Mike Brown

RECAP PROS Hughes actually looked decent tonight Gusev is legit HHP line was great Blackwood looked good Overall, the effort was good and a step in the right direction. CONS The PK The late period penalties killed the Devils Too many dumb plays Subban has not been good at all GOALS FOR Goal 1 Beautiful shot by Palmieri Goal 2 Great play by Bratt, and a great one timer by Gusev Goal 3 Severson took a shot earlier in the shift that missed the net, but it got the Oilers scrambling which is why taking shots from long ranger is good Good work by Hall and Hischier to set up Severson GOALS AGAINST Goal 1 Too much space for the McD line Blackwood had no chance Goal 2 Bad pk Blackwood had no chance with the deflection. Goal 3 Shooting the puck and crashing the net still works in creating garbage goal opportunities. Can't fault Blackwood 5 on 5 POSSESSION CF: 44 to 29 FF: 33 to 19 SF: 26 to 14 SCF: 20 to 11 HDCF: 6 to 1 ALL SITUATIONS CF: 54 to 41 FF: 40 to 29 SF: 31 to 22 SCF: 25 to 17 HDCF: 9 to 3

Nothing to recap tonight. There was nothing about this game to evaluate.

PROS This team is very fast and very skilled. Effort was very good from start to finish. CONS Schneider's injury. Hynes's bad system. 2 GA from point shots Not enough pressure on the opposing puck carriers. Allowing too much speed through the neutral zone GOALS AGAINST A hard point shot that deflected off something. Schneider had no chance. A rebound right to their guy that Severson failed to collect. Again, Schneider really had no chance. Piss poor defensive zone play where they tried too hard to make passes out of the zone instead of just keeping it simple due to a bad coaching system. Stoppable shot, but Blackwood coming in cold makes it hard to blame him there. Again, piss poor d-zone play where they couldn't clear due to them looking to make plays out of the zone instead of just chipping it out or icing it. Another point shot with a screen that could have been stopped, but the bad d-zone system is mostly to blame. 5 ON 5 POSSESSION CF: 44 to 42 FF: 39 to 36 SF: 29 to 27 SCF: 19 to 26 HDCF: 10 to 8 ALL SITUATIONS POSSESSION CF: 61 to 50 FF: 55 to 42 SF: 39 to 30 SCF: 32 to 28 HDCF: 11 to 9

RECAP PROS How do you spell relief? C-O-R-Y Seriously, great for Schneider Dude deserved it. Nico with 3 points. Erika's fuzzy sweater CONS Kinkaid

RECAP PROS Zacha with a point Nico with 2 points CONS Coaching The stupid passive system is literally the reason why the Devils can never clear the zone, and it literally is why the Rangers scored their two goals in the 3rd. Rangers had way too easy of a time keeping the puck in the zone due to the fact there are no Devils along the boards or applying pressure on the points. The defensemen are not the problem either. They're actually doing a good job. The forwards are the problem, but ironically enough it's also not their fault. The forwards are the problem because of how the system has them positioned rather than the actual players doing anything wrong.

RECAP Pros Erika looked incredibly pretty with those curls in her hair. Cons The hockey game Other Notes I'm glad Dano mentioned Palmieri's reluctance to shoot from the RW side. It's something I've really noticed about him It's probably just a comfort thing for him. GOALIE AND DEFENSE Goal 1 Not a good rebound Goal 2 Blakwood was screened No chance for Blackwood Goal 3 Perfect shot No chance for Blackwood 5 ON 5 POSSESSION CF: 36 to 26 FF: 28 to 17 SF: 19 to 12 SCF: 16 to 10 HDCF: 3 to 6 5 ON 5 SVA POSSESSION CF: 32.13 to 28.21 FF: 25.33 to 18.48 SF: 17.29 to 12.89 SCF: 13.99 to 11.01 HDCF: 2.67 to 6.55

Updated the OP.

