5 Records New Jersey Devils Could Still Break This Season

5. Damon Severson – Expected +/-

You knew there had to be a surprise on this list. Damon Severson is that surprise. He’s been incredible analytically this season and pretty terrible with the eye test. This is nothing new. Severson has always been an analytical darling that gets destroyed by the fanbase. He makes crazy mistakes that don’t always show the real impact in the advanced numbers. He also makes a million little moves that help the Devils win.

Looking at the overall season Severson is having, this is the best of his career in certain aspects. He was played on the third line for the majority of the season, which really protected him from the mistakes that hurt him last season. That’s why Severson’s expected +/- is 21.2. That’s more than Jack Hughes, who’s at 20 even.

According to Hockey Reference, Expected +/- considers the shot location and uses league-wide averages to determine the likelihood of that shot being a goal. Whether a goal is scored or not doesn’t matter. It takes shot quality into account.

Expected +/- doesn’t go back as far as some other stats. It’s relatively recent. Right now, the leader in the stat for Devils franchise history is actually Jaromir Jagr in 2013-14. He was great that season, but it is surprising.

Severson, with a couple of really good weeks, could beat Jagr, who had 23.6 in expected +/-. It would have to be an incredible end to the season, but the Devils can get hot and help Severson jump into the leaderboard. He’s currently fourth on the list, behind a couple of Andy Greene seasons.