The New Jersey Devils are the hottest team in professional sports and look unbeatable as their winning streak is now at 12 games.
The Devils swept both the Western and Eastern Canada road trips, with their relentless pursuit of the puck and playing a 60-minute game consistently during this streak. When down by a goal, New Jersey responds quickly, usually under a minute later, with a clutch goal of their own. It used to be that this would happen to the Devils, resulting in a game of catch-up. Now, this confident young team shakes off any adversity and can overcome any deficit.
After the season opener against the Philadelphia Flyers, Devils forward Miles Wood said, “I’m just sick and tired of being on a bad team. That’s the thing that stinks the most.” The 2014 fourth-round Devils pick was being brutally honest and had seen enough. After all, Wood is one of the longest-tenured veterans on this Devils squad and spoke up when the team needed it the most. He was sick of losing and held everyone accountable by speaking from the heart. The team’s performance that night was unacceptable.
This set the tone, and after a rough start, the Devils have been the hottest team in the league since then.
Walt Disney once said, “I think it’s important to have a good hard failure when you’re young.” The majority of young Devils players have experienced multiple late-game collapses and losing streaks during their tenure with New Jersey. With many key injuries in previous seasons, especially the pucks to the face and pandemic-related issues, this team had endured such adversity and failure that losing became the status quo. However, that losing culture eventually became unbearable for the players.
That leads us here. This Devils team hates losing. That much is obvious. They matured into a hockey team that does not take anything for granted and have consistently played hard as if it were their last shift and their career depended on it. Moreover, the Devils hate losing more than they love winning.
Congratulations Devils fans. The future has finally arrived for your New Jersey Devils!