Panthers 2, Devils 1: Boxed out

The Panthers did a great job of clogging the middle of the ice and making the Devils' offense toothless.

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The New Jersey Devils could not extend their winning streak to three games Tuesday night, falling at the hands of the Florida Panthers in a shootout.

Here are a few thoughts on the game:

Boxed out

The Devils’ finishing woes continued against the Panthers. They found the back of the net only once against a backup with a sub .900 save percentage who was playing behind a fatigued team. Not ideal.

The Nico Hischier line contributed the team’s lone goal while the bottom-6 did what it usually does: provided nothing offensively while not giving anything up at the other end.

Really, the game was there for the taking and it was up to the Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt duo to grab it. They weren’t able to.

Hughes and, to a lesser extent, his linemates were able to control a lot of the puck and generate decent volume in terms of attempts. They just couldn’t get to the inside and create quality scoring opportunities out of it.

The Panthers did a great job of staying in front of Devils skaters and not getting pulled out of position when Hughes or Bratt would carry the puck around the world in the offensive zone.

They stuck to their lanes, clogged up the middle the ice, and let Hughes and Bratt roam around on the perimeter until they were out of gas or ran out of options and had to move the puck.

Now, the Panthers do deserve credit. Holding your lanes and not giving any openings for Hughes or Bratt to slip passes through is easier said than done.

If there’s a gap, those two almost always find it. And they’re great at manipulating defenders into creating them. The Panthers were very structured, detailed, and did not give the Devils’ top offensive duo and avenues to attack.

Nico drove the bus