There are many reasons the New Jersey Devils will once again not qualify for the playoffs this season.
At or near the top of the list is a lack of goal scoring as, for the fourth consecutive year, the Devils will finish bottom-5 in that regard.
While the Devils certainly do not have the personnel necessary to fill the net on a regular basis there is one thing the coaching staff can do down the stretch to help out with this problem: give Reid Boucher more ice time.
The sample size isn't large (25 games) but Boucher has proven to be an effective 5 v 5 contributor producing 1.64 points per 60 minutes, which puts him 3rd on the team behind only Mike Cammalleri and Adam Henrique.
It's no fluke, either, as Boucher leads the team in 5 v 5 scoring chances per game.
Again, the sample size isn't very big but the numbers are encouraging nonetheless.
What makes his totals even more impressive is that Boucher plays ~11 5 v 5 minutes per game while Adam Henrique and Kyle Palmieri, for example, play upwards of 14 5 v 5 minutes per night.
With the high-caliber shot Boucher possesses he should be able to fill the net with some regularity if he continues to create chances at the rate he is right now. All he needs is more opportunity.
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