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Sloppy Play and Execution Have Devils in Downward Spiral

December 4, 2021, 9:48 AM ET [17 Comments]
Sam Woo
New Jersey Devils Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
The New Jersey Devils have lost their last three games by being outscored 18-8. Last night’s game against the Winnipeg Jets was no different than the previous two losses. Lack of execution, discipline, and at times effort has caused this downward spiral. Changes need to be made. Or else the Devils will have to play catch up in the standings in order to make the playoffs towards the end of the season.

I hate to bring you the bad news. The fundamentals are simply not there. The outlet passes inside the Devils own zone have been sloppy and inconsistent. Heck, Devils’ passes in general have been telegraphed and often intercepted by the opposition leading to an odd man rush. They are not executing simple plays which has led to their demise in the past few games. Moreover, the Devils need to get back to basics and simplify their game.

Less is more.

Let’s start with the offense. Often times, the Devils are looking for the perfect shot on net without anyone really screening the goaltender. The Devils need to start getting bodies buzzing in front of the net to cause havoc and start putting the puck on net. The quicker, the better. Make the goaltender work and get off balanced. Those rebounds will come eventually. The Devils need to do this consistently and get inside that slot area where they can have a high percentage scoring chances.

Defensively, there is a lot that need to be addressed. The Devils defensive positioning earlier this season was decent but now have gotten away from good habits. Ryan Graves and Dougie Hamilton have been getting beaten by forwards very often during the past three games. Also, getting the puck out of their own zone has been an issue. Outlet passes from the defenseman have been awful. They have been sloppy in the past few games which are leading to many turnovers. Too much hesitation and indecisiveness has really hurt the defense and they simply need to be quicker.

I am mystified why the Devils look so lackadaisical at the start of each game. No energy and seemingly disinterested which has been the common theme lately. It almost seems like the Devils are unprepared and will finally wake up once down by a few goals. From a coaching standpoint, this is inexcusable. The Devils need to come out prepared to execute the game plan and play a full sixty minutes. Plain and simple.

The Devils will have all weekend to think about it before their makeup game against the Ottawa Senators at the Rock on Monday.

Sherry Ross On Twitter Said It Best:





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Sam Woo is co-host and executive producer of the Let's Go Devils Podcast which can be heard live every Sunday at 9pm ET and Wednesday at 8:30pm ET.

You can follow Sam on Twitter: @PrimetimeSamWoo
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