Flyers 2, Devils 1: Carter Hart stole the show

The Devils dominated the run of play but were unable to end their losing skid against Hart and the Flyers.

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A few observations from New Jersey’s fourth consecutive loss:

Deja vu

The Devils, as you may recall, faced the Flyers on opening night. They dominated the run of play in the game, piled up 3.8 expected goals, conceded single digit high-danger opportunities (9), and lost.

Why? Carter Hart was nothing short of fantastic.

We saw essentially the exact same game play out Friday night. The Devils were on the front foot from start to finish, generated 4.0 expected goals, allowed exactly nine high-danger chances (again), and lost.

Why? Carter Hart was nothing short of fantastic.

It wasn’t a big deal when it first happened and it certainly isn’t one now. I mean, look at the standings. The Devils are 21-7-2, sit second in the NHL in points per game, and they’ve barely had their marquee free agent acquisition available.

If this loss was mixed somewhere in the middle of that insane winning streak, rather than Game 4 of a losing skid, nobody would bat an eye.

These games happen to every team – even the best – and they always will.

Just a few days ago the league-leading Bruins outshot the Coyotes 46-16 and lost. Does that mean they need to acquire a top-end finisher, add veteran leadership, get tougher to play against, and throw one of their better defenders overboard because he made a mistake that led to a goal? No.

As much as everyone wants to go in a frenzy because the Devils, who entered play on a losing streak, couldn’t beat the bottom feeding Flyers, it’s really not that serious.

Hart played lights out, as he has almost every game this season. In the preview I noted that when he’s on his game, there is next to no margin for error no matter how well you play. That’s exactly what we saw last night.

Damon Severson made a mistake while trying to push for a goal, Vitek Vanecek couldn’t come up with a save, and that was the difference.

The Devils are still a good team and they will be fine. The end.

Run it back