Pucks and Pitchforks
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New Jersey Devils: P.K. Subban and Damon Severson Had A Lot Of Decent Stats

By Nick Villano

P.K. Subban #76 of the New Jersey Devils hits Artemi Panarin #10 of the New York Rangers during the first period at the Prudential Center on April 18, 2021 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
P.K. Subban #76 of the New Jersey Devils hits Artemi Panarin #10 of the New York Rangers during the first period at the Prudential Center on April 18, 2021 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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The New Jersey Devils had a very good day on Wednesday. The best part of the day was seeing Dougie Hamilton in Devils gear officially for the first time. He took the ice, and the social media team was there to catch it as it was happening. It was really a mood booster for the middle of the week.

Seeing the number seven on the ice was great, but it was a particularly large information dump by Elite Prospects writer JFresh. He is one of the many analytics gurus on Twitter, but his cards seem to be the most popular. He was looking at a few obscure stats, and the Devils showed up a lot.

Those are very interesting stats for Damon Severson and P.K. Subban. These two players are controversial to say the least. Nobody is breaking news here by saying they make some mistakes. It’s part of their game, but it seems like something was different last year.

That is likely because of the system that head coach Lindy Ruff put in place. His system relies on speed from defensemen. It puts an onus on them touching the puck a lot, and it puts pressure on them to make some offensive moves. Subban especially had some incredible plays that broke offensive chances from across the ice.

Severson was great at the beginning of the season. He was helping Ty Smith transition to the NHL, and he was minimizing the mistakes. There was a time he looked like a great defenseman on his own. Something changed and he struggled down the stretch. Maybe it was the COVID pause that ruined his momentum, or maybe it was his injuries that knocked him down a peg.

These stats show that with Hamilton now in the locker room, Subban and Severson can both focus on what makes them good defensemen. The Devils might have one of the best offensive right sides in the entire league. Now, they need to do what’s best by stopping high-danger chances, because we know they can create them. It’s interesting to see these numbers. They aren’t the end game for the team, but it shows Ruff has something to build around with this blue line.

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