacevic’s minutes at 5v5. He also managed an 82 xGF% and was +1 in a game that finished with a 2-2 score in that state.

It was the kind of performance we’ve seen on a pretty consistent basis this season. The Devils need efforts like that to continue because, in their current state, they’re only going as far as their defense takes them.

3rd period woes continue 📉