A Dreadful December Sinks New Jersey Devils In Standings
The New Jersey Devils have been awful in December and have been in freefall mode. In the last 10 games, they are 2-7-1. Since the start of December, they have three wins in 12 games which has completely evaporated the division lead. Currently, they are sitting six points back from the division-leading Carolina Hurricanes, have four teams in the division within four points of them, and are at risk of being knocked out of the playoff spot entirely. The final game of the month is also against one of those teams; the Pittsburgh Penguins. They start the New Year against the Hurricanes, so things will not be any easier.
The team scored just 27 goals in the 12 games since the start of the month, a 2.25 average, and just 11 in the last seven games for a whopping 1.57 goals per game. That is such an egregious decline from the start of the year that it should scare fans. These numbers are so bad that even a prime Brodeur couldn’t save them. Defensively they haven’t been that great either letting in 42 in those 12 games good for 3.58 against per game.
Neither of these things screams long-term success. Usually, things are far easier to figure out by game twenty but what is this team?
The team has looked beyond fragile and soft. When a bad thing happens, it looks like the team feels like the fans do at this point and are ready to say “Here we go again”. When they miss grade-A opportunities, it will inevitably come down the ice for a goal against. When the team sleepwalks for the first and last minute of a period, the goals against are coming fast. Fans feel this way because we have seen it for a decade, but the team needs to bounce back and show they are gamers and competitive.
When it comes to toughness we know the team isn’t built like that, but they still need to show more. Missing Nathan Bastian hurts a ton and the guy’s value has gone up while being gone in a big way. The team just isn’t hitting anything and they can’t even stand up for themselves let alone each other. Even guys who normally have some grit like Miles Wood and Ryan Graves have been a little to quiet on this front.
Watching teams target Nico Hischier with little response is a joke, and they should have all got an ear full in the locker room for it. If you won’t stand up for their captain, who will? As a team, they need to commit more to at least getting a little harder to play against, or they are going to get obliterated in the playoffs when the whistles go away.
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Lineup deployment has gone back to what they had rolling during the long win streak. It’s understandable why, it still isn’t good. Hughes and Hischier have been incredible this month and are driving their own lines, but they have got zero support. Jesper Bratt has been invisible for games at a time, and while he’s scored some points, it has been almost exclusively because of Hughes. He needs to get his game back. November Bratt was showing the player’s side and why he wanted/deserved a bigger contract, and December Bratt has shown what management seemed to think which was that he needs to do more.
When it comes to lineup decisions as well, Lindy Ruff needs to stop playing Haula in the top six. He is not contributing anything to that line, and while the idea is he can get pucks from the corner, he is not winning any battles and has no finish. Playing a guy with two goals next to your two best playmakers is a ridiculous plan. He is a weight on that line dragging them down. He has one goal, five points in December, and zero points in 9 of the last 10 games. These stats speak volumes.
Next up is a guy whose deployment is the exact opposite, Yegor Sharangovich. He has been relegated to a depth role next to AHL players even in some games and despite that, limited ice time and no powerplay time has 10 goals on the year, good for 4th on the team. If he was being used properly, it would be very safe to say he would be sitting at 15 goals and maybe even challenging Hughes for the team lead.
The defensive depth is being sorely tested with Graves and John Marino out at the worst possible time when this team needs a win and can’t afford to let a goal in. They were playing the toughest minutes. Now, some of that responsibility has fallen on Damon Severson and Brendan Smith, who has been a mixed bag. Severson hasn’t been putting up points or moving the puck well and defensively has been mediocre. He also isn’t winning any more fans high sticking Dawson Mercer last game. Smith, however, gets some props by doing a decent job while playing above where he should be and being the only physical guy on the ice.
This should also bring to light that while the Devils have a lot of good prospects up and coming on defense. Still, they can’t afford to let a guy like Graves go this offseason, or they are 1 injury away from looking at the draft lottery for another year if they can’t outscore their problems.