The New Jersey Devils have been one of the best teams in the NHL up to this point. Although they had a little bit of a slump at the end of October, their record of 15-7-2 is nothing to joke about.
There are a lot of things that make this Devils team great. Special teams are amongst the biggest factors for them at the quarter mark of the season. Both their power play and penalty kill have been as good as you can ask them to be.
The PK always needs a lot of things to go right if they are going to find success. For one, your goaltender has to be your best penalty killer. Jacob Markstrom and Jake Allen have both been wonderful. Since November 1st, both goalies have let in a total of four power-play goals in over 50 minutes on the penalty kill.
All of their defensemen have done well to be physical, battle hard down low, and be smart with their positioning. Led by their captain Nico Hischier, the forwards have been bought in as well. The Devils suppressed shots at an elite level when down a man this season. Jacob Markstrom has faced the fewest shots per 60 minutes on the PK of any goalie who has played at least 10 games according to Natural Stat Trick.
The New Jersey Devils PK and PP have propelled them to big wins
The five-minute major penalty that they killed off against the Nashville Predators on Tuesday was the ultimate effort by every skater on the bench. It was truly a masterpiece.
Their PK unit is now up to 83.6 percent, the sixth-best number in the NHL. If they keep trending in the right direction, it won’t be long before they crack the top five.
Speaking of the top five, the New Jersey Devils have dominated the top five penalty kills in recent games. Over the last two weeks, New Jersey has scored a power-play goal against the number one (Nashville Predators - 90.5 percent), number three (Washington Capitals - 85.5 percent), and number five (Carolina Hurricanes - 83.8 percent) PK units in the league.
All of this success has brought their power play percentage up to 31.5 which is the second best in the NHL. Only the Winnipeg Jets have a higher mark right now at 33.8 percent.
With the man advantage, New Jersey has so many weapons. Everything runs through Jack Hughes on the top unit but having Nico Hischier, Jesper Bratt, Stefan Noesen, and Dougie Hamilton there to help him make the group extra dangerous.
Even the second unit with guys like Luke Hughes, Timo Meier, Tomas Tatar, and Erik Haula becomes dangerous when the top group doesn’t get it done. The offensive depth that New Jersey has built up pays off for them with the man advantage.
The ability to make nice passes, be smart with the puck, and get it to the goal scorers regularly helps them find the back of the net more often than not.
The Devils are the only team in the top six for both PP and PK. It is no surprise that they are one of the league leaders in wins and points. It may not be this hot all season but the special teams are going to play a big role in this team’s overall success. If they can match it at even strength, they will remain of of them best teams in the league.