Islanders 5, Devils 3: Out-classed again

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Five observations from New Jersey vs New York:

1. Start on time

It’s great that the Devils continue fighting regardless of the score. They’ve stolen some extra points this season, and turned a few blowouts into close games, as a result. But you know what would be even better than these comeback attempts? Not being in the position where they’re constantly necessary.

It feels like every single night the Devils fall behind the 8-ball – often by multiple goals – and are fighting an uphill battle for the remainder of the game.

Sure, they’ve managed to make things interesting more often than not. But, truth be told, it’s much easier to out-chance/out-score your opponent when trailing than when tied or close. Score effects are real.

Now, not giving up on games is most certainly a positive trait. But it’s about time the team comes to the realization that they wouldn’t be in a place where giving up is even a thought if they would simply start with any sort of competency.

Far too often the Devils’ opponents expected win percentage is between 80-90% after 20 minutes.

2. Embarrassing

That’s the best word I can use to describe what I witnessed last night. Bad games happen to everyone. That wasn’t a bad game, though. That was an unmitigated disaster. I honestly can’t even comprehend how poorly the Devils played. It was one of the worst performances I can remember from a team.

Where should I start? Let’s go with the breakouts. The Devils couldn’t complete a pass. A ton of them were easily intercepted, and the forwards seemed to handle outlets like grenades whenever they actually were on target. This led to turnover after turnover in the defensive zone.

Their defense as a whole was nothing short of horrendous. The positioning was garbage. So, too, was their marking. Islanders players were consistently left all alone in high-danger areas of the ice.

At the other end of the ice, the Devils were completely lifeless. They couldn’t get to the middle of the ice *ever*. They couldn’t gain the line with possession. And, when they did manage to sustain anything, there was almost always a bad pinch that led to an odd-man rush.

The constant turnovers, and poor pinches, is how they ended up in situations like this.

3. Mackenzie Blackwood held his own

Yes, I know he allowed five goals. But this loss was not on him by any stretch of the imagination.

I mean, Grade A chances were 19-0 Islanders after 40 minutes. Prime Martin Brodeur isn’t keeping the Devils in that game; nobody is.

As shown in images above, the Devils constantly left the back-door open for easy goals. Their coverage in the middle of the ice was non-existent.

And when the Devils actually did have players in the middle of the ice, they somehow caused more harm than good.

Take this goal, for example.

How on earth is Blackwood supposed to see the puck through all of that traffic? There is a legit wall you’d see on a free kick directly in front of him.

Or what about this?

The Devils try and box out around the net for once in 10 years and they throw the opposing player directly on Blackwood, knocking him out of position.

For good measure, Severson puts the puck in the back of the net. Again, what is Blackwood supposed to do here?

I will be the first to admit he hasn’t been as sharp in recent weeks. But there’s a lot more to the high goals against numbers than his play. He is getting absolutely no help and, quite frankly, it’s exhausting. The poor kid is trying to fight through it all. Even when he makes a few big saves, the team shoots itself in the foot and erases the good he did anyway.

4. Mikhail Maltsev looks like a player

I really like what I’m seeing from Maltsev on a nightly basis. He is just so…polished. There is no panic in his game. He is just always in the right spot – offensively and defensively – and has the skill to make some plays with the puck on his stick.

Last night he led the Devils in shot attempts, and shot contributions, at 5v5. He was one of the only players on the team able to generate any sort of offense on a consistent basis.

His on-ice numbers were strong as well (+8 attempt differential, +2 chance differential).

This isn’t a one-time thing, either. Maltsev, like another emerging player in Janne Kuokkanen, has a significantly positive goal differential, chance differential, expected goal differential, etc. over the last eight games despite seemingly everything going wrong around him.

5. Crazy but true

The Devils allowed five goals to the Islanders. They spent nearly 10 minutes undermanned against a team that’s been firing on all cylinders on the power play. And – wait for it! – they didn’t concede a goal. Crazy, right?!?

Their PK has slowly been improving over the last few weeks and that was perhaps their best performance of the bunch.

In a game where the Devils allowed Grade A looks seemingly every shift, they managed to hold the Islanders to three in ~10 minutes.

It’ll be interesting to see if they can come close to replicating that kind of effort next time out. As mentioned, the Islanders have enjoyed a lot of PP success and Barry Trotz is quite good at making adjustments in short order.

Shot Contributions

numbers via NaturalStatTrick.com

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