It has been a disappointing season for the New Jersey Devils. Expectations were high that they would make the playoffs and make a deeper run than last season. However, the players did not make it easy on themselves this year, especially in the defensive zone. And when the game is on the line or the points matter, the Devils get sacred, as Timo Meier and Jonas Siegenthaler noted after Tuesday night’s loss.
“We kind of got scared and just stopped playing hockey. didn’t make the plays. They responded and got a better outcome,” Siegenthaler said. “I mean, yes, not making the right plays or just throwing the pucks away. In the future, we have to stick with it even in a tight game. We got to learn that.”
However, this is an old, too familiar tune regarding the Devils and their ability to finish or play a complete game. Former head coach Lindy Ruff talked about this, and it feels like deja vu for a team that had similar issues during the 2019-20 season.
Ruff said best earlier in the season: If the Devils continue to play poorly defensively, they will make it hard on themselves to win games.
He was not wrong. Another third-period collapse up 3-1 to the Pittsburgh Penguins sealed the deal on the Devil’s season and not making the playoffs. It was a long shot, to begin with, but the Devils are committed to playing a certain way for 60 minutes.
The New Jersey Devils did get the initial coaching bump from interim head coach Travis Green. However, they have fallen back into their old selves. This issue of not playing 60-minute games and sticking to the game remains an issue as the season winds down.
“There’s always lessons and a lot of it is just playing solid hockey for 60 minutes and not getting away from it. I think at times our game gets way too loose,” interim head coach Travis Green said. “We don’t bear down in certain areas of the rink. If you play a loose game and you throw pucks away or you’re not hard in front of your net, things are gonna happen, bad things are gonna happen.”
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However, being a young team is no longer an excuse with expectations on them. With any bit of adversity, the team panics and makes mistakes in its defensive end, leading to goals. Understanding situations, the score of the game, and where you need to be in your defensive zone is essential.
“Once they made it 3-3, I don’t think we took charge enough, and they did,” Green said. “And we made some mistakes. We made mistakes you can’t make at this time of year, and they cost you. Make a bad change. We don’t perform on a detail on a faceoff and end up in the back of your net.”
As Siegenthaler noted, the Devils played sacred, and Timo Meier echoed the same thoughts.
“We stopped making plays in the third. I thought we almost looked sacred after they scored,” Timo Meier said. “I think when we’re at our best, everybody wants the puck, and everybody wants to go out there and make plays, and I just thought we weren’t ready.”
Travis Green did not think the team was sacred but more of a lack of confidence in making plays.
“I think the scared part is probably a confident thing more than a scared thing,” Green said. “And when the other team gets momentum, you’re confidence in your ability to make a pass can change.”
The Devils look to regroup tonight, but it is time and time again this season when there is a chance to make things happen; the Devils tighten up and lose focus on when the job is at hand.
The lack of commitment and playing patient hockey is the reason why the Devils find themselves in the position they are in.
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