Published: 8th Jan 12 7:34 am
Charles LeClaire-US PRESSWIRE
The New Jersey Devils have come a long way in the span of a year. After Saturday nights 3-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins, New Jersey improved it’s record to 23-16-2 and jumped to third in the Atlantic Division and fifth overall in the Eastern Conference.
Adam Henrique’s short-handed goal turned the tide of the game. Ilya Kovalchuk and Dainius Zubrus also scored and the Devils handed the Pittsburgh their fourth consecutive loss. The win allowed the Devils to leap over the Penguins in the standings.
Through 41 games a season ago the Devils were a league worst 10-29-2 with a paltry 22 points. John Maclean was fired and replaced with Jacques Lemaire. In an effort to shake things up, New Jersey traded away then-captain Jamie Langenbrunner. There was little doubt the organization appeared to be in total flux.
Fast forward to Saturdays win over the Penguins and New Jersey has metamorphosized into a well rounded group with an entertaining balance of youth and veteran talent. First year head coach Pete Deboer has successfully assembled lines that are cohesive and productive. Deboer went against conventional thinking to pair Ilya Kovalchuk and Zach Parise together. So far his hunch was right. The top line of Kovalchuk, rookie Adam Henrique and Parise has amassed 101 points (41g 60a) placing them among the top offensive lines in the league.
Henrique has also emerged as a legitimate Calder candidate. His 32 points in 38 games is just three shy of Edmonton’s Ryan Nugent-Hopkins for the rookie scoring lead. Many thought Devils top draft pick Adam Larsson would have a chance to take top rookie honors but clearly Henrique is pulling away from the pack.
Despite the overall improvement New Jersey is still a middle of the pack club offensively. To this point they’ve lit the lamp 114 times, well on the way to annihilating the 171 scored over the entire previous season. Again to the credit of Deboer he found a way to get a balanced attack form a nearly identical roster.
The Devils finished the 2010-11 season with just three players on the roster with 20 or more points. At the midway point of the year Jersey’s team already has six players over 20 points and David Clarkson is on the doorstep with 19.
Special teams have aided in the the Devils resurgence. New Jersey has a penalty kill efficiency of 91.4%, good enough for number one in the NHL. They also lead the league in shorthanded goals for with nine. However they still can’t seem to get the power play to click, although they did get a big power play goal from Dainus Zubrus in the win over Pittsburgh. In the second half they will need to cut down on the shorthanded goals against. They have surrendered a league leading 12 thus far and yet to significantly show any signs of improving.
Martin Brodeur has reclaimed his role as the number one goaltender. Brodeur is on a roll winning six of his last seven with the lone loss coming in the 6-1 shellacking the Devils absorbed from the creme de la creme Boston Bruins. He finally have a winning record for the first time since the 2009-10 season. Brodeur stands at 12-10-1 overall with a goals against average of 2.91. His save percentage is a sub-par .894 and to date, the future hall of famer has yet to record a shutout. But, as he did last season, expect a big second half for Marty.
The Devils are in the midst of an 11-4-1 run to close out the first half of the season. They have made tremendous strides to regain respectability and reclaim their spot among the NHL’s elite. If they continue to make adjustments there is no doubt they will be among the top eight in the Eastern Conference.
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