New Jersey Devils Daily: Ottawa Matchup, Playing Without Zajac, More

On today’s New Jersey Devils Daily, team takes its hot streak into Ottawa, playing without Travis Zajac or Brian Boyle and problems with referees early in the season.

The New Jersey Devils take the ice once again today against the Ottawa Senators. Ryan Grosso with All About The Jersey previews today’s game. He points out the failings of Marcus Johansson in his start in New Jersey. After being benched against the New York Rangers, he responded with a -2 with zero shots against the Lightning. The Senators will be a hard matchup for this team, allowing the second-fewest goals per game so far this season.

Game Preview #7: New Jersey Devils at Ottawa Senators

Speaking of defense, Chris Ryan with NJ.com talks about how the Devils can try and crack the 1-3-1 defense that’s giving teams fits. Head coach John Hynes says the Devils need to control the puck, something they haven’t been great at to start the year. While the Devils did pour eight goals on the Sens during the preseason, but that was without Erik Karlsson. These next two games will be important before the Devils have close to a week off.

How Devils will try to crack Ottawa Senators’ defense

Andrew Gross with NorthJersey.com talks about how a rough start to the season could be good for the Devils. They played eight games in the first 14 days of the season. Nico Hischier has really excelled in these first games, despite not scoring a goal yet. He had his most complete game of the season on Tuesday against the Lightning. His play warranted keeping the top-line center job warm for when Travis Zajac returns to the lineup.

Tough early schedule may be helping Devils – and Nico Hischier

Speaking of Zajac, the Devils have been playing out of their minds despite him being out of the lineup. The team has been rolling without their top center and Brian Boyle, who’s fighting cancer right now. The two most veteran centers are watching the team from the sidelines. Steve Lichtenstein with CBS New York talks about the Devils hot start without the two. He questions whether the Devils season would look the same if the two vets were on the ice. Obviously, it’s an unfair point to Zajac and Boyle, but one you have to think about.

Lichtenstein: No Zajac, No Boyle, No Problem (Yet) For Swifter Devils

Gerard Lionetti with All About the Jersey addresses a problem with the NHL to start the season; consistency of the referees. While many complained about the sheer volume of calls in the preseason, it seems now it’s hard to tell what is a penalty and what isn’t. He points out the missed call at the end of the Lightning game, where Brian Gibbons was basically punched in the face by Jake Dotchin. Instead of going on the power play, the Devils went on the penalty kill after Pavel Zacha stood up for his linemate. The refs have to figure out where the line is for keeping players safe and letting the game play itself out.

Consistency in NHL Officiating is Still a Problem

Tough early schedule may be helping Devils – and Nico Hischier