Hey, Devils fans!
I hope you all had a Happy Hanukkah and Merry Christmas and enjoyed the holiday break!
STRUGGLING TO FINISH
The finishing struggles continued on the Island on Tuesday, as the Devils only beat David Rittich once despite generating 19 HD Chances and 18 Slot Shots. Rittich ended the game with nearly 3 GSAE – the third straight NJD loss in which the opposing goalie was credited with a steal.
Now, we can sit here and talk about process and opposing goaltending all we want, but at the end of the day, the reality is the Devils have only scored one goal in regulation in 7 of their last 11 games. So, the narrative coming out of the break here is that pucks need to start finding the back of the net for the Devils, regardless of "how it happens."
For me, it's going to start with drawing a FAR higher rate of PP Opportunities – You need a bump from the PP, but they can't find a rhythm if they're not on the ice!
BRETT PESCE
Despite the loss, it was great to see the Peshinator get rewarded for his defensive efforts by finding the back of the net with an absolute SNIPE for the Devils' only goal! Wow, Ovi better keep padding that all-time goals record if Pesh is gonna be shooting the puck like this!
(OK, maybe I shouldn't poke the bear, though, LOL!)
JESPER BRATT
It's no secret that Bratter has been snakebitten lately, but I'm optimistic that the Christmas break injects some vintage Bratter production, seeing he is on an 11-Game Point Streak — with 9 Goals in those 11 GP — in the scenario we are in tonight: the first game back from an in-season 3+ day break.
In the only instance of a game following a 3+ Day Break this season, Bratter snapped a 6-game goal drought (0-2–2 PTS) with an OT Winner at home vs. MTL! And, coincidentally, Bratter happens to be on an identical 6-game goal drought (0-2–2 PTS) entering tonight's game... 👀 🤷♂️
OPPOSING GOALTENDING IS NOT GETTING ANY "EASIER"!
Logan Thompson won 10 straight starts coming out of the Christmas break last season. A young, rested, top-10 goalie in the league… Boy, talk about another major challenge for the Devils, after each of the last three goalies they lost to were credited with a steal and 7 combined GSAE. Hopefully, they can find a way to draw some penalties and get the W against LT for the second time this season.
WSH TRENDS
The Caps went into the break 2-4-3 in their last 9 GP. As much as WSH's 8.3% (#31) PP has hurt them in this stretch, a trend that has been equally haunting them has been their inability to stop the bleeding in a given period. In each of their last three regulation losses, they’ve conceded 3+ Goals in either the 2nd or 3rd Period.
Join Rachel, Rupper, and myself for tonight's pregame show as we deep dive into all of these topics! For anyone going to the game, safe travels!! ❄️
-Sal
Here are some graphics from Tuesday night's broadcast!
