For the second time in as many games, the New Jersey Devils were embarrassed by a Canadian team.
This time it was by an Edmonton Oilers team that had won 14 games in 54 contests entering last night.
The 2-1 score wasn't ugly, but the shot totals and plenty of other numbers certainly were.
10 takeaways:
1) I think Ben Scrivens is an NHL goaltender, but this season he hasn't played like one. He's struggled mightily all year, and has allowed weak goals on a nightly basis. Entering the game you'd think the Devils would try and test him, but they only had a whopping 14 shots on goal and allowed Scrivens to pick up his first road win all year.
2) Speaking of shots, the Oilers entered last night's game allowing over three goals, and a hair under 30 shots per contest. That the Devils only scored once, and had just 14SOG - especially playing at home - is downright embarrassing.
3) Cory Schneider has allowed two goals or less in 12 of 14, and has been playing at an elite level this season. Despite that, he's under .500 and the Devils have a better chance of getting Connor McDavid in the lottery than making the playoffs. He never complains and probably would blame himself as much as anyone for last night's loss because that's who he is, but at some point the Devils need to get him some goal support. The poor guy can't do it all himself.
4) Speaking of Schneider, he's been one of the few bright spots on the Devils this season. In his first full year as a starter - a gig many questioned he was capable of handling - he has a .923SV% playing on a team that's outshot on a nightly basis. That save percentage ranks him 4th among goaltenders with 35+ games played, which sits only behind Pekka Rinne, Carey Price and Braden Holtby. If the Devils were a decent team he'd probably be one of the Vezina finalists.
5) Back to the bad news...New Jersey's shot totals over their last six games: 14, 14, 19, 17, 22, 14. Average: 16.6.
6) If you thought the Devils were bad offensively under Pete DeBoer, I'd love to know what you think of this. They struggled to get results because they don't have much talent up front, but under DeBoer the Devils regularly outshot their opponents for the better part of three years.
7) Jordin Tootoo played 1:05 on the power play. Jaromir Jagr never had a second of PP ice. The Devils only had one opportunity with the man advantage, but I'm glad they have their priorities straight. You'd think they'd play their trade bait in favorable situations to get results and up their trade value, but clearly that's not the case.
8) Speaking of the power play, it hasn't looked very good lately. I think they'd be smart to put Eric Gelinas in the lineup. They could use his shot, and benching kids usually isn't the best idea in a rebuild.
9) It's nice to see Jacob Josefson finally establish himself as an NHL regular. He'll never be a big scorer, but he's going to be one of the current day bottom-6 guys. Someone who can skate, kill penalties, and drive possession while chipping in on occasion.
10) If you don't like what you've seen from the Devils lately, you won't want to see their games Friday and Saturday @ Chicago and @ Nashville. I think they'll lose both games, and get about 30 shots total while allowing 80+ in the process. Remember this.
Recent posts