Hurricanes 4, Devils 1: Overmatched

Carolina's pressure proved too much to overcome for New Jersey in the series opener.

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The New Jersey Devils dropped Game 1 against the Carolina Hurricanes in ugly fashion, losing 4-1 while being outshot significantly.

Here are a few observations from the game:

Wasted opportunities

That was the name of the game for the Devils in the series opener.

They wasted opportunities in that they were blitzed early, controlling less than 15% of the xG share in the first 20 minutes while losing the shot battle 17-5. They got out mostly unscathed, only trailing by a goal. Couldn’t take advantage.

They wasted opportunities in that they couldn’t score on the power play in crucial moments of the game.

A couple shifts after falling behind early, Jalen Chatfield opened the door for the Devils to get right back on level terms by taking a crosschecking penalty on Nico Hischier. They didn’t.

New Jersey had another power play in the 3rd while pushing to make it a one-goal game. They couldn’t come through then, either.

Not only did the Devils fail to score in situations that could have altered the game, they struggled to generate looks. The Hurricanes actually won the SOG battle 3-1 while shorthanded.

The Devils also wasted opportunities to give themselves a fighting chance in a game they didn’t belong in.

Timo Meier had a couple of good looks in the slot and a golden chance on the doorstep with Frederik Andersen flopping like a fish.

Dougie Hamilton had some good chances coming downhill with nothing but time and space to pick his spot. There were plenty of other opportunities, especially in the 3rd.

The Devils couldn’t convert on any of them and that was the difference in losing 4-1 or potentially forcing a coinflip situation in overtime.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying the Devils had an abundance of chances and deserved a better result. But, as poorly as they played, they still had plenty of opportunities to turn the game into a sweat and make things interesting. They squandered ‘em.

Luke Hughes showed up