The Devils were my pick for the Cup in 2024, but sit below the playoff line. I wanted to take a look at what’s happened in recent games and how their upcoming schedule looks.
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50 Comments
I think some teams end up having a good start and it snowballs into a good/great season as confidence rides high that helps to keep it going. The same is true for a bad start. It can be hard to find the confidence to play well when you've had that bad start.
contender teams beat good teams. no excuses, they need to beat good teams.
Timo has been a downfall for this team. He is a plug.
TBF that's a pretty tough run of fixtures. All but 1 of those teams has a +.500 record. Plus Hischier was out for all these games and J Hughes for most of them. I know he was out against Washington but I don't know exactly when he returned.
I think you make very valid points about the schedule. I wasn’t a fan of the Mier signing because I don’t think he made this team that much better. Not better enough to be worth an 8 year contract at that money. That money should have gone to signing a goalie in my opinion. Don’t forget, you lost Burnett to the Predators which in my opinion was the catalyst to the team’s success last year. I do think they turn it around and wind up fine.
The Capitals will give you Kuemper for Jack Hughes lol
Fire Lindy
Actually the stats have the defense playing well, they're 7th best in the NHL in xGA, and 13th best in high danger chances against, the defense LOOKS bad from the eye test cause the team plays a very run and gun style, it really is just the goaltending thats keeping them down though, neither guy can buy a save right now. It's brutal. My deepest fear is that they're going to way over-correct on this style that clearly works wonders for this team and neuter what makes them special and exciting all cause they have swiss cheese in net right now.
What about their weird lines and PP1. Why isn't Hamilton QBing PP1? He just looks so much more dangerous out there.
I don't want them to fire Lindsey because I'm a Rangers fan.
You tend to talk about teams that are in trouble, why not talk about teams that are streaking and making their fans jump…like the Caps. (am I being too subtle?)
I had a "hot take" amongst my friends when, in October, I picked EDM to beat NJD for the cup. My friends have been tactful enough not to bring it up but I know that they know that I look like an idiot who is bad at analyzing hockey teams. So my new prediction is just what I want most to see: Rangers over Canucks, repeat of 1994! LGR! Sorry Shannon, you are fantastic.
Jack Hughes was out for some of those games to
Devils fans are delusional
Biggest gripes I see from our online fanbase: no physicality, horrendous defense, Smith is terrible, Timo doesn't fit, injuries, can't score 1st, can't score when off the PP, fire Lindy, trade for grit, D, and G (without cap math worked out), etc.
I'll go with a shorter leash, Shannon – the next 5 games will tell us where this season is heading imo. Like you said, winnable games here. They're coming off their worst game of the year ontop of a disappointing late-game loss against NYR prior. The confidence is way down, the frustration (and fanbase panic) is up, and it shows in all the in-locker room vids.
Welcome to year 1 of being expected to win in a very long time, young Devils. Teams are playing 1-3-1 and physical against them. NJ will have to figure out the answers in-house atm. Recent interviews seem like they're accepting accountability, but will their play reflect that? I hope so… I'm not going crazy bc it's year 1 in a window of 6-10 where they'll have shots to go deep, I don't want that screwed up with short-term gain moves – but a lot of us are ready to go overboard and jump ship it seems.
LET'S GO RANGERS!!!! ☝️🔵⚪️🔴
A Phillip danault would tie this team together so nicely
Last year’s goaltending, especially under Dave Rogalski, was an anomaly. We’ve been bottom four in three of the past four seasons, not to mention the departures of veteran stalwart defensemen have been the setback. Yes the team has allowed a lot of goals compared to last year because up until this point last year we’re giving up roughly five more shots on goal as well, including more from high danger situations. Vanacek ranks second worst among all starters in high danger save percentage ahead of only Skinner. The team shouldn’t just be looking for a goaltender, they should be looking for a goaltending coach. But the market for a goaltender is bland at best
Pretty tough schedule + injury’s, I think they’ll be fine
Shannon picked the Devs to get to the Stanley Cup finals – a bit premature
It’s always tempting to pursue more O.
But DEFENSE wins championships.
As a rangers fan I obviously want the devils to continue playing how they are but deep down I know they’re gonna have that one insane stretch to get back to contention
In addition to what’s already been mentioned about goaltending and defense, the thing that probably concerns me the most is Timo about this team. Long term heavy contract and just watching him play, he still hasn’t developed chemistry with any of the Devils and he doesn’t really add as much of an impact as would a starting goalie and middle pairing defenseman we can get from his AAV. We may have been able to keep at least one of Graves or Severson without that contract as well. I understand we need bigger forwards “to protect Jack and Nico” but that’s clearly no better and they don’t play on the same line because they don’t play well together lol.
Devils have given up 8 empty netters this year
as Lindy Ruff tends to pull goalie with 2 minutes left. Meier and Toffoli have been on ice for a majority of those off-handedly, skewing the +/ratings. But no one is going to confuse Meier with being a good defender – just adding context to some of the number.3 ads a video now. Greed always wins.
0:55 Not to be overly pedantic here but a team starting 16-3 aren’t 13 games above .500, they are 6.5 games above .500.
I think ruffs system is too complicated defensively and veteran guys tend to struggle with it. Toffoli and Meier have bad numbers but aren’t awful defenders normally. I think they need to tweak the system a bit and focus in on defense more. They have the horses to score no matter what
One word, overrated.
Lolololololololololol
more defense zone in first period, more neutral zone in second period, more offense zone in third period,
play team defense first?
