New Jersey Devils: 5 Harsh Truths About 2023-24 Season

2. The Devils still lack the killer instinct they need to win games

When the Devils played the Philadelphia Flyers, Joel Farabee pinched the offensive blueline and whiffed on Alexander Holtz. Holtz went down and scored the game’s first goal immediately after. After 56 seconds of playing time, Farabee didn’t see the ice again that night.

Take the play above – made by Timo Meier and the Devils – as a prime example of why the team can’t win the ‘easy’ ones. Meier, wearing Damon Severson’s old no. 28, takes about three seconds too long on the puck retrieval and turns the puck over in his own zone. Without watching what happens after, it was far too casual of an effort on the puck and frankly unacceptable.

Well, when you watch what happens after, the Sharks score. Jacob Macdonald knocks Meier down to win the puck back, and then Meier allows Macdonald to go right down to the circles to score while guarding absolutely nobody. Nemec does the right thing by tying up the Sharks player in front, but Siegenthaler never got out in front to challenge Mario Ferraro.

In short, the Devils made multiple errors on a play that should have never happened, should Meier have executed on one of the most basic defensive zone puck possession plays.

Meier’s responsibility there comes down to what the system asks for. If they aren’t going to get the saves, New Jersey needs to eliminate that kind of mistake from their game entirely. The lack of killer instinct and winning mentality already lost them at least one game this season.