The New Jersey Devils returned to action on Friday evening as they aimed to get revenge for their last matchup against the Washington Capitals. Vitek Vanecek got the nod for the third straight contest but got chased halfway through the first. Unfortunately for the Devils, it was close to a carbon copy of their previous standoff as a slow start haunted them. They fell by a score of 4-2.
Slow Start (Again)
It’s been pretty well documented that the Devils need to play a much more complete game in order to survive in the absences of Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes. That means eliminating their habit of starting slow and playing a full 60 minutes instead.
That didn’t happen whatsoever. Just like the last time these two squads matched up, the Devils simply looked uninterested in the first period. They got outshot by a whopping six-to-one margin (12-2) and took three penalties in the frame as well.
Vanecek gave up two goals on five shots and was immediately yanked by a visibly frustrated Lindy Ruff in favor of Akira Schmid.
The first one, scored by Nicolas Aube-Kubel, featured four out of five Devils players puck-watching down low, leaving the shooter with a wide-open look. It’s been a theme that has occurred super often in the goals they’ve given up at even-strength. On a multitude of them, both defensemen have been caught below the goal-line.
On the second one, Luke Hughes backed off a bit and allowed fourth-liner Beck Malenstyn to unleash a wrister past Vanecek. It was Malenstyn’s third career goal and his first point in eleven games this season.
It remains a mystery as to why the team continues to start off slow, even when they were at full-strength.
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Dawson Mercer said, “That’s the difference between winning and losing…we go out there with the mindset that we want to start well. No one’s out there trying not to do that, and it’s unfortunate that it happens to us frequently because we really want to change that up.”
Ruff mentioned their “lack of execution” a plethora of times in his postgame press conference.
Too Little, Too Late
As they usually do, once the first period woes got past them, the Devils controlled the pace for the rest of the game. The Devils had a Corsi of 63.79% the rest of the way and finished the game with more high-danger chances (10-6), scoring chances (19-9), and shots (24-15).
While they were able to get late goals from Mercer and Timo Meier, it wasn’t enough. There were a multitude of other chances that seemed like sure goals, just to not end up in the back of the net. That’s the mark of a team who are collectively pressing with the loss of two of their best players, and frankly, it’s been tough to watch.
The Devils currently have an expected-goals for percentage of 54.56% at even-strength (via Natural Stat Trick). That would mean based on the chances they’re generating, they should be a top-ten team in even-strength production. However, they’ve only actually scored 40.38% of the goals there and have a differential of minus-10, which is bottom-five in the league. A lot of that has been finishing issues and opting to pass instead of shoot in prime scoring areas.
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Their lethal powerplay has masked the 5v5 finishing issues for a while, but even that looked sloppy for the first time this season. Throughout the night, there were many loud choruses of boos fluttering throughout the Prudential Center.
Given that the underlying numbers are pretty good, the Devils need to stay committed and not lose confidence, which is obviously easier said than done. They have a four-day gap before they take on the Winnipeg Jets, so that should give them time to regroup.
Confusing Goaltending
Vanecek was named the starter for the third game in a row, which essentially confirmed that Ruff was committed to making him a clear number one over Schmid. At least for a little over ten minutes, that was the case.
Vanecek let up two goals in 15 seconds, and that was the end of the night for him. Ruff said afterward, “(Vitek) didn’t look sharp. I mean, the second goal went in from the bench. It’s definitely one he wants back & we all want back. I just felt like it wasn’t gonna be his night, and why wait, so I got him out.”
He exited allowing two goals on five shots (.600 SV%), which lowered his season SV% to .887. While the Devils’ defense hasn’t been great, they haven’t been bailed out much by either goaltender. There have been some wild inconsistencies, which leaves a real struggle for the coaching staff. Right when it appears one is starting to find a groove, they hit a wall.
The Devils’ expected goals-against so far is 24.33, which, despite their defensive struggles, is still top-10 in the league. They’ve given up 31, though. Where does that disparity lie? It’s mostly in goaltending.
According to MoneyPuck, Vanecek has saved minus-3.6 goals above expected this year. Schmid, in relief, had one of his best performances of the season.
He stopped 17 of 18 (.952 SV%), with the lone goal being a 2-on-0 and a slam dunk for Evgeny Kuznetsov. That’s another situation in which the Devils have found themselves conceding far too much this season.
Schmid raised his save percentage to .897% as a result, which now leads the Devils. Naturally, just when they made Vanecek appear to be the starter.
Here are the last five marks for Schmid: .909%, .875%, .625%, .939%, .952%
And for Vanecek: .912%, .880%, .941%, .839%, .600%
Once again, wildly inconsistent. They need way better if they want to live up to Stanley Cup expectations.
Can’t Let It Spiral
With the Carolina Hurricanes’ loss to the Florida Panthers, the Devils sit a point behind them in third place in the Metropolitan Division, with a game in hand (as of Nov. 11). They are not out of it by any means. If they can just tread water and reel off scrappy wins until their two centers come back, they’ll be in a good spot.