Pucks and Pitchforks
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New Jersey Devils: Disappointing Result In Halloween Loss

By David Holliday

Oct 31, 2021; Newark, New Jersey, USA; The New Jersey Devils celebrate a goal by defenseman Dougie Hamilton (7) against the Columbus Blue Jackets during the second period at Prudential Center. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 31, 2021; Newark, New Jersey, USA; The New Jersey Devils celebrate a goal by defenseman Dougie Hamilton (7) against the Columbus Blue Jackets during the second period at Prudential Center. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports /
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In an afternoon matchup on Halloween, the New Jersey Devils played the Columbus Blue Jackets and in a nice surprise, they got off to a fast start and came out ready to play. With an early goal, things looked good and despite being down after the first, the Devils were still in control of the game. They outshot the Jackets by 13, out-chanced them by a ton, and really controlled the bulk of the play all night. Unfortunately, the game was tied up on the second shot against of a period that the Devils dominated and in overtime, they failed to put it away and ended up dropping the second point.

The Good

Dawson Mercer, Andreas Johnsson, and Jesper Bratt dominated the play all night and scored two of the three goals. Mercer is an absolute machine on the ice and Bratt looks like his old self again. The promotion to this line was exactly what Bratt needed. This is a big boost for the Devils, who were relying on a rookie to do most of the work. He is carrying the puck again with confidence and making the small shifty plays expected from such a great player. This is the Devils #1 line right now and as crazy as it sounds if they have an off night, this team is in trouble.

Hamilton was a monster on the ice again with a goal and a massive, insane, and almost preposterous 10 shots on goal. He had a load of opportunities all night and almost put the game away in overtime twice while playing his strong positional smooth-skating game.

The Bad

Ty Smith had a rough night as his pairing was -2 and his giveaway cost the Devils the lead and ultimately a point on the night. He has yet to get a point this season, but what is most surprising is that he has not even managed to get a good opportunity or create one. Hopefully, he can get things moving quickly because the team needs all top four defenders rolling to be successful.

Janne Kuokkanen continued his ghost-like play in honor of the day and was invisible for another game. He logged the lowest ice time of all forwards and for a guy who had a great shot at sticking in the top six at the start of the year has fallen quickly. Sophomore slumps happen to a lot of players but he might need a benching to get his head on straight because as it stands now he is in danger of completely losing his spot when Wood and Hughes are back.

The Devils have a day off then are quickly back at it on a California road trip which is another prime opportunity to get points and be off to a good head start. They will need to come out of this above .500 which is attainable if they play solid hockey which will go a long way to a hopeful playoff appearance.

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