The New Jersey Devils lost 3-1 to the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday night, going down 0-2 in the first-round series. With a heavily depleted lineup, particularly on defense, the Devils put together a much better effort than in game one, which unfortunately yielded the same result: a loss. The Devils travel home to New Jersey for the next two contests, as they try and get themselves back into the series.
Game Recap
Period One
The Devils had a good look early and put a dangerous shot on Frederik Andersen from the circle. Even in the first few minutes, the forecheck looked much better than in game one.
In his first playoff game, Simon Nemec made a nice play to break up a pass, but then got beaten on a rush, leading to a chance that Jacob Markstrom saved.
Dawson Mercer was tripped down without a call, but stayed with the play to get the puck deep into the zone. This immediately led to a goal by Jesper Bratt from in close at 3:51. Erik Haula and Dougie Hamilton had the assists.
The Devils were outshooting the Hurricanes 7-2 through the first eight minutes.
Ondrej Palat was tagged for hooking, but the Devils killed it off without allowing a shot. Johnathan Kovacevic laid a crunching open ice hit on Jackson Blake during the kill, an effective physical play that was missing from game one.
The Devils were tagged for another penalty, a tripping call that Paul Cotter was very unhappy with, but they successfully killed it off, allowing just one shot.
Seth Jarvis had a breakaway attempt, but Brian Dumoulin got back and wiped him out of the play without taking a penalty.
The Devils outshot Carolina 9-6 in the opening 20 minutes.
Period Two
The Hurricanes had an early look after a puck ricocheted off Hamilton’s leg and right to the net front, but Markstrom kept it out.
The Devils were called for icing, and the tired skaters couldn’t clear the zone, leading to the tying goal for the Hurricanes. Shayne Gostisbehere had an initial shot that Markstrom saved, but the puck went right back to him for a second opportunity that was buried at 2:57. Blake and Sebastian Aho had the assists.
Carolina nearly scored again, but Brett Pesce’s stick kept the puck out along the goal line.
The Hurricanes were tagged for their first penalty of the game, but in the battle to win the faceoff, Carolina had a shorthanded two-on-one breakaway that Jordan Martinook scored on at 5:54. Dmitry Orlov had the lone assist.
The Devils had a few good looks on the power play, and Timo Meier and Jalen Chatfield were sent off for roughing. The rest of the power play was killed off.
Bratt made a beautiful play in the o-zone to spin off a defender and get the puck across to Mercer for a one-timer, but Andersen made the save. The Devils had another flurry of chances with Andersen down in the crease, but nothing could cross the line.
Bratt got hacked in the face with a stick, giving the Devils another power play with 6:44 left in the period, but they couldn’t convert.
The Hurricanes had a net drive, and Markstrom made a great save, followed by a brilliant play by Pesce to save a goal. The Devils went the other way and had a few good opportunities from in close, but they couldn’t tie the game.
Justin Dowling had a spinning backhanded chance off the rush but was too close to lift the puck past Andersen.
After the whistle, Brent Burns head-butted Meier, but the officials chose to let it go uncalled. According to the NHL rule book, an attempted head-butt is a double minor, and if contact is made, it’s a major penalty and a mandatory game misconduct.
The Devils were outshot 12-9 in the second frame.
Period Three
Cody Glass got a quick shot on Andersen after a turnover as the Devils came out on the front foot.
Carolina turned the tide, but Hischier was tripped down, giving the Devils a power play. The Devils did everything they could with the man advantage, but couldn’t get the tying goal.
New Jersey was immediately tagged for a tripping penalty, but again killed it off. Pesce had a huge blocked shot that allowed Mercer to clear the zone, and Markstrom came out to make a crucial save at the end of the kill.
Nathan Bastian had a great chance from the slot, but Andersen made the save.
The Devils pulled Markstrom for the extra attacker and had an opportunity with Andersen out of the net, but Meier fanned on the shot.
Off a face-off, the Hurricanes hit the empty net to ice the game and send the series back to New Jersey with a 2-0 advantage in the series.
The Devils were outshot 28-26 in the game.
Takeaways
Improvements
If there was any question of whether the Devils could contend with the Hurricanes without some big names in their lineup, their game two performance showed that the answer is a resounding yes. As a whole, the Devils were much sharper than in game one and outplayed the Hurricanes for long stretches. They were quick to loose pucks and played leaps and bounds better in their o-zone, where they had sustained zone time and had the Hurricanes scrambling on numerous occasions.
Individually, Brett Pesce had an excellent performance. He had six blocked shots, the most of any player on the ice for either team, and made a few crucial plays with his stick to save goals. He did all of this while playing a hefty 23:14 on his off-side with Luke Hughes, Jonas Siegenthaler, and Brenden Dillon all out on New Jersey’s back end.
Jacob Markstrom also had another great performance, saving 25 of 27 shots for a .926 SV%. He did everything he could to give the Devils a chance to even the series, but had no goal support from the offense.
Changes
As the series transitions back to New Jersey, the Devils will need to find more offense. They’ve scored two goals in two games, and that won’t be enough to win anything.
Special teams were the one area where the Devils could gain an advantage and put pucks in the net, but the power play hasn’t looked good. It went 0/2 in game one and 0/3 in game two with a shorthanded goal against. Zone entries are the first area that needs improvement. After a dump-in, the Devils need to get to the loose puck faster, otherwise the Hurricanes can just toss it back out of the zone. New Jersey was better than in game one, but there was still sloppiness that isn’t characteristic of the league’s third-best power play unit.
Additionally, once they gain the zone, the Devils must funnel more pucks toward the net to create bounces. Carolina has a good penalty kill that won’t give easy lanes to the net, so the Devils can’t pass the puck around the perimeter waiting for opportunities. They need a stronger net front presence that can win battles and, more importantly, finish the chances. Games one and two have shown that, regardless of how many infractions are committed, the Devils will only get two or three man-advantage opportunities, and they have to take advantage of those chances.
Power play aside, offense in general has been limited for the Devils. They had more chances in game two, but still only netted one goal. Seamus Casey should be a consideration as the Devils search for offense. If Luke Hughes misses more games, Casey has shown that he is a dynamic playmaker on the back end and has a lethal shot. He has four goals on 12 shots in just 14 NHL games. He also has four assists in that time for eight points and is a +3.
If the coaching staff is still concerned about defensive inexperience, perhaps he could be given a shot as a forward in the bottom six. While it’s a bit unconventional, the Devils currently have two lines that are real scoring threats, which makes Carolina’s strategy a lot easier. Inserting a player with such a good shot into the bottom-six group makes the lineup more balanced and gives the Hurricanes another scoring threat to worry about.
As for experience, it isn’t much, but in college, Casey played a game at center for the University of Michigan. He scored twice and had an assist in the contest.
Up Next
The series heads back to New Jersey and the Prudential Center for two games as the Devils try to claw their way back into the series.
There is hope for New Jersey, as just two seasons ago, the Devils also went down 0-2 to the New York Rangers, before coming back to win the series in seven games.
To boot, the Hurricanes have not been a good road team this season. They heavily rely on the line matchups advantage that comes with home ice, and are well under .500 away from the Lenovo Center, with a 16-21-4 record.
Puck drop is set for 8:00 p.m. EST on MSGSN, TBS, MAX, and FDSNSO.
ITR 34: End Of The Road – Inside The Rink
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