New Jersey Devils Mirror Former Selves In Back To Back
By Nick Villano
The New Jersey Devils looked like a completely different team for most of the season. After the past two games, things feel a little different.
Going into the weekend, things looked quite bleak for the New Jersey Devils. They were facing two of the best teams in the Western Conference, which by the way is the better conference, in the Nashville Predators and Vegas Golden Knights. Then, right before the game Friday night, we learned that reigning MVP would not be taking the ice for either game. Taylor Hall was out, the Devils were desperate.
It started about as bad as possible. The Devils went down 3-0 with Cory Schneider in net after he literally scored on himself. It seemed like a lost night, especially when they scored a goal and immediately let one back in to go down by three again. Then, something magical happened.
When it seemed like this team sat back too many times this season when down, causing great teams to blow them out. That didn’t happen in this game.
The Devils scratched a clawed their way back into the game. Miles Wood put them back to within two goals. They eventually came all the way back, winning the game in overtime.
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On Saturday, the Devils let a goal in late in the first period. That lead lasted for most of the game. This was a game that the Devils would almost quit on in games past, seeing they were down to a great team. This team feels a little different.
John Hynes pulled the goalie with two minutes left, and it paid off huge. Brian Boyle, a man some would find strange playing in a must score situation, threw in a rebound past Juuse Saros, who was perfect up to that point. It gave the Devils a much-needed point.
The Devils got three of four points against two great opponents without Taylor Hall. In weeks past they would have been demolished. Maybe something is changing about this team.
This is the New Jersey Devils team we saw last season. This is the team that was never out of any game against any opponent no matter the stakes. They kept fighting last year. They fought their hearts out this weekend. We haven’t seen this kind of fight this year, but we saw it all the time last year. If they can have that fight, at least we might get a respectable season.
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They are finally out of the Eastern Conference basement. They’ve gone past the Philadelphia Flyers and are still seven points behind a playoff spot with a game at hand. This is still a tall task, but the Devils have a much easier schedule at the start of the new year. If they can make it through December respectably, then they might actually have a chance to turn things around for good.