The New Jersey Devils dropped a decision against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday night. Despite doing almost everything up to par, they still came out on the losing side.
What a performance by the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday night. After back to back nights where the team allowed more than 40 shots, they held the Columbus Blue Jackets to 19 shots on goal. The team only hit the net six times after the first period. It was a great night for the defense. Somehow, the Devils still lost.
That’s right, the Devils, who won games with 42 and 51 shots against in the two previous games, lost when allowing just 19.
It doesn’t make much sense. The Devils got great chances against Sergei Bobrovsky. They were buzzing around the net. There were secondary chances on shots. Still, the game ended in a loss.
The Devils were the more aggressive team, even if they gave the puck away. They outhit the Jackets 31 to 18.
Even Taylor Hall scored to keep his point streak alive. He sent a shot that tipped off Bobrovsky’s glove and into the net.
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The best explanation is sometimes the better team doesn’t win. We’ve seen it before this season. This one especially hurts since the Washington Capitals lost and the Jackets now gained ground on the Devils. Obviously, all two points count the same at the end of the season, but giving up points to division rivals will always hurt worse in the long run.
Keith Kinkaid obviously didn’t play up to his performance from Sunday. Both the goals he allowed weren’t on the best shots in the world. He didn’t have the best puck control, and the game-winning goal came in a period where the Blue Jackets had two shots.
At the end of the day, this is just one loss. It’s a game where the Devils played well. The last time they played the Jackets, it ended 6-1. Still, it hurts to come out of this game with a loss.