Teams have figured out how to beat the Devils: strong forecheck, limit oddman rushes and stay out of the box to keep the PP off the ice. Ruff has refused to adapt his game plan at any point, and to me this is the Devils biggest weakness. They aren't able to shift to a more defensively sound or physical game like some of the elite teams in the league can when necessitated. Goaltending must improve as well, but having watched most Devils games the whole team is out to lunch on defense, which means Vitek and Akira have to be 100% locked in or they don't stand a chance. They need to stop having defensemen pinch in on every play and allowing breakaways the other way and do a better job clearing the zone when the other team is pressuring on offense.
Great analysis as always, Shannon. Thanks for your hard work!
No, theyre not "starting on time", but wasnt that a hallmark of last season as well?
Fire Lindy chants erupted in the first two games of 22-23 season because it looked like nothing had changed from 21-22. Then things suddenly changed like night to day. They started playing better, but most of the year I was thinking, are they for real? Only well after they bounced back from a December lull did they show it was for real. Back in early 2022 and this year too, the advance stats say they were playing well. Maybe they can turn it around. The loss in Detroit looked very similar to the losses in early 2022, and back in 21-22 though. A close game for about 55-57 minutes, with a 3-5 minute implosion of 2 or 3 goals for the opposition. Is this a flaw in Lindy's system, or more because they have new players along with rookies in the lineup? From 21-22 to 22-23, they were almost the same core with additions of veterans like Haula, Palat and key Marino on D. This year, they lose 2 core Dmen Severson and Graves, and mainly "upgraded" with rookies and journeymen: Bahl (first full season), Hughes on D, Holtz at forward. Even when winning this year, it was because Hughes was pulling rabbits out of hats on a nightly basis. They've looked good, like the Devils of 22-23, for maybe 1 game this year.
I don't know precisely where the problem lies, but my best guess is the defense and puck movement out of the zone. Giving benefit of the doubt to coaches and the GM, maybe Lindy's running a somewhat complex system that works great when everyone is doing their job well, and breaks down into chaos when guys miss assignments, get out of position, or can't move the puck. It takes at least a full season for new players to figure it out and the Devils changed too many core pieces in the offseason.
frauds
Andrew Burnette is no longer an assistant coach….If you think New Jerseys season last year was because of Lindy Ruff….your sadly mistaken. Brunette coached Florida to President's Trophy…then assisted with New Jersey last season and huge turnaround. Now Brunette is in Nashville and Lindys on his own….and New Jersey isn't doing to well…duh…Lindy will be fired before mid season….New Jersey will probably miss the playoffs….But watch Nashville get way better compared to last season. Andrew Brunette is a good coach…watch and see.
ill make it simple LINDY RUFF NEEDS TO GO AND GO FAST
As a NJ Devil Die-Hard the story of the season is not a mystery.
FIrst, NJ failed to upgrade the mediocre goaltender.
Second, NJ replaced two top veteran defenceman in Graves & Severson with unproven children..in 19 year old Luke Hughes & first time full time starter Bahl.
We fans all KNEW , NJ was going to be worse defensively because of this.
This all being said, Top defenceman Hamilton has been playing absolutely aweful this season defensively.
While I expect him to break out of his Funk, he has to play better. Your number 1 has to be your number 1.
NJ as it stands is one of the worst 5 on 5 teams in the NHL.
ANd Ruff, whom I like as coach, HAS to find cohesive consistent lines.
Ruffs first line in Detroit was terrible …and that was until he shuffled the lines and pairings endlessly like a drunk card player just hoping some random combo would "hit".
Ruff HaS to do better.
So many players are not being positioned correctly in the lineup consistently to be successful.
In Detroit, NJ had a terrible first line, dresses 7 defenceman and got blown out 4 zip.
All you need to know.
I expect the top players to round out and also get healthy.
I trust this team to improve.
However, great breakdown by Shannon. In a few weeks , after this upcoming stretch, we all see what this team is truly all about.
Let's go Devils 😈
Kind of brushing over NJ problems. The game vs the Wings was very telling. It’s a pretty big stretch to say they have playing teams playing well (Wings won 3 of last 11) and only 2 shots on goal in the third period is indicative they just quit
These goalies are not good enough to be exposed as much as they are.
I get that sometimes the best defense is offense, but if both defense and goaltending are failing, no amount of offense is going to overcome those deficiencies.
This team really needs to change their structure defensively and in the neutral zone. I love Luke Hughes and think he will definitely be a two way beast in the future. Right now he is a liability. Hamilton has great offensive numbers but I’d say that 9 million dollar cap hit is 7.5 for offense and 1.5 for his defensive capabilities.
To make a long post longer, the injuries are not helping matters but this team added to its depth to specifically combat that issue. Let’s give this team 10 more games with most of the roster intact and then we can see what’s really happening here.
If it wasnt for Gallant the devils would be a flash in the pan. We made them look better than they were
The Devils are poorly built. Sure you can ride the unicorn of regular season success, but they arent built for playoff success. The defense is dreadful, the goaltending isnt all that good either. Throw in we cant play physical, were a team that needs to play against fellow figure skaters to win.
They will turn it around but like I said last year and many of you commented back and said I was wrong. Looks like I wasn’t. They overachieved way too much last season they weren’t that good they just caught some breaks and got lucky in some games.
The Devils In Fact Lost to the Fantilli Cup Champions: Columbus Blue Jackets
7*
Don't blame Lindy , blame management, They do not have the right goaltenders. Trade them both, really ! Get Adin Hill !
So uh, should we fire Lindy now? Personally I said last year that he wasn’t the reason for our success, but I still don’t think we have the forwardness to fire Lindy, especially after he just signed an extension
The most expensive players are performing the worst: Hamilton & Meier. The contracts are close to becoming untradable, so they have to get them to work or they will be such anchors that the new rise of Devils might come much later than expected.
Missing Hischier, Hughes, and Meier has hurt them severely. Vanecek simply being awful hasn't help one bit.