1) Goal scoring has again been a bit of an issue for the New Jersey Devils in the early going but there is reason to be optimistic about their offense going forward.
First and foremost they are shooting just a hair over 5% at 5 v 5, which is unsustainably low. That will rise in time.
Kyle Palmieri, Adam Henrique and Mike Cammalleri have four goals combined and have contributed next to nothing offensively. That's not going to last, either.
Even with the struggles of several key players a handful(!) of teams are averaging less goals per game than the Devils and they're still not the league's worst 5 v 5 offense.
At some point the aforementioned players are going to start contributing. When that happens the Devils' offense might actually be potent.
Crazy times we're living him.
2) Through eight games the Devils are controlling 56.18% of the shot attempts, 58.20% of the shots on goal, and 57.81% of the scoring chances with Yohann Auvitu on the ice at 5 v 5. I know there can be hiccups defensively at times but the good has far outweighed the bad with him on the ice. I think it's probably time to up his usage at full-strength.
3) John Moore update: last among regulars in shot attempt for%, shots for% and scoring chance for%. He's also been struggling to produce offensively (one goal, one assist in eight games). If the Devils are ever going to give a top-6 guy a night off to play Steve Santini or someone else (Vojtech Mozik is up right now) I think Moore would be the guy to take out. He hasn't played well at all.
Recent Posts Report: Pavel Zacha is here to stay