RECAP PROS Blackwood was good CONS Coaching has been responsible for the past 2 losses. I must preface this by saying Hynes is a good coach, but he has just ONE minor flaw, and this one minor flaw is literally the only reason for this team's struggles. Those first two goals don't happen if you don't allow them to take those point shots to begin with That's the attention needs to be, and not in the area in front of the net. Yes it is important to clear the front of the net, but it's more important to not even allow those shots to be taken! Stop gliding into their players on the point and the boards, and actually apply real pressure! Gliding, giving back rubs, and waving your stick will accomplish nothing! They need to get in the faces of point shooters They need to play the body hard along the boards This has nothing to do with defensive zone awareness or focus like Dano thinks it is. This is literally the way the coaches tell the players to play. The system is all about trying to contain rather than actually play the body or put on any kind of pressure. Also, stop trying to make perfect breakout passes. Do the high flip if necessary! Ice the puck if necessary! Stop hanging on to the puck waiting for something to open up. Don't even get me started on the offensive zone mindset So many times they had a chance to blast the puck on net with a hard shot, and they did not take it. They need to stop worrying about bodies in front and just blast it when there's a chance If there's traffic, then SHOOT IT! If there's no traffic, then still SHOOT IT! The only time this team even attempts a long range shot is when they try for a deflection. Deflections and tips shouldn't be "tried for." And the shot they take is usually a weak wrister! The only time to not shoot it is when there's a guy right in your face, or if you're off balanced / crossed up. 11 fvcking shots combined in the final 2 periods when you're down by 3 is a fvcking joke! Islanders played well defensively, but no team is THAT good defensively that a team can't get more shots on net. No team can defend against simple plays, and simple plays is all you need to get shots on net. Don't focus on shot quality, focus on QUANTITY! If you get enough QUANTITY, the QUALITY will come eventually. Taking a lot of low danger shots does NOT in any way deprive a team from getting high quality chances. In fact, you can make the argument taking a lot of low danger shots actually CREATES more high danger chances! These two losses are both due to poor coaching which is a shame because Hynes is actually a really good coach. And don't even give me the "no Hall" excuse either. This roster is plenty good enough to be a playoff team. If this team played more like Carolina, Vegas, Columbus, or the Islanders, they'd be a much better team. No, Carolina is not there by accident. They do everything well, but their goaltending has let them down. It's been their only issue for the past 8 or 9 years. What those teams do different than the Devils is they don't RELY on talent to win games Talent is a great weapon, but you never want to have a system in place that is reliant on talent. IE, you don't want a system that relies on low percentage plays. OTHER NOTES If there's a reason to hesitant to re-sign Hall long term, it's his injury history. Also this team desperately needs more shooters than guys who hang on to the puck too long. GOALIE AND DEFENSE Goal 1 Blue line shot, tipped in front No chance for Blackwood. Goal 2 Blue line shot, albeit a weaker shot, deflected in front. Definitely nothing Blackwood could do. Goal 3 Power play goal where Eberle goes completely unimpeded Stoppable, but with the screen you can't really blame Blackwood 5 on 5 POSSESSION CF: 34 to 50 FF: 22 to 35 SF: 14 to 22 SCF: 17 to 22 HDCF: 7 to 10 5 ON 5 SVA POSSESSION CF: 31.37 to 54.54 FF: 20.68 to 37.48 SF: 13.19 to 23.6 SCF: 16.24 to 23.02 HDCF: 6.79 to 10.18

RECAP PROS This team has better forward depth than they were given credit for. There were no passengers tonight The middle 6 are beastly. Defensively, they weren't as bad as you might think. They gave up a whopping 3 high danger chances all game. CONS Blackwood had a rough game. Too many penalties early Careless decisions with the puck OTHER NOTES Congrats to Rooney Hopefully Wood is ok Whoever gets the net tomorrow is ok by me On one hand, you want to see what kind of mental fortitude Blackwood has On the other hand he just came back from IR, and you might wanna be cautious with him. GOALIE AND DEFENSE ANALYSIS GOAL 1 Nice shot by Kane Blackwood should make that save GOAL 2 Bad goal by Blackwood GOAL 3 Horrible miscommunication by Blackwood and Vatanen Nice shot by Seabrook Could have been stopped, but would have required a great save GOAL 4 Bad goal by Blackwood GOAL 5 Nice shot by Saad Tough save to make for Blackwood 5 ON 5 POSSESSION CF: 47 to 48 FF: 41 to 36 SF: 35 to 30 SCF: 27 to 22 HDCF: 11 to 3 5 ON 5 SVA POSSESSION CF: 49.7 to 43.81 FF: 42.72 to 33.32 SF: 36.63 to 27.92 SCF: 27.63 to 21 HDCF: 10.85 to 2.97

