See what happens when Quinn Hughes is in the building? The New Jersey Devils play great hockey.
Now, if only he was doing that in red and black.
However, that shouldn’t take away from the Devils’ body of work on Monday night. New Jersey snapped a four-game skid in the most unlikely of games on their four-game road trip.
It was some of the best hockey we’ve seen the Devils play in months and was reminiscent of the team we saw win eight straight games.
Now, by no means should anyone say, “We’re so back.”
However, a sign of life is certainly a welcome one, just four points out of the Wild Card.
The last time the Devils won a big game, we said it would be one they could point to and say it kickstarted the comeback. We won’t be fools and make that same assumption twice, but winning the first Hughes Bowl located in Minnesota has to mean something, right?
Let’s get to some observations.
Observations
- Head coach Sheldon Keefe opted to bench Simon Nemec to put Dougie Hamilton in the lineup, and it certainly paid off. The Devils star defenseman is in an awkward position right now as he sits in the center of trade rumors. He would rather not leave, but now he’s seemingly being pushed out the door. So, what’s he to do? Up his trade value. And he certainly did that on Monday by playing to his strengths. He was sound in the defensive and neutral zones but was super active in the offensive end of the ice. Hamilton moved his feet, moved the puck with authority, imposed his booming shot, and dished two primary assists. The only thing missing from a signature Dougie game was a booming clapper scored on the power play. Dougie got his revenge on the Devils tonight.
- Staying on the blue line, Johnathan Kovacevic is the man the Devils opted for when they scratched Hamilton last game. His first shift was tough to watch, and I immediately thought, “Uh-oh, the Devils are going to fall behind early here.” Matthew Boldy flew by Kovacevic with the puck on his stick and created an odd-man rush with Ryan Hartman. Hartman couldn’t handle the pass, so the scoring chance was negated. However, for Kovacevic, it’s clear his timing is off. He pinched a bit too high too late and lost his coverage, which put Jonas Siegenthaler in a tough 2-on-1 situation. It’s just his second game, and in a back-to-back situation. We’ll cut him some slack here. The timing and positional awareness should come with more reps.
- Nico Hischier carried the Devils today. He was a factor in four out of their five goals. He specifically won two puck battles along the wall on the Devils’ first goal, scored by Dawson Mercer, and then their second, scored by Ondrej Palat. Then, when Jesper Bratt widened the gap, Hischier didn’t factor in on the scoresheet, but he—wait for it—won yet another puck battle below the goal line, which sent Jack Hughes up the ice, which allowed Bratt the opportunity to score. This very well could have been Hischier’s best game of the season.
- By the way. Two goals for Palat? After he played sub seven minutes on Sunday? Sure, why not? It broke a 20-game goal drought. He needed it. And if he’s not going to be asked to waive his no-trade clause, then he has to start producing. Perhaps he’ll chip in a bit more.
- In their last five games entering Monday, the Wild registered 34, 28, 35, 34, and 36 shots, respectively. Yet, the Devils contained the Wild to just 22 shots on goal on Monday. The Devils were able to suppress shots in two ways. One, they got back to their roots as a heavy puck-possession team. And two, they clogged the slot and limited the Wild to low-danger chances all night. And that certainly plays to New Jersey’s strengths.
- Credit where it’s due, Jacob Markstrom had a solid outing in Minnesota. He fought off some early Wild pressure and helped settle the Devils’ game until they took over possession of the puck and ultimately the lead. For the rest of the game, he wasn’t called on nearly as often. However, when he was, he came up in a few key moments. This is the kind of game the Devils have to play in front of him, however. Limit the activity, and you limit the blunders. 20 saves on 22 shots is on brand for Markstrom, who made 0.88 saves above expected in his 11th win of the season.
