Sunday afternoon the Albany Devils took on the Connecticut Whale in hopes of extending their two game winning streak and they did just that by shutting out the Whale 1-0. Here are some notes on the game as well as some New Jersey Devils prospect updates.
- That was a huge win for the Devils. With three consecutive wins now they have jumped right back in the playoff picture. I know it's early, but as of right now they're five points out of 8th in the Eastern Conference with three games in hand. Good on the Devils for righting the ship and starting to pick up some wins before they were too far out of the race.
- A large reason why the Devils have been much better of late: Keith Kinkaid. He stopped 30-of-30 in yesterday's win and is now 3-0-0 with a .970 save percentage in December. Just when Frazee started to take some of the tougher starts away from Kinkaid, he goes on this nice little run and comfortably sets himself up as the clear No. 1 goaltender again.
- Another underrated piece of the Devils team in Albany: Joe Whitney. He scored again yesterday and had five shots in the win. He now has 10 points in 14 games including at least one point in five of his last six games. If he keeps this up, he may get a look in New Jersey during training camp whenever it opens up.
- Bobby Butler had an assist in the 1-0. He now has five points in his last five games and is starting to produce at the rate that's expected from him. If he continues to produce, he'll get a good look from the Devils during training camp and could land a top-9 spot on the team.
- Jacob Josefson has been a little dry lately. He's played well and had chances, but he has just one point in his last four games. That said, he'll start producing again if he keeps doing what he's doing.
- In the OHL, Reid Boucher scored yesterday in Sarnia's 4-1 win over the Soo Greyhounds. Boucher now has 22 goals and 35 points in 32 games with the Sting. He's also a plus-6, and his best +/- rating from his first two OHL seasons was minus-13.
- Ben Johnson and Ben Thomson were both held off the scoresheet in their respective games Sunday afternoon.
- In the QMJHL, Stefan Matteau had a goal and an assist in an 8-1 Armada win over the Foreurs. That's 15 goals, 25 points and 61PIMs for Matteau in 29 games. I'd say he's doing quite fine in his first QMJHL season.
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