Who Are These New Jersey Devils and Where Have They Been All Season?
The New Jersey Devils have played four games since returning from the All-Star break without a loss. They have outscored their opponents 19-12 over that span. Yes, those boring, trapping Devils are averaging almost five goals a game since the break. Where did this sudden offensive explosion coming from?
It’s simple…it’s been there all along, but has taken until now for the team to begin playing up to their full potential. After taking care of the New York Rangers, Montreal Canadiens, Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins back-to-back it’s hard to ignore how far the Devils offense has come.
Leading the Devils offensive surge is Ilya Kovalchuk. He was named the NHL’s ‘Second Star of the Week’ after posting three consecutive three point games. Kovalchuk has elevated his game to a whole new level and has taken the Devils with him.
Don’t believe me? Just ask David Clarkson. He summed it up best when he called Kovalchuk a “heart and soul guy” after New Jersey’s 5-2 win over the Penguins on Sunday.
Clarkson also added, “He flies out there. He’s always been a guy who finds the net and makes plays. He’s a positive guy in the room, whether we’re winning or losing. It’s great to see him doing well, and that’s why we’re doing well.” Pretty powerful words from a teammate.
Kovalchuk is not alone. Zach Parise, Patrik Elias and Clarkson have all been hot. In fact, since the break Elias, Parise, Clarkson and Kovalchuk have combined for 28 points. Even Anton Volchenkov scored a goal, his first since April of 2010 when he was still an Ottawa Senator. That now gives him exactly one more goal than former-Devil Scott Gomez.
Head coach Pete Deboer once again looks like a genius. Deboer had not messed with the lines all that much this season but injuries forced him to shuffle bodies around. So far it has paid off with balanced scoring throughout the line-up. I may be alone, but I can’t say enough good things about how well he understands his teams tendencies.
The Devils are one point shy of the 5th spot in the Eastern Conference and climbing. New Jersey is finally playing up to their opponents skill level. Earlier in the year they were allowing higher seeded teams to walk all over them. Now it looks as though the tables have turned.
It’s odd seeing 5-3, 6-4 and 5-2 in the box score instead of the usual 1-0, 3-2 and my favorite, 2-1 OT scores. I’m okay with it though. I’ll try as hard as I can to get used to it. If they continue to score at this pace there won’t be a team in the NHL that will want to face New Jersey in the playoffs.
Follow me on Twitter! @StevePalumboNHL
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