The New Jersey Devils entered Tuesday night's game against the New York Islanders red hot having picked up 13 of a possible 16 points in eight games prior.
Despite Cory Schneider's best efforts the Devils were unable to build on that as they allowed a late goal and fell to a John Tavares-less Islanders team 2-1.
Some thoughts on the loss:
1) As a whole Mike Cammalleri played a solid game but he made a poor decision late in the game and it cost the Devils any chance they had of tying things up. Travis Zajac won the draw, the Devils got set up in the offensive zone late and with about 13 seconds to go Cammalleri blasted one from the half-wall, completely missed the net and cleared the puck for the Islanders as a result. By the time the Devils retrieved the puck and moved it up ice the game was over.
Cammalleri is a very good shooter, and the Devils want the puck on his stick late in the game, but he can't take a shot from that angle unless he's certain it will be on target. The Devils had time on the clock to make a couple passes and try for a better look. They may not have tied it, anyways, but that shot ensured they didn't.
2) Travis Zajac has five goals in 11 games this season. Travis Zajac scored 11 goals in 74 games last year. Even with the inevitable regression - he's shooting 29%(!!) right now - it seems like a safe bet he'll easily surpass that number if he stays healthy.
3) Kyle Palmieri once again played a solid game and had an assist to show for his efforts. After a slow start to the season Palmieri has recorded six points and 15 shots on goal in his last six games. The Devils need him to continue to produce because they aren't getting much from their depth players right now.
4) I thought Jacob Josefson played one of his best games this season. He was skating well, looked very confident with the puck and created several good shooting opportunities for his linemates. If he continues to play like that he should find the scoresheet with more regularity.
5) After a bit of a rough patch Cory Schneider seems to be back on his game. He has stopped 83-88 (.943SV%) over his last three games and now owns a .922 save percentage on the year. This is the Cory Schneider we all know and love.
6) The Devils did have some quality chances but once again failed to accomplish anything at full-strength. Through 12 games they have scored a league-worst 10 goals at 5 vs 5 and are shooting ~4.5%. Their shooting percentage is unsustainably low and should raise over time but even so their inability to produce at 5 vs 5 is less than encouraging.
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