New Jersey Devils
Concern O’Meter: Too Soon to Worry About the Devils?
It’s been an up and down start to the season for the Devils, and recent results mixed with inconsistent effort have raised questions.
The New Jersey Devils are not a team right now. They are merely a collection of talent that has yet to form an identity.
Their game against the Tampa Bay Lightning the other night was supposed to be a statement. A bounce back after a poor effort on home ice against the Washington Capitals two days prior. Instead, they rolled over, laid there, and let the Lightning put up eight goals on them.
Yes, the season is still very young, and they’ve still managed to amass points despite their inconsistencies, but this was not how the Sheldon Keefe era was supposed to start. The excuse of a condensed training camp, short preseason, and irregular schedule to start the season would all be very valid if effort wasn’t the core issue.
They put together very good, to great, performances against Buffalo, Utah, and Ottawa but then looked disinterested in their home opener against the Toronto Maple Leafs and against Washington and Tampa Bay.
Unfortunately, this isn’t something new either. Last season, former head coach Lindy Ruff, time after time, talked about a lack of effort and compete from this group. Two head coaches, an interim coach, and a full calendar year later, and those same issues hamper this group.
A lot will be said about line combos and defensive pairings, or which goalie should start what game, but it’s an irrelevant point until they can put together multiple games in a row of strong effort and compete. Sheldon Keefe will continue to do whatever he can to get this team going lines-wise, but at some point, the players have to look in the mirror and decide enough is enough.
Keefe has praised Nico Hischier as a captain, and he’s doing all he can to lead from the front. What this team needs is more buy-in from everyone else. More aggression. More puck pressure. More of just about everything.
Although not perfect, in their opening two games against the Sabres in Prague, they displayed an aggressive and attacking style that was effective and entertaining to watch. Since then, those moments have been few and far between.
Too many drive-bys poking at pucks in the neutral zone. Not getting to pucks first, especially in the offensive zone. And certainly not enough sustained pressure once they get the puck in the offensive zone. All aspects of the game that come down to effort, rather than skill.
On the bright side, the season is still young. It’s not even November yet, and history has shown Keefe’s Maple Leaf teams were slow starters. The 2020-21 Covid season aside, the Maple Leafs first month of the season went the following:
2021-22
9 GP: 4-4-1
2022-23
10 GP: 4-4-2
2023-24
9 GP: 5-3-1
So clearly, Keefe is no stranger to slow starts. Those teams would go on to have 115, 111, and 102-point seasons. As scathing as one can be about the beginning of the Devils season (and rightfully so), there are small glimmers of hope. The imminent return of both Luke Hughes and Brett Pesce should help stabilize the defense. Both special teams are top 10 units, and integral players like Jack Hughes, Timo Meier, and Dougie Hamilton are beginning to pick up offensive production.
How this group responds over the next few games will tell us all we need to know. While it would be nice, a 2022-23 13-game win streak isn’t necessary, but strong efforts and compete before they leave for their western Canada road trip is imperative.
Similar to the 2022-23 season, the Devils got off to a slow start of their own. Highlighted by the “Fire Lindy” chants five periods into the season, they played .500 hockey for the first three weeks of the season before finding their gear and taking off. All the talent is there, but like that 2022-23 team, they eventually bought in, used their speed, and suffocated teams on their way to a 112-point season.
The talent is still there, but the cohesion isn’t. Maybe it took a beatdown on home ice to start the turnaround, similar to 2022-23 when they got beat handedly 6-3 by the Capitals at home.
Hopefully, a few weeks from now, this team will be healthy, firing on all cylinders and picking up points in bunches, but until then, there are a lot of question marks surrounding this group’s effort on a nightly basis.
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