G39 New Jersey Devils vs St. Louis Blues: Onwards and upwards

New Jersey bounced back with 5-1 win over Detroit on Wednesday night. Now it's time to follow it up.

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A few notes to get you set for tonight’s game between New Jersey and St. Louis:

Keep building

I thought Alexander Holtz played one of his best games as a NHLer against the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday night. Despite being part of a misfit line alongside Mikey McLeod and Yegor Sharangovich, Holtz helped sustain a handful of good possessions in the offensive zone and looked very dangerous with the puck on his stick.

Holtz generated five shot contributions – 4th most among Devils forwards – and they were good ones. He assisted on two quality chances at 5v5 (one of which was converted) and scored a goal of his own from range.

It was by no means a perfect game but Holtz worked hard off puck and made some very good plays with it on his stick.

Noticing as much, Lindy Ruff fed Holtz more than 13 minutes of ice time. That’s one of Holtz’ highest totals of the season and a very good number considering he was skating on the 4th line.

The key now is for Holtz to keep the ball rolling in the right direction. I don't expect him to find the scoresheet again – you’re not going to produce consistently when skating with a defensive center on the 4th line – but I’d love to see a little more confidence and assertiveness from Holtz.

If Holtz can pick up where he left off last night, perhaps he can start to move up the lineup or grab an extra shift or two in offensive situations. He needs to make Ruff have no choice but to use him. Last night was a good start.