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Five observations from New Jersey vs Boston:
1. The Bruins were clinical
Last night’s game was a perfect example of why the Bruins are Stanley Cup contenders and the Devils, well, aren’t. They were on the road, playing without their top center, and taking on a team that theoretically *had* to win. It was an easy excuse to lay an egg and have an off night. They didn’t. They came out and completely suffocated the Devils’ attack from start to finish. Boston had no problem generating sustained offensive zone time, even if they didn’t generate a ton of opportunities as a result, while it felt like an achievement every time New Jersey made their way up ice and safely into the offensive zone – forget about actually creating anything once they arrived. I don’t think either side had a banner night offensively but the Bruins were picking corners on their chances while the Devils were flubbing shots right into the logo on Tuukka Rask’s crest.
The best way to sum up the differences in the two sides: Boston brought maybe their B- game and still won by four goals.
2. Nikita Gusev showed promise
I thought he was one of the best players on the ice in Montreal. He made some skill plays, netted a goal, and the Devils dominated territorially with him out there. It was more of the same vs the Bruins. Gusev posted a game-high 79.10 xGF% at 5v5. More importantly, he made an awesome play to elude a defender and set up Blake Coleman for the team’s lone goal. It has been a rocky road for Gusev thus far but, for the first time, it really feels like he’s putting it all together. We can only hope.
3. Mackenzie Blackwood had an off game
The 22-year-old had a tough night at the office in his first appearance as the team’s undisputed starter. I realize the Bruins picked corners on some of the goals, however, only one was scored from below the dots. He was getting beaten consistently from a distance. The Bruins amassed just 1.76 expected goals in the game and walked away with five so it’s hard to be happy with the overall performance. I’m not saying Blackwood is at fault for the loss – plenty of others didn’t carry their weight. He didn’t do much to help the cause, though, and that’s kind of his job.
4. Will Butcher showed up
You could complain about the performances of quite a few Devils. I don’t think Butcher is one of them. He led the team with six shot assists at 5v5, attempted a couple shots of his own, and was consistently involved in the team’s attack. He got up in the play and looked like one of the more dangerous Devils, which is probably not ideal.
Though he was on for two goals against at 5v5, he led the Devils with ~20 minutes of ice in that gamestate and was only one for one (1) Grade A chance against. He also finished with a defense-high plus-7 chance differential. I thought he was good.
5. The 4th line was awful
John Hayden, Pavel Zacha, and Wayne Simmonds were cratered by the Bruins. They finished with an ~18 CF% and ~11 xGF% while playing upwards of eight minutes as a trio. Hayden and Zacha weren’t on for a single Devils scoring chance throughout the night. Simmonds was on for three, but eight against. Not good!
It’s pretty clear that Zacha can be used as a complementary piece in the top-9. When he’s asked to do the heavy lifting, it just doesn’t work out for him.
We’ll see if any changes are made on the 4th line prior to Pittsburgh. I think they should be.
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