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Good morning Devils fans. Tuesday night’s game in Colorado started strong for the Devils but a trio of unanswered goals for the home team buried the back and forth fight in the scoresheet. The 1st was kicked off with a rushing goal chance started by Tyler Toffoli, who pressured the puck along the boards to release it to teammates. Mike Mcleod would dish it up to John Marino who sent in a pass to Toffoli, finishing it up at the sharp left angle for his 8th of the season. After consistent two way pressure from both sides, Colorado would even it up with 4 minutes left. Following a Timo Meier hooking call, the Avalanche power play would capitalize, seeing Mikko Rantanen notch one with assists from Cale Makar and Nathan MacKinnon. The period would end 1-1.
The 2nd saw more of the even action in the preceding period, with each team grabbing a pair of goals. Ross Colton started off the period’s scoring, grabbing a rebound from a 2-on-1 originally stopped by Vitek Vanacek. After a few strong chances on either side, Meier would find the back of the net during a 4-on-3 powerplay. The man advantage continued due to a game misconduct following a Ross Colton boarding. Unfortunately, Miles Wood would remind his strength as a quick skating penalty killer, grabbing a shorthanded goal following a failed Ondrej Palat pass. Dougie Hamilton would even it up once 3-3 at the point. Two more penalties against the Devils were stopped to keep the score even to wrap up the period.
The 3rd period is where everything fell apart for the Devils. First, a costly and lazy center pass from Chris Tierney led to a Ryan Johannen. A failed neutral zone entry would lead to another goal for the Avalanche, this time for Nathan MacKinnon following a 2-on-1. A long distance shovel from Mikko Rantanen into an empty net was the final nail in the coffin, with the Devils losing 6-3.
HC Lindy Ruff and the team made comments to the media following the loss. Frustration is obviously evident from their sentiments, with Timo saying, ““We didn’t do a good enough job with our puck management and staying above guys, and the end result is odd man rushes against. That’s not how you are going to win games.” That being said, this has been a key issue for most of the season. Simple things like avoiding foolish giveaways, bad marking, rushing decisions, and overall poor defensive play has been a defining factor in a majority of games.
2. Trading or Roster Moves for Defense
Looking at the stats from the game, it’s obvious that defense was our weak spot. Marino and Bahl struggled mightily. All pairs didn’t do great at avoiding collapses under pressure. The question is, do we try to move for someone outside the organization or move up a young prospect to avoid a costly contract? If we do make a trade, we’d have to look at our contracts to see what we can lose and what we gain. One name that pops out is Ondrej Palat. His age and cap may scare off suitors but there has to be a team trying to avoid another rough year or shore up offensive depth. Maybe Detroit, depending on what they would part with.
3. We Need Jack and Nico Back
It’s obvious the identity of this team has been shaken with the losses of the captain and young stud through injuries. Hopefully Nico is coming back in the next game or two with his status as day-to-day. Jack on the other hand will be out for possibly a month. That has to factor into line decisions and team tactics. This could be a great opportunity for Utica prospects to show what they have to play with. I would prefer that over players like Smith and Tierney.
The Devils (7-4-1) return home to face the Washington Capitals (5-4-2) tomorrow night* at the Rock. Puck drops at 7 PM.
*Correction, sorry, mixed up dates
Washington Capitals Line: https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/teams/washington-capitals/line-combinations
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