Five observations from New Jersey vs Pittsburgh
1. What a roller coaster ride If a game played this season has had larger swings in play than last night's did, I haven't seen it. The two sides took turns dominating for extended periods of time all night long.
In the opening frame, the Penguins came out flying and showed why many believe they're yet again a legitimate Stanley Cup contender. They had a desperate Devils team on their heels quite a bit and won the high-danger chance battle 8-2 at 5v5.
The 2nd period was a far different story as the Devils fought back in a big way. They were in control for the vast majority of the period – they won the high danger battle 9-2 at 5v5 – and were rewarded on the scoreboard with two even-strength goals (along with a power play marker).
Then, of course, a trailing Penguins team that could also use the points came right back and took it to the Devils. Much like the opening frame, they were in complete control – high-danger chances were 8-1 Pittsburgh at 5v5 – for almost the entire period. They potted a pair of goals and tied the game as a result.
While many were worried about how the Devils would fare in overtime, I crunched some serious numbers and concluded they were likely to come out on top.
1st period: v bad
— Todd Cordell (@ToddCordell) March 24, 2018
2nd period: v good
3rd period: v bad
OT: v good???
Again I am right in my analysis.
2. Keith Kinkaid was great You don't beat teams like Pittsburgh without getting good goaltending. You just don't. They have way too much speed and firepower to go quietly in the night. Win or lose, they're going to get their chances.
While the Devils played well in spurts, the Penguins were the better team overall. The latter controlled 61% of the chances and 58% of the attempts. It didn't matter, though, because Kinkaid was mostly a brick wall.
It wasn't always pretty – there were some big rebounds available to pounce on – but he gave the Devils a ceiling game on a night they desperately needed it. I still think he's going to slow down sooner than later but he sure is playing his best hockey at the right time.
3. The Devils were led by their stars We've all heard the sayings about your best players needing to be your best players to have success. That was the case vs Pittsburgh.
Taylor Hall and/or Nico Hischier were involved in three of the team's four goals and they led the team in both scoring chances and high-danger chances.
The plays they made on the overtime winner, in particular, stood out. Hall, noticing all the Penguins were caught up ice, snuck behind them to free himself for a breakaway opportunity. Hischier fought off Phil Kessel, who was all over him, and hit Hall with a perfect pass to give the Hart Trophy candidate a clear shot to win it. Hall, of course, did just that.
Those two are smart, fast, skilled, ultra-competitive, and they read off each other like a book. It's going to be magic watching them tear opponents apart for the forseeable future.
4. There were too many turnovers I have no problem giving up chances to Pittsburgh. As I said above, they have too much talent not to generate their fair share. I have a problem with handing them quality scoring opportunities on a silver platter. The Devils did that far too often last night.
There were some ugly breakouts and just plain weird decisions that led to great looks for the Penguins. Severson forced a pass that wasn't really there, rather than taking a shot, in the offensive zone and that led to an odd-man rush. Jesper Bratt coughed up the puck at the line and it ended up in the back of the net. Ben Lovejoy made maybe the worst play I've seen all season floating a soft one to the Penguins while flatfooted and setting them up for the game-tying goal. There were other glaring miscues, too.
Luckily, those key mistakes (somehow) didn't cost the Devils a victory. They probably should have, though.
5. Michael Grabner was a factor Though Grabner didn't find the scoresheet, I thought he played one of his best games since being acquired by the Devils. They held their own with him on the ice at even-strength and he was absolutely everywhere while killing penalties. The Devils managed to out-chance a lethal Penguins power play in ~3 minutes with Grabner out there, which is quite remarkable. It'd be nice to see him capitalize on some of his chances but at least when he's getting them, opponents are not.
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One of my Twitter followers (@TheRealBuby) made an awesome infographic following last night's game. I wanted to share it and get the guy some recognition for his work so here we are. Keep doing cool things!
My thoughts on tonight's @NJDevils win. @hallsy09 went ballistic tonight. Give him the Hart #NJDvsEverybody pic.twitter.com/xiHgXFtWKc
— Sunshine (@TheRealBuby) March 24, 2018