The calendar has turned to 2024 since our last New Jersey Devils stock up/stock down, yet the team continues to bring a mixed bag of results. They ended the year with a back-to-back against the Ottawa Senators and Boston Bruins. To not much surprise, they took down Ottawa 6-2 before blowing a two-goal lead to Boston, losing 5-2.
The Devils then rang in the New Year with a big 6-3 win over the Washington Capitals. Moreover, their season trend on back-to-backs continued as they took care of business against the Chicago Blackhawks 4-2, before falling to the Vancouver Canucks the next night 6-4. Their rollercoaster of a season has continued in 2024, but a run-in with injuries may knock them off the tracks.
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The Third Line
Lindy Ruff is no stranger to putting his lines in a blender. Since he joined the Devils it’s been a common occurrence of him mixing and matching to find what works. A good portion of the time it doesn’t and he reverts to the blender again, but sometimes he finds something that clicks. And it seems he found that magic when he decided to have Michael McLeod centre Alexander Holtz and Curtis Lazar. It’s an odd trio, but it has been wildly effective since coming together against Washington. In the three games together, they’ve managed to account for four goals. Through 50 minutes of ice time together they have put up the eighth-highest Expected Goals Percentage on the team at 56.6%. McLeod, who is having far and away the best season of his career, has greatly elevated the play of Holtz, who has a goal and three assists in the past three games. The likelihood of them staying together for long is slim, but in the meantime, the results have been favourable.
My goodness, Michael McLeod! 🤯
📺: @NHL_On_TNT & @SportsonMax ➡️ https://t.co/W9mpYG1lMO pic.twitter.com/QyVWTjWW1Z
— NHL (@NHL) January 4, 2024
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Injuries
The list of injuries the Devils have had this season is head-spinning. The list of injuries to key players grows almost daily. Since our last stock up/stock down, Timo Meier has been added to IR with a middle-body injury. Ondrej Palat and Jack Hughes have been out with upper-body injuries. And most recently, Jonas Siegenthaler broke his foot blocking a shot. In a week the Devils lost four massive contributors and have over $36 million worth of players out with injuries. It’s unclear how long everyone will be out for, but the Devil’s depth will be tested, and it may be a matter of time before GM Tom Fitzgerald decides to make a move.
Devils absolutely going THROUGH it right now 😳
(h/t @GianniNJD) pic.twitter.com/c2JzNDYlQd
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) January 7, 2024
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Simon Nemec
Much of the praise goes to the impact fellow rookie Luke Hughes has had on the team. However, over the last few games, it’s been Simon Nemec who has been making the impact. He hasn’t put up the gaudy offensive numbers like Hughes, but he is as positionally sound and smart as you could ask a 19-year-old to be. While he’s not averse to rookie mistakes now and again, his game is mature beyond his years, and has been one of the more reliable defensemen this season. And over the past handful of games, he’s been rewarded with a couple of points. Nemec picked up a gorgeous assist on a give-and-go with Alexander Holtz, as well as scoring the game-tying goal in the same game against Chicago. While it may be unfair, the Devils are going to have to heavily lean on Nemec with all of the injuries to the defence.
Welcome to the Simon Snipeshow Era. pic.twitter.com/3xUj2xwxEz
— New Jersey Devils (@NJDevils) January 6, 2024
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The Upcoming Schedule
Unfortunately for the Devils with all the injuries pilling up, the schedule doesn’t get any lighter. The rest of the month is shaping up to be a gauntlet. Seven of the nine games remaining will be against playoff teams, or teams just on the cusp of a spot. Next up is a three-game road trip against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Florida Panthers, and Boston Bruins. They do have two “easier” games against the Montreal Canadiens and Columbus Blue Jackets, but then finish up with the Dallas Stars and Vegas Golden Knights at home, before heading out to face the Carolina Hurricanes and Tampa Bay one more time. It’s about as brutal of a schedule in about as difficult of a time with all the injuries. However, if this beaten and battered Devils team can put together positive results and stay in the playoff picture, then that could catapult them for a playoff push in the second half of the season.
Main photo: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
