Devils Dominant But Goalie'd in 2-1 OT Loss to Maple Leafs

The New Jersey Devils dominated the Toronto Maple Leafs but got goalie'd by Anthony Stolarz in a 2-1 OT loss.

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I'll admit I had trouble figuring out how to open up this article. The New Jersey Devils did everything right against the Toronto Maple Leafs. But as has been the case on home ice so often lately, they couldn't find a way to secure two points.

The Devils outshot and out-chanced the Maple Leafs by a wide margin. But Anthony Stolarz was fantastic and goalie'd the Devils, something that's maybe been a bit too common in some losses. Still, the Devils are 18-10-3 on the season (103-point pace) and in prime position in the Metropolitan Division.

Devils Dominated From Start to End

It's no surprise the Devils came with a response yesterday after getting shut out 4-0 by the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday evening. They got off to a strong start in that one but couldn't sustain it outside the first five to seven minutes of the first period.

That was not the case against the Maple Leafs, as they torched them at five-on-five. The Devils played one of their most dominant periods of the season in the first, out xG'ing the Maple Leafs 1.97 to 0.07 at five-on-five. Unfortunately, they couldn't find the back of the net because Stolarz stood on his head.

The Devils did get on the board first after Ondřej Palát scored off the rush via a beautiful setup from Jesper Bratt. It's hard to deny the Devils didn't deserve that goal, too. In the first period alone, shots were 15-1 for New Jersey, and it carried over into the second before Palát scored.

But that's all the Devils would come away with yesterday. It wasn’t like the Avalanche game where they didn't test Scott Wedgewood. They peppered Stolarz, but he had an answer for everything, as he has to so many teams this season; he had a .924 save percentage coming into yesterday's tilt.

Then, just as has been the case at home, a series of unfortunate events doomed the Devils. It looked like they were on their way to a 1-0 win, but Dawson Mercer lost a puck battle, Dougie Hamilton was coasting back on defense, and Jacob Markström gave up a clunker of a goal while the team was on the power play late in the third period.

The Devils managed to get it to overtime to secure a point, but they couldn't capitalize on a couple of grade-A chances. It's fair to say Stolarz may have been in their heads at that point, and Auston Matthews made them pay on a partial breakaway after a Brett Pesce shot took a long rebound out into the neutral zone. It was just that kind of night again.

Devils 3rd Line Struggled Again

Sheldon Keefe made a couple of line changes ahead of yesterday's game, shuffling Mercer to a line with Nico Hischier and Timo Meier, which moved Stefan Noesen back to a unit with Erik Haula and Paul Cotter.

Meier, Hischier and Mercer played well, finishing with an expected goals share (xG%) of 77.54 percent, but that wasn't the case with Cotter, Haula and Noesen. They were the Devils' worst line, finishing with an xG% of 30.17 percent. That's pretty difficult to do, considering how badly the Devils outplayed the Maple Leafs at five-on-five.

Keefe doesn't seem too keen on giving Tomáš Tatar top-nine minutes, but the Devils' best third line could be Tatar, Haula and Noesen. Cotter got off to a hot start this season, but he's been ice-cold lately and might be better off on the fourth line.

At the very least, Tatar, Haula and Noesen could probably tilt the ice in their favor, something the third line hasn't done very much of over the last couple of weeks. That's been a contributing factor to some of the Devils' scoring woes when they've gotten shut out or only scored a goal in a game such as last night's

Loss Highlights the Devils' Need for a Scoring Winger

Are there concerns after that loss? I wouldn't say so. Keefe said after the game:

"I thought that was the best game we've played all season. I'm leaving here feeling good about our team tonight."

He's not wrong. That was probably one of the Devils' most complete games they've played, if not the most complete. They just didn't have the finish, which has plagued them in their losses.

And that leads me to my next point. It's certainly fair to say the Devils need more scoring/finishing talent in the top six/middle six. If Jack Hughes, Jesper Bratt, and Hischier aren't scoring, it can be challenging for this team to get goals.

Palát scored the lone goal last night, but he has just four on the season. The Devils would be a much better team if he were in the bottom six and further down the lineup. Mercer is on pace for a modest 16 goals and 37 points. That won't cut it in a top-six role.

Even Timo Meier hasn't been scoring enough. The Devils need more from him at his $8.8 million cap hit, a topic we might cover later this week or early next week.

The good news is the Devils should have their fair share of options via a trade from some pending 2025 UFAs. Kyle Palmieri, Taylor Hall and Claude Giroux are just a few of the wingers general manager Tom Fitzgerald could target.

That should be the top priority because the Devils have lost one too many games like last night where they significantly outplayed their opponent but can't find enough goals.

Quick Hits

• Markström was the subject of plenty of criticism last night. The shorthanded goal he gave up was horrendous, though he admitted after the game he whiffed on the puck. However, you can't put that loss on him, as he gave up two goals on 2.44 expected goals. He stopped what he should have and then some. Score more than once when you put 40 shots on net, and that clunker from Markström probably wouldn't have mattered.

• Nathan Bastian made his return to the lineup after a lengthy absence and played quite well. He had a few grade-A chances early in the game and finished with a 66.89 xG% on a line with Tatar and Justin Dowling. The fourth line, in general, had an excellent night in limited ice time, totaling a 98.5 xG%. Tatar will always help carry play at five-on-five, but having Bastian back should help the fourth line become more impactful.

Game Score Chart

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Advanced stats from Natural Stat Trick

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