Devils' 4-2 Win vs. Predators: Back-to-Back Sweep

The New Jersey Devils dominated at five-on-five and got the deserved result in a 4-2 win over the Nashville Predators.

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Are the New Jersey Devils back? With their 4-2 comeback win against the Nashville Predators last night, they've picked up five of six points across their last three games. And it's hard to argue they didn't deserve the win against the Predators. Here are three takeaways from the victory. 

Devils Looked Like Their Old Selves

Every Devils fan knows the team has struggled mightily to secure a win in the second half of a back-to-back this season. They're 10-1-0 in the first half of a back-to-back but entered yesterday 1-8-1 in the second half of one. You could've easily assumed a schedule loss was coming, and for a while, it felt like that could be the case because of Juuse Saros.  

The Devils got off to a tremendous start in the first period, outshooting the Predators 22-12 at all strengths. If it weren't for Saros, they would have likely had a lead going into the first intermission because they had complete control of the game. 

The Devils finished the first period with a 36-14 shot attempt advantage while generating 1.46 expected goals. They had plenty of quality opportunities, finishing with seven high-danger chances at five-on-five. 

Given that they were in the second half of a back-to-back, it would've been easy to think that the team would have tailed off as the game progressed. But that wasn't the case. The Devils were relentless and consistently applying pressure, especially in the third period when they needed to come back from a 2-1 deficit. 

Nico Hischier tied it up at 2-2 on a beautiful redirect in tight on Saros. From there, the Devils dictated play again. They generated 2.01 expected goals in the third period and got rewarded when Timo Meier scored the eventual game-winning goal with just under six minutes remaining in regulation. 

It would've stung if the Devils didn't get two points yesterday, given how they played. But they stuck with it and broke through on Saros, who looked like he'd steal a game that the Predators didn't deserve to win. 

Devils Defense Continues to Shine