G69 New Jersey Devils @ Columbus Blue Jackets: Time to respond

The Devils put up a dud against the Penguins last time out. How will they follow it up?

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The New Jersey Devils will look to put a dreadful performance behind them with a much better effort vs. the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Here are a few notes to get you set for the game:

A slow burn 🔥

The Devils tend to come out of the gate slowly – at least in terms of generating offense. They have scored just 44 1st-period goals this season, tying them with the Calgary Flames for dead last in the NHL.

The difference is the Flames a) severely lack high-end talent and; b) have played fewer games.

On a per-game basis, nobody has been worse offensively in the opening frame than the Devils.

While the Blue Jackets tend to play in high-event affairs, they’ve done a surprisingly good job at keeping things bottled up early. They have allowed 50 goals in 1st periods, tied for the 8th fewest.

The Jackets have dropped three straight games and are desperate to get back on track immediately. They can’t afford to let these points slip away.

I’m expecting a hungry, urgent effort from the Jackets out of the gate – which should only make it tougher on the Devils to get going.

Don’t be surprised if, once again, they have a hard time generating offense out of the gate.

They’ll need their defense (and goaltending) to be strong, allowing them time to get settled and find their game offensively.

Power play production is key 🔑