A few notes from New Jersey vs Detroit:
1) Another game, another fantastic showing from Cory Schneider. The Devils were dominant in the 1st period and fully deserving of their early 2-0 lead but they really struggled in the final 40 minutes. The Red Wings had them on their heels and chasing play for the majority of that time – they out-chanced the Devils 24-10 in the 2nd and 3rd – yet Schneider came up with save after save to keep them on top. There's no doubt he's back to his usual (elite) self.
2) It was nice to see Nico Hischier snap out of his 11-game goal drought with a two-goal showing against Detroit. He showed excellent hands deflecting the 1st goal and the one-time pass he hammered home wasn't half bad, either. I was personally offended by him taking three penalties and wrecking his wonderful penalty differential but, luckily, there is a lot of season remaining to fix it. He was probably just a little amped up from having Antoine f**king Griezmann at the game and decked out in his gear. I know I would be.
Nice game, and nice time !! Thank you @NJDevils ! See you soon 🤙#MyRook13 @nicohischier pic.twitter.com/cgSNcBT7Ba
— Antoine Griezmann (@AntoGriezmann) December 28, 2017
3) Taylor Hall was again one of the best players on the ice. He didn't generate as many individual chances as usual but that's because he was too busy setting up teammates for quality opportunities. He did a fantastic job, especially early on, of watching for trailing players that were unmarked and hitting them with crisp passes. That led to a bunch of good looks – as well as a goal – and, of course, he also hit a wide-open Nico for a goal. He's playing like a guy desperate to get into the playoffs once and for all.
4) The John Moore - Sami Vatanen pairing had some rough nights earlier in Vatanen's tenure but they're really starting to come along. They posted positive chance differentials and were by far the team's best defensemen, and players, in possession vs the Red Wings. Vatanen also finished 2nd on the team in 5v5 chances and potted an empty-netter.
The Moore - Vatanen pairing was excellent last night. Greene - Santini? Not so much. pic.twitter.com/sSeV9QQX6G
— Todd Cordell (@ToddCordell) December 28, 2017
5) Despite extremely limited ice, I thought Pavel Zacha had a pretty solid game vs Detroit. He had a couple really good chances around the net and had some effective shifts down low cycling with Miles Wood and Stefan Noesen. I was surprised he didn't get more minutes.
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