Devils' Foote Should Improve the 4th Line

Nolan Foote should upgrade the New Jersey Devils' fourth line, but they need to keep all options open to improving it.

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The New Jersey Devils' fourth line has been a talking point lately, and for good reason. It just hasn't been very good since Curtis Lazar and Nathan Bastian went down with injuries. Both should be back at some point this season (Bastian may already be close), but the Devils need to find solutions in the short term.

For now, it appears Nolan Foote and Shane Bowers will join the team ahead of Thursday's tilt against the Carolina Hurricanes. At the very least, they should be upgrades over what the Devils have been getting from their fourth line lately.

Devils’ Fourth Line Has Been a Problem

The Devils' fourth line hasn't been a particular strength all season, but it wasn't this bad before Bastian and Lazar went down with injuries. Bastian had an expected goals share (xG%) of 47.95 percent and provided solid minutes on the penalty kill.

Lazar's struggles were a bit more pronounced, as he had an xG% of 42.5 percent when he went down with an injury. Those numbers might not be good, but they're still a significant upgrade over Kurtis MacDermid, Justin Dowling and Tomáš Tatar.

The sample size isn't much, but MacDermid, Dowling and Tatar have been a major liability at five-on-five:

• 36.86 xG%

• 36.36 SCF% (scoring chances)

• 28.57 HDCF% (high-danger chances)

It's only in a sample of 30 minutes, but those numbers are so bad that it can impact the Devils' five-on-five numbers. It also forces head coach Sheldon Keefe to play three lines, and that could be a problem with how busy the team's schedule has been.

I want to be clear that I don't think Tatar is an issue here. Even though he's been on the fourth line for weeks, he still has an xG% of 52.84 percent. He needs help, and hopefully, that's coming.

The Devils may like MacDermid's toughness, but he cannot be in the lineup every night. He can't skate, has no puck skills, and takes terrible penalties. He has an xG% of 34.08 percent, so I imagine he sits for Foote.

The Utica Comets are off to a historically terrible start, as they remain winless through their first 13 games. Despite that, Foote has played pretty well. He has nine points in 12 games, putting him on pace for 24 goals and 54 points in a 72-game AHL schedule.