As of 1/18/19 with 35 games remaining Current odds: 0.9% Remaining Games Scenarios 95 Points (64.2%) 26-9-0 25-8-2 24-7-4 23-6-6 22-5-8 96 Points (77.8%) 26-8-1 25-7-3 24-6-5 23-5-7 22-4-9 97 Points (88%) 27-8-0 26-7-2 25-6-4 24-5-6 23-4-8 98 Points (94.5%) 27-7-1 26-6-3 25-5-5 24-4-7 23-3-9 99 Points (97.9%) 28-7-0 27-6-2 26-5-4 25-4-6 24-3-8 100 Points (99.4%) 28-6-1 27-5-3 26-4-5 25-3-7 24-2-9 101 Points (99.8%) 29-6-0 28-5-2 27-4-4 26-3-6 25-2-8 102 Points (99.9 - 100%) 29-5-1 28-4-3 27-3-5 26-2-7 25-1-9 103 Points (99.9 - 100%) 30-5-0 29-4-2 28-3-4 27-2-6 26-1-8 104 Points (LOCK) 30-4-1 29-3-3 28-2-5 27-1-7 26-0-9

RECAP Pros Nico scored Lovejoy's goal was nice Cons Kinkaid was bad. Execution on plays was bad. GOALIE AND DEFENSE Goal 1 Stupid play by Zacha Terrible goal by Kinkaid Goal 2 WTF was Kinkaid even doing?! BTW, the key difference between this call and the Williams call was that Williams was deep in the crease while the Vegas player wasn't. The crease still matters, and the refs have been calling this pretty consistently You cannot screen goalies in the crease like Williams did So both the Williams call and this call were made correctly! Goal 3 Amazing what happens when you shoot the puck and crash Not Kinkaid's fault. 5 on 5 POSSESSION CF: 55 to 50 FF: 38 to 34 SF: 31 to 24 SCF: 27 to 20 HDCF: 6 to 8 5 on 5 SVA POSSESSION CF: 56.59 to 47.32 FF: 38.94 to 32.17 SF: 31.82 to 22.82 SCF: 28.56 to 18.72 HDCF: 6.33 to 7.18

RECAP

RECAP PROS Hischier played a real strong game. Zajac line looked really good. Wood looked solid. The PK was awesome. Greene and Lovejoy were both excellent which is par for the course on the season. Stafford's shootout move was sick CONS Solid effort overall, but pretty underwhelming. Still making some bad mistakes Undisciplined penalties Blackwood injury GOALIE AND DEFENSE Goal 1 Awful play by Zacha Nice move by whichever Coyote scored Goal 2 Bad pinch Bad goal for Kinkaid to give up 5 ON 5 POSSESSION CF: 43 to 35 FF: 36 to 24 SF: 27 to 17 SCF: 19 to 10 HDCF: 9 to 5 5 ON 5 SVA POSSESSION CF: 44.56 to 33.46 FF: 38.28 to 23.05 SF: 27.75 to 16.29 SCF: 20.13 to 9.53 HDCF: 9.54 to 4.73

I have no issue with this. He's a good coach, and he gets a lot out of his team.

RECAP PROS Zajac was good Palmieri was good 4th line looked good CONS Miles Wood deserves to either be benched or suspended for that awful penalty. It was incredibly late the coaching staff has not done enough to reel him in. This is all on the coaching staff and their god awful coaching philopsophy. Containment and zone defenses do not work in the NHL! Gliding into the pointmen is BAD! Gliding to the boards is BAD! Not pursuing the puck when it's loose along the boards is BAD! Keeping the puck to the perimeter is BAD! THE KEY TO PLAYING DEFENSE PROPERLY IS CONSTANT PRESSURE ON THEIR PUCK CARRIER THE IDEA IS TO GET THE PUCK OUT OF YOUR ZONE IT'S MORE IMPORTANT THAN JUST PROTECTING THE FRONT OF THE NET FUNNY THING IS, GOOD COACHES ACTUALLY KNOW HOW TO DO BOTH PRESSURE THE PUCK AND KEEP THE FRONT OF THE NET CLEAN WHY DOES HYNES NOT KNOW HOW TO DO BOTH? Hanging on to the puck and relying on skill plays do not work in the NHL! Simple plays like chipping the puck in and out, creating 50 50 puck races, shooting the puck, is the proper way to play with the puck in this league Why did Bratt not fire that puck on net when he had possession of it at the end of the game? Players deserve tons of blame too Why are those cross ice passes and backdoor passes getting through? They were awful with their sticks and positioning in this game defensively. GOALIE AND DEFENSE Goal 1 Zacha did a bad job on Benn Blackwood had no chance Goal 2 Blackwood got embarrassed there He needs to be a bit more steady and rely on his size. Goal 3 No excuse for that pass to get to Seguin No chance for Blackwood Goal 4 No excuse for Seguin to be that open Stoppable, but would have been a highlight reel save Goal 5 Absolutely deplorable that Heiskanen was able to just walk in like that Stoppable, but again would have required a highlight save. 5 ON 5 POSSESSION CF: 35 to 47 FF: 27 to 33 SF: 23 to 31 SCF: 20 to 27 HDCF: 10 to 14 5 ON 5 SVA POSSESSION CF: 33.7 to 46.23 FF: 26.36 to 32.12 SF: 22.39 to 30.17 SCF: 19.79 to 25.94 HDCF: 10.07 to 13.19

