Devils & Hischier Leave No Doubt in 5-2 Win vs. Predators
Nico Hischier's hat trick led the way, but the New Jersey Devils were dominant in their win over the Nashville Predators.
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The New Jersey Devils are rolling right now. With their 5-2 win over the Nashville Predators last night, thanks to Nico Hischier's hat trick, they're on a three-game winning streak and have won eight of their last ten games.
Nashville doesn't look like a particularly good team, but the Devils hadn't beaten the Predators on home ice since 2015. It got tight in the third period after Timo Meier received a five-minute major for cross-checking, but it was ultimately a dominant win.
Devils Cruised at 5-on-5
The Devils went down 1-0 after Jacob Markström gave up a poor goal from distance, but that didn't deter the team (or Markström). They were tilting the ice before that goal from Filip Forsberg, and they continued to tilt the ice in their favor for the rest of the game.
Dawson Mercer helped get the scoring underway when he gained the offensive zone off the rush and passed the puck to an oncoming Johnathan Kovacevic. Erik Haula was driving to the net, and Kovacevic set him up with a beautiful seam pass to tie the game at 1-1.
That would be the story for the Devils for much of the game. They were clearly the faster and more talented team than the Predators, who had trouble sustaining offensive pressure at five-on-five. The Devils also seemed to generate whatever they wanted on the rush.
Hischier's line was among the best. Aside from Hischier's hat trick, Timo Meier and Stefan Noesen each finished with an assist, but they also caved the Predators in at five-on-five.
The Devils controlled 76.6 percent of the expected goals (xG%) and had an 11-2 advantage in scoring chances and an 8-1 edge in high-danger chances with the Meier, Hischier and Noesen line on the ice.
It wasn't just that line that dominated, though. The Devils, as a team, skated the Predators into the ground at five-on-five. They created 3.41 expected goals and allowed just 0.88 expected goals (79.3 xG%). Plus, they had a 28-8(!) edge in scoring chances and an 18-4(!) advantage in high-danger chances.
That was an utterly dominant performance from the Devils, and the game probably would never have gotten a bit nervy if it weren't for Meier's penalty with less than eight minutes left in the third.
Luke Hughes & Kovacevic Were Excellent
Guessing Hischier as the Devils' leader in Game Score would have been a smart pick since he had a hat trick, but he wasn't the Devils' leader in Game Score. That title belonged to Kovacevic, who was outstanding again.
Kovacevic finished with two assists, picking up a second on Justin Dowling's empty-net goal, but he was also fantastic defensively. He was on the ice for just one high-danger chance against at five-on-five and finished with an xG% of 78.4 percent.
Kovacevic was also instrumental in the Devils' penalty kill, which went 5/5 yesterday, and he was particularly excellent when the Devils had to kill Meier's five-minute major. He logged 5:09 on the kill and wasn't even on the ice for a high-danger chance against.
While he had a great game, he wasn't the only Devils defenseman who shined. Luke Hughes quietly had an excellent night, too. His ability to defend compared to last season is night and day, and last night was a perfect example of why.
Hughes consistently killed plays at the blue line, and his play in the neutral zone has been fantastic. He led Devils skaters with an xG% of 91.28 percent and was on the ice for a measly 0.08 expected goals against.
Not only was Hughes a beast defensively, but he was active offensively and finished with two shots on goal and four scoring chances. The points will come for him if he continues to play the way he is.
The thing about Hughes and Kovacevic is they aren't even defense partners. They're on separate pairs and playing at an incredibly high level, which is part of why the Devils are becoming one of the best defensive teams in the NHL.
Special Teams Continue to Excel
The Devils are a good five-on-five team, maybe even trending toward being better than good. However, their special teams have also been a significant factor in their early-season success.
Hischier scored the lone power-play goal yesterday, but it was a big one that gave the Devils a 3-1 lead and a bit of insurance in the second. As their power play has done to many teams, their motion-based system had the Predators scrambling before Hischier scored.
Even in the first period, the Devils fired five shots on goal on their first power play. Forsberg may have scored a couple minutes after that power play, but it set the tone for how the Devils would play.
And, of course, there's the penalty kill. The Predators might not be a good five-on-five team, but their power play came into last night's game ranked in the top 10 in the NHL. The Devils shut them down, and they saved their best for last when they had to kill Meier's major.
Nashville totaled just one shot on goal on the five-minute major, and it was a shot from the perimeter that Markström didn't have much trouble with.
The Devils' power play is second in the NHL to the Winnipeg Jets, but their penalty kill ranks sixth. I've been giving Jeremy Colliton his flowers for his work revamping the power play, but Ryan McGill deserves plenty of credit for overseeing one of the NHL's top penalty kills.
Quick Hits
Markström would probably tell you he should've stopped Forsberg's goal, but he was solid after that. The Devils only allowed 21 shots to reach Markström, but he allowed two goals on 2.23 expected goals. He stopped what he should have, which he's been doing more frequently lately; he has a .920 SV% across his last nine starts. He's starting to look like the goalie the Devils envisioned when they acquired him.
Haula had one of his best games of the season. Aside from the goal, he finished with a team-high seven shots on goal, as well as six scoring chances and two high-danger chances. He was also first among Devils forwards in xG% (90.79 percent, and while he took a couple of penalties, the good outweighed the bad.
Meier will have a hearing with NHL Player Safety for his cross-check on Zachary L'Heureux, but he was having an excellent game before losing his cool. He finished with five shots on goal, five scoring chances and four high-danger chances. Meier set up Hischier's first goal and was consistently in the thick of things offensively. The points will come if he keeps playing this way, too.
Game Score Chart
Advanced stats from Natural Stat Trick