Here are my quick hits following the Devils' 5-2 W in MIN, heading into tonight's rematch back at home:
Outstanding Win
What a fun, exciting game it was to call on Saturday night in Minnesota. You had to love the fact that the Devils wasted no time to flip the script on the script on the WPG game, taking a commanding 2-0 lead in the opening 5:46 of the first period. By the end of the night, there were plenty of big stories to come out of this game, but how could you not start with the Captain, who led the way with his second career hat trick and set a new career high in goals in the process. And yes, Marky battling between the pipes (and getting feisty!) to pick up his first set of consecutive wins since December was equally outstanding. Rachel and I will talk about both of these topics more in-depth during tonight's pregame show, but for me, there was one takeaway from this game that stands out the most – and that was the way the Devils met the moment of the physicality of this game. The emotion this team played with, including Marky, was palpable to Bill, Dano, and myself up in the booth from start to finish. This game was exactly what the Doctor ordered for the Devils, and hopefully, they can build off it tonight at home.
The "Home Stretch" Starts Tonight
Well, you went into Minnesota's building (where they had won 4 of their previous 5 games) and took care of business, but now it’s time to get the job done on home ice. A few articles back, I talked about the fact that this final stretch of home games is setting up to be a tremendous opportunity for the Devils to establish themselves as a dangerous team at the Rock going into the playoffs. Unfortunately, since that night, the Devils have been winless in each of their three GP at home.
At this point of the season, with 6 of your remaining 7 games being at the Prudential Center, it’s now or never to elevate your game here on home ice. You need to start showing playoff teams around the league that it’s going to be a long night when they come into the Rock because, quite frankly, you've done the complete opposite since the New Year.
Wild Road Struggles
Now, look, on the other side of things, the reality is that you’re looking at a MIN group that has struggled immensely on the road since the start of February. This is a team that, over their last two road games (in DAL & VAN), haven’t found a way to score a single goal at even strength. Looking at the graphic below, it’s pretty breathtaking to see these numbers, considering MIN was the best road team in the league – by a significant margin, nonetheless – before this stretch. For these reasons, it will be extremely critical tonight that the Devils come out and dictate early in the game, just like they did in Minnesota, to keep the Wild feeling unsure of themselves. Make no mistake: if you give them a reason to rediscover their road game again, they’re going to make you pay.
Be sure to tune in to our pregame show tonight as I chat ice-side with Johnny Kovacevic during pregame skate. Then, I'll join Rachel at the desk as we break down Marky showing fight, the Captain's hat trick and career year, and keys to another W vs. MIN. It all starts at 6:30 p.m. on MSGSN!
Let's Go Devils!
-Sal
Here are some graphics from Saturday night's broadcast!
