Devils' 5-2 Win vs. Penguins: Signs of Life

The New Jersey Devils had one of their best offensive performances under Travis Green and showed some signs of life vs. the Pittsburgh Penguins

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There's something about the Pittsburgh Penguins that the New Jersey Devils just seem to have a grasp on. For the seventh time in the last seven matchups against the Penguins, the Devils came away with a win against their Metro Division rivals. Here are three takeaways from the 5-2 victory. 

Devils Built Off Fast Start

Slow starts have been a problem for the Devils this season, but not last night. From the opening faceoff, it looked like they were ready to play. On the game's first shift, Nico Hischier rang a shot off both posts and out, a sign of things to come to start the game. 

The Devils had some jump early, outshooting the Penguins 8-2 over about the first five minutes. Eventually, Dawson Mercer made them pay when he gained a head of steam through the neutral zone, putting Ryan Graves on his heels and in an awkward spot. That allowed him to get in on Tristan Jarry and slide the puck through Jarry's five-hole with some help from Graves. 

It was only the eighth time this season that the Devils had gone up 1-0 on home ice. They had chances to expand their lead, with Šimon Nemec and Hischier hitting the post, which could have made it 2-0 and 3-0 had they converted. 

Marcus Pettersson tied the game at one, but the Devils didn't turtle and let that bleed into two or three goals against them. Part of that was the stellar play of Jake Allen, but the Devils created plenty of quality chances against a Penguins defense that's been leaky lately. 

The Devils generated 3.42 expected goals at five-on-five, making for their best offensive performance under interim coach Travis Green. Some of their best work came in the third period when they generated 1.05 expected goals and only allowed 0.26. 

Alexander Holtz and Dawson Mercer rewarded the team for their strong play in the third, with goals to make it 3-1 and 4-1 to salt the game away. Timo Meier, who had two power-play goals, said after the game that the team played a mature game in the third period. It's hard to argue with that, and the results speak for themselves.