Monday Musings: The Penalty Kill

Over the years, the Devils have been generally successful in killing penalties; probably right above the league average, in fact, since the lockout came to an end.  However, the skaters who have played on this unit have widely differed during this time, as the only player that has remained (for the most part) constant is Marty in between the pipes.  This important stability issue has been presented to the Devils even before the Madden–Pandolfo unit of old ceased to exist, and for the start of the 2011-2012 season, the coaching staff will have a large responsibility in finding the right skaters for the necessary spots.

One interesting habit the Devils displayed on the penalty kill last year was the use of a multitude of different units.  Some would argue this strategy; if the Devils could find a smaller group of skaters who could excel shorthanded, they could potentially be consistent in doing so.  However, this could be successful in utilizing a number of fresh skaters, not wearing out anyone while being sure that various players understood how to kill off an opposing powerplay.

Unfortunately, the Devils will once again be losing skaters who played significant minutes on the PK.  Colin White led the entire team in shorthanded time-on-ice last season, at 2:46 a game (in fact, he played 25 more seconds a game than Henrik Tallinder, who was second on this list).  In terms of forwards, the Devils will be without Travis Zajac, who was second amongst forwards with a 2:05 clip on the penalty kill, until at least mid-November.  They also shipped Brian Rolston to the Islanders, who (not counting Stephen Gionta, who only played in twelve games as a Devil) was right behind Zajac on this list.

Clearly, the penalty-killing personnel is going to be respectably different this season.  However, in regards to defensemen, the Devils still have three who played significant time on these units last year.  In the aforementioned Tallinder, Andy Greene, and Anton Volchenkov, the Devils received a combined 6:48 shorthanded time-on-ice last year; those three will once again be very important if the team is looking for penalty-killing success.  Adding a fourth defenseman to this unit (a role which was basically served by White last season) could be of vital importance; thus, if Bryce Salvador is not ready to play, the Devils will need to hope another d-man shows he can kill penalties during camp and the preseason.  If Salvador is in the lineup come October 8th, it potentially fills a major void, as the former Blues defenseman played more time per game shorthanded during his last full season (in 2009-2010) than any other current Devil.

Perhaps the more important aspect of the penalty kill this year will be in terms of the forwards who will see time shorthanded.  We can not be sure as to how DeBoer will utilize his 12 active forwards; perhaps he will use many, or try to find a few who are the most capable of killing penalties.  Nevertheless, especially with the recent Zajac injury, the roles of some will become more important.  Zajac’s performance on the penalty kill was fantastic last year, and losing him for however long he is hurt will make it necessary for a few fowards to step up and fill some important spots when the team is shorthanded.

Surely, the Devils will look for David Steckel to step up not only on the forcheck in Zajac’s absence, but throughout the year on the penalty kill.  Steckel has done this before (as a Capital), and should find himself earning significant minutes when the team is shorthanded all season.  Two other centers who could see much time killing penalties are Rod Pelley and Dainius Zubrus; however, if the coaching staff decides to feature two PK units this season, these two could see much competition for those shorthanded minutes.  Patrik Elias, who led all forwards in shorthanded time-on-ice last season, should also be vital in this regard.  Amongst other wings, Vladimir Zharkov could potentially see some time, as well as Zach Parise; however, if the Devils plan to use both Elias and Parise, they will hopefully utilize a larger amount of forwards on the penalty kill, so they do not drain two of their best forwards (especially later in the game).

Last season, the Devils were 11th in the NHL with a 83.4% penalty kill rate.  This year, if the Devils want to be a borderline top-10 team shorthanded, they will have to rely, once again, on new skaters joining in.  If the likes of Salvador are ready to go, this will surely help their chances; however, others will need to step up, and skaters like Greene and Tallinder, among others, will need to be much more consistent throuought the season (in justifying their large contracts).  All being said, if the coaching staff plays their cards right, the penalty-killing half of their special teams units could be very strong; we will be sure to discuss the powerplay in the near future.

-Drew