Last night the New Jersey Devils were eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs by the Carolina Hurricanes. The squad fell on a power play goal in overtime, 3-2, losing the series in five games. The loss was their closest of the playoffs.
Recap
Period One
The Devils came out flying, getting the first couple chances. The Hurricanes would get the momentum and a power play, where Jesper Fast missed an open net. Fast would make up for that later.
However, it was the Devils who end up being the first on the board, as Dawson Mercer knocked home a great pass from Timo Meier. After a late Carolina flurry that the Devils survived, they would lead 1-0 after one.
Period Two
The second didn’t start out ideal for the Devils, as a Jaccob Slavin point shot hit a body in front and deflected in five-hole. Later on, the Devils would head on the power play and Timo Meier would whack the puck home just eight seconds in. Meier would later miss an open net on a setup from Hughes.
The Devils dominated a large majority of the period, but Brent Burns would pick up a puck late and fire it home to tie the game at two. That would be the score heading to the third.
Period Three
The Devils and ‘Canes both came out swinging in the third, but neither could capitalize. The Hurricanes had a ton of pressure and many great chances in the final five, but Schmid and New Jersey stood strong and kept the game tied. Overtime up next in Raleigh.
Overtime
Both sides exchanged some great chances to begin the overtime. Eventually, Tomas Tatar made a poor decision to pass the puck back to a pressured Jonas Siegenthaler who had to send it out of play.
On that ensuing power play Carolina scored as Jesper Fast made a nice play to tip the puck past Schmid and make up for his miss earlier. Carolina wins the game 3-2 and the series 4-1.
Game Notes
Looking Forward
The Devils have a ton of work to do this summer, with over 20 players on expiring deals. Jesper Bratt, Timo Meier, Michael McLeod, and Jesper Boqvist are just a few of the restricted free agents. Damon Severson, Ryan Graves, Tomas Tatar and Erik Haula are just a few of the unrestricted free agents.
While the Devils will have the third most cap space in the NHL, general manager Tom Fitzgerald certainly has his work cut out for him. Without a first round selection either, it’ll be interesting to see how this off-season goes for New Jersey.
Keeping Up
The Devils actually had one of the best playoffs of any team by possession metrics. The team led the NHL in expected goals for percentage (xGF%) at 54.24. Their weakness came from goaltending and finishing, the team had the highest expected goals differential, but lowest actual goal differential.
Most of this does come from the fact that they had one loss that wasn’t by three or more, but it still tells a story. The Devils are a good team and will be back here soon.