The New Jersey Devils had a problem to start the year. While goaltending seemed to be a problem, the defense was truly hurting them. There were too many mistakes, and they didn’t have the goaltending to overcome. It didn’t matter how much the Devils were outshooting opponents if the shots they were allowing were extremely dangerous.
Then, the Devils had a practice where they changed their priorities. Closing space and keeping the crease clean became the goal. And the wins started racking up. That’s not a coincidence.
There are two defensemen who have been especially noticeable. Dougie Hamilton and Luke Hughes have both been playing like top defensemen. Hughes is getting a lot of attention for breaking out this season, but Hamilton has been just as good in the aggregate. Hughes is making bigger plays, but Hamilton is doing just about everything well.
He’s been taking a ton of shots again, ranking ninth among defensemen in shots per 60 minutes. He has also stayed out of the box completely. He hasn’t been called for a penalty yet. That was a serious issue for him.
Sunny Mehta came into the big chair for the Devils and immediately did damage control with Hamilton. He came out in public and stated that he had no interest in trading his $9 million defenseman. His predecessor, Tom Fitzgerald, made no secret that he was trying to exile his best free agent acquisition.
The Devils are clearly better off with Dougie Hamilton
Hamilton has spent most of this season back on a pair with Jonas Siegenthaler, and that pairing has statistically been one of the best in the NHL. According to MoneyPuck, Siegenthaler and Hamilton are fourth in the league (among defensive pairs with at least 150 minutes together) in expected goals percentage. They are fifth in shot attempts while on the ice with 227.
The Devils have two defensemen who are top 30 in the league, and they are playing on different lines, lifting their partners up. Siegenthaler and Brett Pesce have looked like great partners.
The defense as a whole has been upgraded, and Hamilton is a big reason for it. If he can keep this up, the Devils blue line will go from a weakness to the reason they are true contenders.
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