The Devils should still be in first place in the division when the New Year rolls around. They can solidify that spot in January.
If you asked anyone on October 1, I think being told that the New Jersey Devils would lead the division at 24-12-3 on the day before New Year’s Eve would have made any fan of the team thrilled and excited for what’s to come. Now that the Devils are in the position they find themselves in, though, they have to keep up the pace to avoid slipping and losing momentum come playoff time. A win on Saturday night would have been nice for expanding that lead, but the Washington Capitals kept them in first place with their loss to Detroit last night.
Looking at their January schedule, they have, by far, the easier of their two remaining full months. March is riddled with matchups against playoff teams, with two each against the Wild and Jets, while also playing single matches against the Golden Knights, Stars, and Oilers. March could then turn out to be a playoff preview, if the Devils were to go on a run. Most of the teams they could be expected to meet at the end are opponents at one point or another in that month.
After facing the Ducks, who are 14-17-4, on New Year’s Eve, the Devils continue their road trip by playing the Kings on New Year’s Day, and then the Sharks, Kraken, and Rangers from the 4th to 9th. Only the Kings, at 21-10-5, have a good record among those teams, with the three to follow all under NHL .500. Combined, their January opponent record through their game against New York is 64-69-12 — and that’s including the Kings’ record. If the Devils leave more than two points in this stretch, that would be frustrating, given the talent disparity between them and most of these teams.
The only gauntlet portion of the month is the trio of games with the Lightning, Panthers, and Maple Leafs — though the Devils will only be on the road in Toronto here. But all three of these teams are playing good hockey of late, and their combined record on the season is 64-38-6. They are in a whole different world from the teams the Devils play at the start of the month. Further to that point: all three of these games could serve as part of previews for future playoff series. So, as measuring tape games, the Devils should expect fierce opposition and careful planning from the three veteran coaches (and two probable Hall of Famers) they will be facing.
While you might expect those teams to continue giving the Devils trouble, Panthers mostly excluded, only the Maple Leafs have seen the Devils during their dominant defensive run. If the Devils put on a similar performance against the others, limiting Tampa or Florida to under 20 shots, that would go a long way to proving themselves as an Eastern contender. Finishing the job on Toronto and actually outscoring them when they’re outshot two-to-one would be nice too. In any case, these have not been the same Devils that Tampa beat 8-5 in October, or even 4-0 in November.
The end of the month currently looks like the Devils will be taking on a sea of middling teams, though they can really bury Philadelphia then. After that game against Toronto, the Devils play the Flyers three times in addition to the Senators, Bruins, and Canadiens. The Bruins are the only team in a playoff spot here, though Ottawa is only four points out at the moment, having gone 7-3-0 in their last ten games. The Canadiens and Flyers both have 16 wins and 17 regulation losses, though the Flyers have an extra overtime loss at four. In total, their opponent record for the final stretch of the month, counting Philadelphia three times, is 103-97-21. Even the strong team here, the Bruins, are not a playoff threat in my opinion. They have a negative goal differential, are weakly built at forward, and no longer have stellar goaltending. As it turns out, they gave the better half of their goaltending to the Senators, who struggle with consistency. Personally, I think Pittsburgh will continue improving and have both of them beat by April.
If the Devils were to simply beat every non-playoff team and lose to every playoff team in January, they would go 9-5-0, just about keeping pace with their point accumulation in the first 39 games of the season. But with the Devils playing as well as they have been, 9-5-0 would probably be a disappointment with a monthly schedule this soft. If the Devils play hockey the way they did in December — with a little bit of better luck or less officiating blindness — 10, 11, or 12 wins in the month would not be out of the question. A strong month also means a much stronger likelihood of winning the Metropolitan later in the year.
Most of all, I want the Devils to dominate that stretch from January 9 to January 18, when the Rangers and Flyers bookend the best teams of the Atlantic Division. A strong showing there would help to bury their divisional rivals while showing that the Devils won’t falter against Toronto or Tampa in the playoffs. Sheldon Keefe still needs to beat Jon Cooper and the Lightning, while the next game in Toronto should be payback for Stolarz stealing their last matchup with a stellar goaltending performance. The Devils just need to play the same way they did in December — except for when they run into a hot goaltender. They might just need to grease up for some goals and never give the puck away on those nights.
Your Thoughts
What do you think about the Devils and their ability to take care of weaker teams? Do you think there is anything about the way they play that leads to them being goalie’d so often? What do you think the team and league will be looking like a month from now? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.