Devils Offense Came to Life in 5-1 Win vs. Bruins
Jacob Markström's injury was a downer, but the New Jersey Devils' offense finally showed some life in the 5-1 win vs. the Bruins
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Everyone can breathe for a little bit. On a special night in which the New Jersey Devils inducted legendary head coach Jacques Lemaire into their Ring of Honor, they came away with a decisive 5-1 win over the Boston Bruins.
Jacob Markström's injury was a downer on an otherwise great night. Head coach Sheldon Keefe said he will miss some time, but even so, it shouldn't take away from how well the Devils played. Not that there was much doubt about it, but that was easily their best performance since the Christmas break.
Allen Played Well in Difficult Circumstances
The Devils need to perform some ritual because they have had rotten luck with goalies and injuries for quite some time. Hopefully, Markström won't be out for long. The Devils only have seven games until the 4 Nations Faceoff begins, so that'll be nearly 10 days off for players not participating.
If Markström is out until then, they should be in good hands with Jake Allen. The Devils played well in front of him after he took over for Markström, but he was outstanding.
The Devils built a comfortable 4-1 lead soon after Allen took over, but he still made a few sharp saves. None was better than the sprawling right-pad stop he made on Oliver Wahlstrom with about 30 seconds left in the second period to keep it a 4-1 game.
You never want to give your opponent momentum late in a period, so that was a bigger save than it may have seemed. Even in the third, when the Devils seemingly had the game iced away, Allen made a good stop on a Charlie Coyle shorthanded breakaway.
Late in the third, when the Devils were already up 5-1, Allen made an excellent blocker save on a wicked David Pastrnak shot. Even Pastrnak was frustrated that the shot didn't go in.
Allen finished the night making 16 saves on 16 shots while stopping 2.11 goals above expected. It was his first win since late November, so that should give him some confidence since it looks like he'll be the starter for the foreseeable future.
With the performance, Allen's save percentage improved to .902, and he's now saved 4.2 goals above expected for the season. If he can provide that type of goaltending until 4 Nations, the Devils should survive, especially if their goal-scoring keeps up.
Meier & Mercer Led Improved 5-on-5 Performance
The Devils only scored two five-on-five goals yesterday, but make no mistake. That was their best five-on-five performance in weeks, maybe even since they've returned from the Christmas break.
Granted, the Bruins have been bleeding shots and chances for a while, but the Devils' offense had been nowhere to be found lately. It looked like that would be the case again to start the game, but they found their legs in the second and skated the Bruins into the ground.
There was one stretch after the Devils went up 2-1 where they hemmed in the Bruins for nearly three minutes. They didn't score, but it wasn't for the lack of chances. Jeremy Swayman bailed them out until Stefan Noesen converted on the power play to give the Devils a 3-1 lead.
The Timo Meier, Justin Dowling and Dawson Mercer line was at the forefront of much of the Devils' improved five-on-five play last night. Mercer is at his best when scoring goals in the slot/high-danger areas, where both of his goals came from last night.
Dowling had one of his best games of the season, collecting an assist on Mercer's second goal. He also set up Meier for a good one-time opportunity earlier in the second, but Swayman made the save.
On Mercer's second goal, Meier and Dowling were relentless on the forecheck. Meier forced the Bruins' defenders into a turnover, then fed the puck to Dowling, who set up Mercer to make it 4-1.
These three were dominant, finishing with an expected goals share (xG%) of 90.34 percent as a line. Meier seems like a different player when he's the main driver on a line, so I'm cautiously optimistic this trio can work in the short term (imagine someone like Yanni Gourde centering them).
Devils Power Play Broke Through
The Devils' power play has been generating chances lately. They just haven't been converting on them. That changed last night, as they scored three power-play goals en route to the win.
Of course, expecting the Devils to score three power-play goals a game is unrealistic. That's why they need to figure it out at five-on-five. Still, the power play getting going again would go a long way in helping the Devils get out of this slump they're in.
It's not like the Devils got some fluky bounces last night on the power play, either. Jesper Bratt made a great royal road pass on Hamilton's one-timer goal, Noesen cleaned up a loose puck in the blue paint, and Nico Hischier redirected a Hamilton point shot to put the cherry on top.
The Devils generated 1.49 expected goals in just 8:35 of power-play time. Obviously, some of that 8:35 is due to them converting, but the quality chances were there again. It wouldn't shock me if more power-play goals are in store for them in the coming games.
Quick Hits
I don't love what Keefe has assembled around Jack Hughes right now. Even when Ondřej Palát returns from an illness, a top line of Palát, Hughes and Nathan Bastian doesn't inspire much confidence. Paul Cotter played alongside Hughes and Bastian with Palát out, but the results were not great. They did not generate anything offensively, underscoring the need to add a top-six winger ahead of the trade deadline.
It's been tough sledding for the Luke Hughes and Brett Pesce pairing since the Christmas break, but they played well last night. Hughes finished with an xG% of 77.66 percent, while Pesce totaled an xG% of 78.74 percent. It's probably not a coincidence that the Devils looked better at five-on-five because this pair had one of their better performances since Christmas. They need to keep it up to pull the team out of this slump.
Devils Game Score Chart
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