The Devils failed to grab the point needed to clinch a playoff spot and got run out of The Rock by the Bruins. Let’s take a look at what went wrong in this game recap.
The New Jersey Devils entered Tuesday night’s game against the Boston Bruins needing just one point to clinch a playoff spot thanks to the Rangers’ loss yesterday. They were also looking to win four straight games for the first time this season. Did anybody tell them?
First Period
Unfortunately, the Devils did not play with the fire of a team hunting for a playoff berth. Within the first few minutes, there were a few instances of miscommunication, leading to poor pass attempts and turnovers. Sloppy breakout passing and turnovers were themes throughout the first frame and complete game. Timo Meier had one of the few scoring chances from the high slot within the first two minutes, but his shot stung Dawson Mercer on the way to the net and deflected away.
At 13:36, Seamus Casey took the time to settle the puck in the defensive zone and skate up ice, drawing a hooking penalty on Boston’s Jakub Lauko. The first power play unit could not get anything going despite winning the ensuing faceoff. With about 30 seconds remaining with the man advantage, the second power-play unit of Daniel Sprong, Ondrej Palat, and Stefan Noesen got some the best looks. Their closest scoring opportunity was on a scramble for a rebound after Luke Hughes’ shot from the point, where Sprong and Noesen had some dangerous shot attempts. The Devils did not convert on the power play and paid for it.
About a minute later, pressure from the Bruins forecheck forced some sloppy passing between Luke Hughes and Jesper Bratt. Bratt hurriedly tried to force a pass through the center of the ice. The pass was intercepted by David Pastrnak, who walked in on Jacob Markstom and sniped a shot by Markstrom’s left pad. 1-0 Bruins.
The Devils continued to have trouble breaking the puck out of their defensive end when under pressure from the Bruins’ forecheckers. New Jersey was constantly chasing the puck as Boston whipped it around the Devils’ zone. Sprong’s line with Cody Glass and Paul Cotter was one of the few exceptions. The line had another good shift around the six minute mark, creating some scoring opportunities, but nothing beat Swayman.
In the period’s final two minutes, the Bruins were all over the Devils, forcing turnovers, intercepting passes, and hemming New Jersey up in their defensive end. The aggressive forecheck paid dividends for the Bruins with 35.3 seconds left. After some crisp passing within the offensive zone, Michael Callahan sent a wrister past Markstrom on the short side from the top of the left circle. 2-0 Bruins at the end of period number one. Ugh.
Second Period
The second period started on a similarly ugly note. 30 seconds in, Jesper Bratt took a hooking penalty on David Pastrnak. Fortunately, the Devils penalty kill stepped up and did not allow a single shot while the Bruins held the man advantage. About a minute after the penalty kill ended, the puck took an awkward bounce past Luke Hughes at the point, who appeared to lose his balance and was recovered by Jakub Lauko, who had raced by Hughes. Lauko took the puck into the Devils’ zone on a two-on-one and put a perfectly placed shot over Markstrom’s blocker-side shoulder. 3-0 Bruins…
About three minutes after the goal, the Devils’ Dawson Mercer was penalized for another hook on Pastrnak. Again, one of the bright spots in this game was New Jersey’s penalty kill, which stepped up again, not allowing a goal and holding Boston to one shot. Following the penalty, the Devils tried to get some offense going. Nico Hischier tried to set up Brian Dumoulin on the doorstep for a tap-in, but the play was broken up. Paul Cotter tried to stuff one home on Swayman at the side of the net, but Boston’s goalie made the save.
The only offense the Devils exhibited in the remainder of this game took place within 19 seconds, starting with just over six minutes remaining in the second period. With a delayed penalty call on Boston coming, New Jersey was able to capitalize on the six-on-five advantage. Hischier passed down to Sprong at the left side of the net. Sprong made an excellent no-look, backhand pass to Noesen in front of the net for an easy tap in goal. 3-1 Bruins.
The Devils got the puck deep into the Bruins zone off the following faceoff. After a Boston turnover, Erik Haula took a spin-around shot that deflected off Timo Meier up and over Jeremy Swayman and into the Bruins’ net. 3-2 Bruins.
The Devils briefly looked like they could build momentum following the two goals. With just under five minutes remaining, Hischier had a strong shot blocked. Mercer hammered a one-timer from the right circle, but nothing else beat Swayman. With less than three minutes remaining, Markstrom made a big save on a shot from Vinni Lettieri, which, at the time, looked like it could be a game-saver. That was not the case.
For the second time in this game, New Jersey allowed a goal with less than a minute remaining in the period. Casey Mittelstadt fired a turn-around wrister from the point that deflected off of Seamus Casey’s stick. Markstrom could not locate the deflection as it sailed over him and into the net. 4-2 Bruins, and that is how the period ended.
Third Period
Things really got ugly in the final frame. New Jersey had a few offensive chances early on, but it was more of the same. Boston won the races to the loose pucks. Boston won puck battles along the boards and for rebounds. New Jersey could not get the puck cleanly out of their own zone. Early on, Mercer had a backhand swipe at a puck in front of the net, and Sprong sent a shot through traffic a couple minutes later, but that is where the offense stopped.
With five minutes elapsed in the third, the Bruins were buzzing all over the Devils’ zone. Following a shot from the point, Pastrnak made a ridiculous spin-around pass from the sideboards that went through Elias Lindholm and directly to a wide-open Morgan Geekie standing at the side of the net. Geekie, standing alone in front of the net, swatted it past Markstrom. It was Pastrnak’s 100th point of the season and Geekie’s 30th goal of the year. 5-2 Boston.
