Since our last New Jersey Devils stock up/stock down the team faced off against three Metropolitan division rivals along with the Winnipeg Jets and Detroit Red Wings. Unfortunately for the Devils, it’s been much of the same. Following their road trip, they turned in a poor effort in a 4-2 loss to the Washington Capitals. Then a quick two-game trip to Winnipeg and Pittsburgh saw them lose 6-3 north of the border, but bounce back with a good effort in a 5-2 win against the Penguins. In last Saturday’s matchup against the New York Rangers, they fell 5-3 in Jack Hughes’s return from injury. Then last night they were shut out 4-0 by the Red Wings. With the holidays approaching, the Devils will look to take advantage of a lighter schedule over the next few days.
New Jersey Devils Stock Up/Stock Down
Stock Up
Reinforcements Coming
After lucking out with the injury bug last year, it has hit the Devils hard early on. Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes’s absences have set the team back mightily. Add Timo Meier’s injury against the Jets, and things looked as bleak as ever. However, the Devils look as if they are starting to turn the corner. First, Hughes has returned and made his comeback against the Rangers, scoring two points in the process. Result aside, the Devils looked like a much more competitive team with him Saturday night. As for Hischier, he’s been practicing with the team over the last few days. What’s encouraging about Hischier is that he was a full participant and took line rushes. Finally, Timo Meier, who’s missed the last three games, shouldn’t be out too long. Lindy Ruff described his injury as “short-term”. If the rest of the team can stay healthy, the return of those three should help get the Devils back on track.
Captain Nico Hischier returned to practice today, and the Devils focused on winning battles and raising their compete. @CatherineBogart reports in Devils Now presented by @RWJBarnabas. pic.twitter.com/cvN4oukWiY
— New Jersey Devils (@NJDevils) November 20, 2023
Stock Down
Inconsistent Goaltending
A lot of the worst fears about this team’s goaltending have come true this year. Over the past week, it’s been clear that the issue with the Devils goaltending is a lack of consistency. Against Washington, Vitek Vanecek was pulled early after letting in two quick goals. Akira Schmid went on to save 17/18 shots and had a 1.04 Goals Saved Above Expected. He was then given the net against Winnipeg, was shelled for five goals, and had a -2.55 Goals Saved Above Expected. Naturally, Lindy Ruff went back to Vanecek against Pittsburgh and he was lights out. He only let in two goals and saved four High Danger Shots. Then against the Rangers, with Vanecek in net, he let in four goals and had a -0.97 Goals Saved Above Expected. The Devils have gotten good goaltending performances this year, but the lack of consistency is sinking them.
back-to-beck goals pic.twitter.com/YWhRdc5sGT
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) November 11, 2023
Stock Up
Colin Miller
Colin Miller was once a staple on the stock-down portion during the preseason, but after making his Devils debut his stock is unquestionably up. Miller made his debut against the Penguins as part of a seven-man defensive unit. He was one of the best players on the ice that night, especially when partnered with Luke Hughes. His good play carried into the game against the Rangers as well. After struggling during camp and preseason, Miller has looked like the veteran presence they needed when they traded for him. He is well-positioned in all three zones, does a great job using his stick to break up plays at the blue line, and has a hard shot that he can get through towards goal. Miller’s emergence comes at a great time with the team’s defensive struggles, particularly by his fill-in, Brendan Smith.
#NHL GameScore Impact Card for New Jersey Devils on 2023-11-16:#NJDevils pic.twitter.com/mfQS5zByQi
— HockeyStatCards (@hockeystatcards) November 17, 2023
Stock Down
Physicality
This seems a bit of a silly thing to put in stock down, but the Rangers game brought out a major flaw in this team. The Devils are not physical. They aren’t tough to play against. And they don’t have any deterrents on the team. This all stems from Jacob Trouba’s hit on Tomas Nosek that caused the Devils forward to leave the game. Not much later Trouba laid another big hit on Michael McLeod. Then in the third period, Alexander Holtz took a hard hit up high. Not a single time did a Devil respond. Even dating back to the hit that knocked Nico Hischier out of the lineup they failed to respond. They don’t need a fourth-line goon in the lineup to fix the problem either. The Devils simply need to respond with physicality in return when a player like Trouba starts taking liberties. It was an issue last year, and it continues to be an issue this year.
Jacob Trouba with a huge hit on Tomas Nosek, who went right to the Devils locker room pic.twitter.com/gjqGkq63pM
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) November 19, 2023
Main Photo Credit: John Jones-USA TODAY Sports
