G43 New Jersey Devils @ Seattle Kraken: Breaking the slump

Jack Hughes is in a great spot to regain his scoring touch.

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The New Jersey Devils will attempt to snap out of their longest losing streak this season Monday night against the Seattle Kraken. Here are a few notes to get you set for the game:

Tilting the ice

The Devils have been a very good 5v5 team for much of the season. A great one, even. We haven’t seen that of late.

They have controlled better than 50.05% of the expected goals just once over the past five games. The only time they were able to do so was in the 3-2 loss against the Anaheim Ducks.

I’m not saying the Devils have played terribly or gotten caved in – that has not been the case. But they have not dominated territorially the way we’re accustomed to seeing. It’s no coincidence the wins have slowed as a result.

While their special teams are capable of earning them two points any given night, the Devils need to ramp things up at 5v5 if they’re going to fully find their groove again.

They’re certainly drawing the Kraken at the right time. Seattle is in truly miserable form at 5v5 – with and without the puck.

Offensively, the Kraken rank 30th in expected goals and 32nd in goals over the last 10 games.

Defensively? The picture is just as bleak. The Kraken sit 31st in expected goals against and 28th in goals allowed during that period. They also rank 31st in shot share while the Devils – despite a recent dip – still sit 2nd.

This is a matchup where the Devils should dominate and take the game to the Kraken – especially with the extra urgency stemming from their recent string of losses.

If they can do that, the score should take care of itself.

The dam will soon break for 86