The fifth goal appeared to take any remaining air out of the Devils’ sails, who played dejected hockey for the remainder of the game. Two minutes after Geekie’s goal, an errant breakout pass by the Devils led to a shot from the point on Markstrom. Fraser Minten beat all Devils to the rebound, spun around, and fired a shot over Markstrom into the net. 6-2 Bruins.
The night’s final and most embarrassing goal came off the stick of Cole Koepke nearing the midway point of the final frame. The Bruins banked a puck out of their defensive zone and off the boards in the neutral zone. Koepke outbattled Luke Hughes, who couldn’t recover the puck off of the boards, and Brett Pesce to take the puck in on Markstrom. Koepke managed to fend off both Devils’ defenders to chip the puck through Markstrom somehow. That play summed up the night for New Jersey. 7-2 Bruins.
Head coach Sheldon Keefe pulled Markstrom and sent Jake Allen into the game following the seventh goal, but the damage was done. The Devils put two shots on the net in the game’s final nine minutes. They played as if this contest could not end soon enough, which is how they played for most of the third period. When the final horn sounded, Boston waltzed out New Jersey with an easy 7-2 victory.
By the Numbers
According to Natural Stat Trick, New Jersey recorded five shots in the third period. Other than Mercer’s backhand early and Sprong’s shot through traffic, I cannot remember any others. New Jersey allowed five high-danger scoring chances in the third period, which matches what everyone watched – if you lasted that long. In another example of how statistics do not necessarily match what is happening on the ice, the Devils actually led in high-danger scoring chances through the first two periods, nine to four. The Devils also only trailed the Bruins by three total shots when all was said and done. Those stats do not embody what really happened in this game. The Devils came out flat, discombobulated and played that way to the final whistle, even when they were one goal shy of tying the game with less than six minutes to go in the second period.
Game Stats: NHL.com Recap, NHL.com Game Summary, NHL.com Event Summary, NHL.com Full Play-by-Play, NHL.com Shot Report, Natural Stat Trick Game Stats
Takeaways
Lack of Urgency
Urgency might not be the right word, but with the playoffs within reach, the Devils came out flat. Boston has been eliminated from playoffs and has been losing a lot lately. That said, they beat Carolina recently, as John mentioned in his preview. I don’t know what New Jersey expected to face, but Boston wanted to block those playoff aspirations. I expected to see a Devils team hungry to get that one point and take control of their future, but that was not the case. The team could not have looked less hungry, which was highly disappointing.
Breakouts Need Work
At least two goals tonight resulted from bad breakouts that led to turnovers. The first goal by Pastrnak was the result of pressure from the Bruins, forcing a weak pass from Hughes to Bratt and Bratt’s hurried pass attempt through the center of the ice, which was ultimately picked off. Minten’s goal stemmed from a turnover off of a Pesce pass into no-man’s land. Despite shutting out the Rangers, New Jersey had similar issues in the second period when New York started to forecheck more aggressively. They obviously had a much better outcome in that game, but the cracks were visible. We have seen the Devils struggle with turnovers and breakout passing throughout this season against teams that pressure aggressively on the forecheck. The Devils will experience that pressure from whomever they face in the playoffs, so it needs to be sorted out now. Hoping they get injured defensemen back in the lineup is not the solution.
Rough Game For A Good Pairing
Luke Hughes has made considerable strides in his game this year, especially defensively. Brett Pesce has mostly played the way the Devils expected after signing him in the offseason. Tonight may have been the worst game of the year for the duo. Hughes was on the ice for four of the seven goals by Boston, and Pesce was on the ice for three. Hughes had the puck hop by him on Lauko’s goal. Pesce had the wayward pass leading to Minten’s goal, and both got burned on the seventh goal. Everybody has an off-game, so let’s hope the pairing can shake this one off quickly.
Lone Positives: Daniel Sprong & the Penalty Kill
One player that stood out while this game was competitive was Daniel Sprong. Aside from the beautiful assist, Sprong was among the few players getting dangerous shots on net. According to Natural Stat Trick, Sprong was tied for second on the team with ten shots while allowing only three during his 12:36 of ice time. Sprong’s line with Cody Glass and Paul Cotter was easily the best line for New Jersey, with a Corsi For percentage (CF%) of 73.33 at five-on-five, which actually matches what was observed on the ice. Sprong led the team with a CF% of 74.07, and Cotter wasn’t far behind at 70.00. I think many people wanted to see Sprong continue to get opportunities in the lineup down the final stretch, and he showed why that was the case tonight.
The penalty kill had another efficient night, allowing only one shot during Boston’s two power plays.
Playoff Implications
As of the conclusion of the Devils’ game, to clinch a playoff spot, the Devils still need a point, OR the Rangers and Islanders each need to lose a game. The Islanders lost in overtime to the Predators tonight. The Rangers will face the Flyers on Wednesday and then the Islanders on Thursday.
Up Next
The Devils will face the Penguins at home on Friday at 7:00 PM ET.
Your Thoughts
What did you make of this blowout? Do you chalk it up as a bad night and move on? How do the Devils clean up play in the defensive end? Let us know in the comments section below. Thank you for reading, and GO DEVILS!