RECAP Pros It feels odd to say they stole a game that ended up 4-0, but they managed to steal this game But we've been on the other side far too often We're proving that this team is more than just Hall. They actually kept the PP simple, and set up simple shots / one timers! Neither of the 2 PP goals were from high danger areas on the ice, so it shows the value in getting hard shots on net. Miles Wood is looking like the Miles Wood of last year. Another strong game from Greene and Lovejoy Zacha with another goal Defensemen getting points I hate the "keep everything to the outside" philosophy, but if you're gonna use that mentality they played it really well today. Cons The 2nd period was bad It's a bad idea to let the other team possess the puck at will along the boards and at the points. The first line was relatively quiet GOALIE AND DEFENSE I thought they did a great job protecting Blackwood today. More a team shutout than a goalie shutout imo, but man do you see the difference between a team with good goaltending as opposed to bad goaltending? 5 ON 5 POSSESSION CF: 32 to 47 FF: 24 tp 33 SF: 15 to 22 SCF: 15 to 21 HDCF: 7 to 6 5 ON 5 SVA POSSESSION CF: 33.4 to 44.1 FF: 24.83 to 31.43 SF: 15.66 to 21.16 SCF: 15.04 to 20.32 HDCF: 6.73 to 5.91

Greene is actually still good at those things. Those skills don't go away. His skating and puck skills are what deteriorated. Santini is still way too young to give up on. Vatanen has been fine. Yes we do need a top pairing defensemen, but by no means does that mean our current group has been bad. They've all been quite good. It is the coaching system that's making them look bad, not their actual play.

Outside of Palmieri, who else is a pure goal scorer? Johansson, Bratt, and Zajac are all pass first guys. Too many playmakers, not enough shooters.

Zacha's underlying defensive numbers are pretty beastly. Also, if I'm gonna be completely honest Barzal is not the player this team needs. Dude had 4 goals in his first 33 games and I doubt he'd have the points he currently has playing on the Devils. He has 8 points in his last 4 games including a hatty last night, but he's a playmaker first and foremost, and the Devils have plenty of those. If we're gonna play the hindsight game, Rantanen is the guy we should be kicking ourselves for not taking. You can even make a case for Provorov. Greene might scare you every time he has the puck, but considering he's a bottom 4 defensemen being asked to play top pairing minutes he's doing a fine good job. His underlying numbers are really good, and he passes MY eyetest.

RECAP PROS Zacha once again was a beast. For all the criticism he gets, he's probably equally as impactful defensively as Barzal is offensively. Andy Greene has really been good all year, and today was no exception. I haven't seen a player get more undeserved hate than Greene has this year. Even Lovejoy's hate wasn't nearly as unwarranted as Greene's hate this year. Blackwood The GI call was correct. Williams had no business being in the crease, and the contact he made was enough contact to get that goal waved off. CONS Nothing major except for the two times Aho got free. Also a couple of the penalties were unnecessary. GOALIE AND DEFENSE Obviously they were excellent today. 5 ON 5 POSSESSION CF: 41 to 47 FF: 32 to 36 SF: 19 to 30 SCF: 15 to 14 HDCF: 7 to 8 5 ON 5 SVA POSSESSION CF: 40.47 to 47.32 FF: 31.4 to 36.33 SF: 18.69 to 30.32 SCF: 14.48 to 14.41 HDCF: 6.66 to 8.28

