A few notes from New Jersey vs New York:
1) Last night was as good of a game as the Devils have played all season. They came out firing from the very start and had the Rangers on their heels for the vast majority of the game. Even when the Rangers were able to string together a quality shift or two and bang in a goal, the Devils wasted no time coming right back at them. They generated chance after chance after chance and, quite frankly, if Henrik Lundqvist didn't turn back the clock, this game wouldn't have been close. The Devils out-attempted the Rangers 69-30 and out-chanced them 41-28 in regulation and the game felt even more lob-sided than that. The right team won.
2) It was a great team effort altogether but Taylor Hall definitely led the charge, and set the tone, for the Devils. He finished with a game-high six scoring chances, created a handful of opportunities for teammates, landed a couple heavy hits, and was literally skating circles around the Rangers all night long. Hall played 15:12 at 5v5 and, *checks numbers*, he had the puck on his stick for 15:11 of it. With Hall on the ice in that game state, the Devils remarkably out-chanced the Rangers 17-4. They had zero (0) answers for Hall and his linemates.
Led by Taylor Hall and the top line, the Devils dominated the Rangers at 5v5. Safe to say it was their best game of the season. pic.twitter.com/I5BbaGa96D
— Todd Cordell (@ToddCordell) December 22, 2017
3) Sami Vatanen's Devils career started very slowly but he seems to be righting the ship. Adam Henrique's goal aside, he was solid against Anaheim and he followed that up last night with a very strong showing as he posted a +9 shot attempt differential and tied Kyle Palmieri for a game-high with six shots on goal. There were a couple occasions where he had his stick in the air calling for a one-time pass and was completely ignored, too. He's getting more involved offensively and is starting to play with confidence and want the puck, which is good to see.
4) Cory Schneider was taking a beating on Twitter but I thought it was completely unnecessary. On the first goal, the Devils had all five players below the dots yet the two Rangers were somehow allowed to take a few whacks at the rebound before banging the puck in. Too many guys were puck watching and, if they boxed out properly or provided any resistance, that goal doesn't happen. The third goal off Damon Severson's foot was a complete fluke, too. Even if you want to put this stuff on Schneider, he locked things down after and came up with some huge stops late in regulation, and in overtime, to ensure the Devils didn't squander a point or two.
5) I think it's time for Drew Stafford to take a seat. It has to be. He once again couldn't convert on the couple chances he generated – nor could he score in the shootout – and defensively he was not good. The Rangers out-chanced the Devils 10-5 with Stafford on the ice and they also had a couple goals to show for it. If, for some reason, he doesn't sit when Jesper Bratt returns, can we at least use Nico Hischier over him in the shootout? I don't ask for much in life.
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