• HOME
  • NHL Teams
    • North Division
      • Calgary Flames
      • Edmonton Oilers
      • Montreal Canadiens
      • Ottawa Senators
      • Toronto Maple Leafs
      • Vancouver Canucks
      • Winnipeg Jets
    • East Division
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
      • Washington Capitals
    • Central Division
      • Carolina Hurricanes
      • Chicago Blackhawks
      • Columbus Blue Jackets
      • Dallas Stars
      • Detroit Red Wings
      • Florida Panthers
      • Nashville Predators
      • Tampa Bay Lightning
    • West Division
      • Anaheim Ducks
      • Arizona Coyotes
      • Colorado Avalanche
      • Los Angeles Kings
      • Minnesota Wild
      • San Jose Sharks
      • Seattle Kraken
      • St. Louis Blues
      • Vegas Golden Knights
  • Headlines
  • NHL Rumors
  • NHL Prospects
  • World Juniors
  • Archives
  • Podcast Network
  • More…
    • CHL
      • Ontario Hockey League
      • Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
      • Western Hockey League
    • Columns
    • Women’s Hockey
    • Other Leagues
    • NHL Entry Draft
    • Books
    • NHL History
  • Log in
The Hockey Writers
  • Site Index
  • NHL Salary Caps
  • Hockey 101: A Beginner’s Guide
  • Join Our Team
  • Free Newsletter
  • Store
  • Log in
The Hockey Writers
  • HOME
  • NHL Teams
    • North Division
      • Calgary Flames
      • Edmonton Oilers
      • Montreal Canadiens
      • Ottawa Senators
      • Toronto Maple Leafs
      • Vancouver Canucks
      • Winnipeg Jets
    • East Division
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
      • Washington Capitals
    • Central Division
      • Carolina Hurricanes
      • Chicago Blackhawks
      • Columbus Blue Jackets
      • Dallas Stars
      • Detroit Red Wings
      • Florida Panthers
      • Nashville Predators
      • Tampa Bay Lightning
    • West Division
      • Anaheim Ducks
      • Arizona Coyotes
      • Colorado Avalanche
      • Los Angeles Kings
      • Minnesota Wild
      • San Jose Sharks
      • Seattle Kraken
      • St. Louis Blues
      • Vegas Golden Knights
  • Headlines
  • NHL Rumors
  • NHL Prospects
  • World Juniors
  • Archives
  • Podcast Network
  • More…
    • CHL
      • Ontario Hockey League
      • Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
      • Western Hockey League
    • Columns
    • Women’s Hockey
    • Other Leagues
    • NHL Entry Draft
    • Books
    • NHL History
Home
New Jersey Devils

New Jersey’s November Review

By Michael Gwizdala November 30th, 2016

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp

Since the year 2000, 78 percent of teams in a playoff position at American Thanksgiving have qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs. That news bodes well for the New Jersey Devils, who were holding down a playoff spot as a Wild Card team on Turkey Day. It’s somewhat remarkable given long stretches without Taylor Hall and Michael Cammalleri in the lineup.

New Jersey finished November going 6-5-2-1 (15 points), posting an overall ledger of 10-7-5 (25 points). As of this writing, the Devils are fifth in the Metropolitan Division and second in the Wild Card. New Jersey is in the midst of a four-game road trip heading into December.

So how did the Devils reach this point? Let’s take a look at the good, bad and everything else surrounding this season.

The Good

Michael Cammalleri

Despite missing time to attend to his daughter’s illness, Cammalleri’s play has not dropped off when in the lineup. The Devils’ left wing was named the NHL’s second star for the week ending Nov. 27.

SECOND STAR: Michael Cammalleri of @NJDevils led the NHL with four goals and eight points last week (4-4—8). pic.twitter.com/yWut8qI83Q

— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) November 28, 2016

During that stretch, Cammalleri led the league with four goals and eight points in three contests. Cammalleri notched multiple-point games against Toronto, Detroit, and Pittsburgh. Cammalleri also netted a natural hat trick at Carolina on Nov. 6.

Despite missing six games, Cammalleri leads the club with seven tallies and is second with 14 points.

