The New Jersey Devils looked to remain undefeated at home on Monday night as Matthew Schaefer and the New York Islanders came into town. While that was not the case, they still earned a point as they fell 3-2 in overtime.
Related: Islanders Hand Devils Their First Home Loss with 3-2 Overtime Victory
Rush Offense Struggles (Playing Ping-Pong)
The Devils had just one opportunity off the rush all game, which belonged to Ondrej Palat. Postgame, forward Timo Meier described the game being played as “ping-pong”, as neither team was able to sustain any significant offensive zone time for long stretches.
“That’s not the style of game we want to play,” said Meier. “We got in the [offensive] zone, we got a shot from the outside and then went the other way…didn’t do a good enough job…that’s something we have to look at and keep building.”
With the parity in the National Hockey League, there’s no team that could consistently be defeated if you fail to play your best game. But it’s no reason for long-term concern, and frankly, the Islanders’ defense — and goaltender Ilya Sorokin — did play well and deserve some credit. The Devils are one of the better rush teams and this should simply be seen as a down night. Even with the struggles, they still notched a point.
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