When facing the third-best team in the NHL on Saturday, the New Jersey Devils were unable to battle back after allowing two goals from the Dallas Stars in the first six minutes, continuing the trend of playing on the back foot when facing the league's best. Taking a deeper look at the numbers, the Devils actually had a strong performance at even strength. New Jersey had a Corsi-for of 60.9%, showing they dominated in shot attempts. That includes out-chancing the Stars 30-21.
But Dallas generated 12 high-danger scoring chances compared to New Jersey's 8. So not only were the Stars' opportunities better quality, but those chances translated to goals.
All that's to say, the heart of the problem for the Devils is inability to convert on chances. This has recently been a major issue when facing off against other high-octane opponents.
In the last five games against teams currently in the NHL's Top 10, the Devils are just 0-3-2. This sample size dates back to Dec. 28 against the Hurricanes and also includes matchups against the Panthers, Maple Leafs, and Golden Knights on top of Saturday night's loss to the Stars.
During that stretch, the Devils have been outscored 18-9 and outshot 176-122. The team even allowed at least 40 shots against in three of those games. It's not just a matter of missing the net either -- the Devils have a Corsi-for of just 44.1% in that time.
Arguably the worst quality of play in those games was against the Golden Knights on Feb. 6. The Devils managed just 15 shots and gave up more than double the amount of chances generated by a factor of 40-19. The team also managed only two rush attempts.
Adding insult to injury, New Jersey blew a third-period lead in two of the five matchups -- once against the Hurricanes and another against the Maple Leafs. It's not just that the Devils are being significantly outplayed against high-level foes, but the team has been unable to defend leads in the few moments that they have one.
The New Jersey Devils are struggling against the best of the best in the NHL
One of the bright spots has been the power play, which has operated at 33.3% in that time. But even strength play has fallen short -- 55.5% of faceoffs took place in the Devils' end, forcing the team to move up the ice and enter the zone efficiently, which is simply not happening as much as it needs to.
All of this spells trouble for New Jersey, the team with the ninth-toughest remaining schedule in the NHL according to Tankathon. Five of the next nine matchups feature opponents that are Top 10 in the NHL standings right now.
With the gap in the standings continuing to close, the Devils need to hunker down now more than ever and learn how to effectively compete against true Stanley Cup contenders.