The power play will be fine + revisiting the Paul Cotter/Alex Holtz trade

Despite the power play dry spell, there are no concerns under the hood. Plus, a mid-season look at the Paul Cotter trade.

Follow along on Twitter @ToddCordell | @InfernalAccess

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

---

A few New Jersey Devils notes on this off-day:

The power play is just fine

The Devils have scored four times on the man advantage over their last 11 games, which is quite the dry spell given what we’ve grown accustomed to seeing from Jeremy Colliton’s unit.

I’ve been asked numerous times during this stretch if I am concerned about the power play and the answer is a resounding no.

The Devils rank 2nd in shot attempts, 2nd in expected goals, and 1st in high-danger chances per 60 over the last 11 games.

They’re keeping company with teams like the Winnipeg Jets, Edmonton Oilers, Vegas Golden Knights and New York Rangers in each category. All of those teams possess an abundance of high-end talent and have scored at will over the same period of time.

For perspective, seven teams have generated at least 10 xG per 60 over the last 11 games. The Devils, who’ve amassed 12.96/60 in that span, are the only team scoring fewer than nine goals per 60. They’ve scored 5.49 per 60.

The biggest reason is puck luck, or a lack thereof. The Devils have scored on only 8% of their power play shots over the last 11 games.

Their season average is close to double that at 14.90% and that is only good for 18th in the NHL. Put another way, they haven’t been a great team at converting chances into goals all season long and yet they rank 3rd in total power play goals.

If opponents have ‘figured the Devils out’ on the power play they wouldn’t be generating shots and chances at top-tier rates.

They’re just not scoring, which I’m not concerned about given the exact same power play units they’re using now have gotten them to 3rd in PPGs in the first place.

As I wrote on Monday, generating offense at 5v5 has been a real issue. There isn’t much – any? – reason to worry about the power play.

Revisiting the Paul Cotter trade