G59 New Jersey Devils vs Philadelphia Flyers: Flip the switch

Jack Hughes hasn't played up to his usual standards since returning to the lineup. Is a breakout game incoming against a struggling rival?

Follow along on Twitter @ToddCordell | @InfernalAccess

Be sure to join the Discord channel to talk hockey, and everything else, with our writers and subscribers.

---

A few notes to get you set for New Jersey vs Philadelphia:

Flipping the switch

Jack Hughes has not been himself since returning from injury. That may seem crazy to say when looking at the surface stats – he has five points and 17 shots through four games – but he has looked sloppy and a little off by the eye.

The underlyings aren’t great, either. Hughes has posted a -4 goal differential at 5v5 (2 GF, 6 GA) and owns a 45.79 xGF%, which is the second worst rate on the team.

You don’t need me to tell you that being out-scored, and losing the on-ice chance battle, is very abnormal for No. 86; especially given the competition hasn’t been stiff.

Winnipeg is going through it right now, Pittsburgh is an unmitigated disaster defensively, Montreal is in the Connor Bedard sweepstakes, and LA is fine but unspectacular. That’s hardly a murderers row that should have Hughes off his game.

This is not to say Hughes has been horrible. But there have been noticeable areas of weakness, which is abnormal for Jack.

We all know how Jack works. He lives for the spotlight and he wants to be the very best every night. He has quietly matched his longest goal scoring drought of the season (four games) and hasn’t dominated a game the way we’re accustomed to seeing in weeks.

I think a divisional game, and the opportunity to keep the gap reasonably small between the Devils and Hurricanes, should be more than enough to get Hughes up for this game. I’m expecting a big one from him.

Don’t sleep on Ersson