RECAP Pros Zacha looked great again tonight. The pucks will start going in on a more regular basis if he keeps up this play. Nobody had a bad game tonight This game really showed why the Bruins would have been the best matchup for the Devils in the playoffs last year The Bruins have trouble with the Devils speed, and last year the Devils actually dominated the Bruins in all 3 games. Blackwood was amazing. Hynes needs to just run with him for now. Now is the best time for the Devils to get back into the race if they're ever gonna do it. The next 6 games are winnable with 4 are against weak teams, and then 2 games against Vegas and Buffalo who are both good, but far from elite. Cons They almost got burned a few times by trying to make plays rather than keeping it simple. 5 ON 5 POSSESSION CF: 39 to 61 FF: 35 to 44 SF: 26 to 35 SCF: 18 to 22 HDCF: 10 to 7 5 ON 5 SVA POSSESSION CF: 44.07 to 52.02 FF: 39.07 to 38.28 SF: 28.78 to 30.67 SCF: 20.48 to 18.6 HDCF: 11.43 to 5.87

RECAP PROS Zacha looked good. The overall effort was good. Blackwood was good. CONS Coaching lost this game It was inexcusable not starting Blackwood For whatever reason, this coaching staff babies the kids far too much. The stupid d-zone system was responsible for the first two goals against Allowing opposing players all that time to make a play with the puck along the boards allowed those two backdoor goals In fact, the 3rd Columbus goal was a result of what happens when you pressure the puck carrier along the boards. Hall being pressured got the puck knocked off his stick, and away went Panarin. And WTF was that 5 on 3? Just set up simple one timers. Trying to force the puck to the middle makes life so easy on the PK'ers. GOALIE AND DEFENSE RECAP Goal 1 Vatanen (not his fault because of the coaching system) doesn't pressure Panarin, he gets a pass to Atkinson for an easy goal. Nothing Kinkaid could do. Goal 2 Coleman (not his fault because of the coaching system) doesn't pressure whoever it was, he gets a pass to Bjorkstrand for an easy goal What was Kinkaid even doing on his stomach? Goal 3 Hall gets pressured in the o-zone which forces a turnover and Panarin is let loose on a breakaway Kinkaid lets in a terrible goal albeit it was a tricky shot 5 ON 5 POSSESSION CF: 54 to 33 FF: 44 to 27 SF: 31 to 18 SCF: 28 to 13 HDCF: 8 to 5 5 ON 5 SVA POSSESSION CF: 45.46 to 38.28 FF: 37.67 to 30.81 SF: 26.18 to 20.46 SCF: 23.62 to 15.03 HDCF: 6.7 to 5.77

I don't consider that being too fancy.

RECAP PROS Hard fought game. Kinkaid looked stellar. The Zacha line looked impressive. Johansson is really playing well. 3 out of a possible 4 points against these two teams in a back to back is something you'll take every time. MOST IMPORTANTLY, ERIKA LOOKED REALLY PRETTY TONIGHT! CONS Not enough shots in the 3rd. Still not setting up simple one timer plays on the powerplay. Bratt is still trying to be too fancy in shootouts and overall. DEFENSE AND GOALIE ANALYSIS Goal 1 Bratt kind of got caught betwixt and between Nothing Kinkaid could do OVERALL Kinkaid was great, and overall they did a good job limiting chances from Nashville. 5 ON 5 POSSESSION CF: 40 to 45 FF: 30 to 37 SF: 23 to 25 SCF: 11 to 28 HDCF: 7 to 11 5 ON 5 SVA POSSESSION CF: 39.53 to 46.03 FF: 30 to 37.37 SF: 22.8 to 25.33 SCF: 11.19 to 27.55 HDCF: 7.21 to 10.65

RECAP PROS The entire effort was great. John Quenneville was incredibly impressive tonight. Wood actually did some positive things. Johansson looked good. This game proves that shooting the puck a lot can wear down opponents, and is the most reliable way to win games. This game also proves luck can change from game to game. CONS Schneider is done. Dude has no lateral movement anymore, and is clearly affected by his hip surgeries. Vatanen did some WTF things with the puck. GOALIE AND DEFENSE EVALUATION Goal 1 Absolutely no effort by Schneider and Vatanen also played that pretty weak as well. Goal 2 A little bit of a defensive breakdown, because Severson tried keeping the play alive, but not egregious. I also thought Severson was a little soft coming back. Nothing Schneider could really do. Goal 3 Schneider has never been a guy who really handled initial shots all that well. It was a little bit of bad luck, but man he needs to catch that. Goal 4 Kinkaid was completely screened. 5 on 5 POSSESSION CF: 55 to 31 FF: 46 to 24 SF: 34 to 18 SCF: 26 to 18 HDCF: 3 to 7 5 on 5 SVA POSSESSION CF: 46.73 to 35.06 FF: 39.83 to 26.89 SF: 29.51 to 19.92 SCF: 22.71 to 20.55 HDCF: 2.52 to 7.91