Travis Zajac

Zajac is having himself a solid season. New Jersey’s top center is leading the squad with ten helpers and 15 points and is third with a 52.27 percentage on draws.

Nick Lappin

The Devils’ rookie forward looks like a solid bet to stay in Newark for good. Lappin’s four tallies lead all New Jersey rookies. Lappin has as many goals as Adam Henrique in six fewer games. Watching Lappin play at Albany, I can tell you he has a nose for the net and is a clutch player, and those attributes have carried over to the NHL.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXDZ55qm_M4

Home Sweet Home

New Jersey finished 3-0-1-0 in the Garden State in November. On the season the Devils are 7-0-2 on home ice. The Devils are the only team left in the league without a regulation loss at home this season. New Jersey has outscored opponents 30-22 at “The Rock.” Their home undefeated streak matches that of the 1987-88 squad, which started 8-0-1.

Best Victory

Although their victory against Toronto may have been their most resilient, a Nov. 6 tilt at Carolina was their most dominant. The Devils’ 4-1 victory at the Hurricanes marked their first road win of the campaign and was the start of a five-game winning streak. Cammalleri posted a natural hat trick and Keith Kinkaid preserved the victory with 33 stops.

The Bad

Road Woes

Once again the road is a bugaboo for these Devils. Perhaps they should go old school and rock their red away from home. November saw the Devils post a road ledger of 3-5-1-1.

Power Play Outage

New Jersey suffered a stretch where they went 0-29 with the extra attacker, a stretch spanning nine games. The Devils’ power play ranks No. 24, at 13.7%.

Worst Loss

I may have to reframe this, but their toughest loss came during a 4-3 shootout defeat at the Pittsburgh Penguins. Depending on one’s perspective, the Devils may have been fortunate to exit this game with a point. Kinkaid and the Devils’ defense fended off 46 shots and held the Pens to 0-5 on the power play. Cammalleri staked the club to an early 1-0 lead. After relinquishing the lead early in the second, Vernon Fiddler and Cammalleri struck back and gave New Jersey a 3-2 advantage. Yet with 14 ticks on the clock in the third, Sidney Crosby tickled the twine, sending the contest to overtime and eventually a shootout.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrRwaJ__Qag

Looking Ahead

The December docket has the Devils playing 15 games to finish out the 2016 portion of their schedule. Nine of the 15 contests are on the road, beginning at Chicago and including a four-game swing midway through the month. For the first time this season the Devils will see the Nashville Predators, Vancouver Canucks, Montreal Canadiens, St. Louis Blues, Ottawa Senators, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers and Washington Capitals. If you were playing a matching game with the Devils’ schedule, you’d see they play the Predators, Blues, Rangers, Penguins and Capitals twice apiece in December.

  • Tags
  • Keith Kinkaid
  • Mike Cammalleri
  • Nick Lappin
  • Top Story
  • Travis Zajac
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp

Get theScore App Now!
Recent Posts
Jan 19th 11:24 AM
Archives

They Wore It Once: Bruins Players and Their Unique Numbers

Jan 19th 11:14 AM
Archives

Top-5 Players From France in NHL History

Jan 19th 10:55 AM
Women's Hockey

Metropolitan Riveters 2021 Season Preview

Jan 19th 10:45 AM
Column

Maple Leafs News & Rumors: Andersen, Marner, Spezza & Robertson

Jan 19th 10:35 AM
Philadelphia Flyers

Couturier’s Injury Results in Opportunity for Flyers’ Young Talent

Jan 19th 10:25 AM
Montreal Canadiens

Canadiens Fans & Media Need to Give Drouin His Due

Jan 19th 10:15 AM
All-Star Weekend

1991 NHL All-Star Game & the Gulf War: The Modern NHL in a Time of War

Jan 19th 10:05 AM
Edmonton Oilers

4 Takeaways From the Oilers’ 3-1 Loss to the Canadiens

Jan 19th 9:55 AM
Los Angeles Kings

Kings’ Jeff Carter Playing Much Better After Surgery

Jan 19th 9:45 AM
Toronto Maple Leafs

Maple Leafs’ Takeaways: Andersen’s Back, a New Marner and More D

Editor’s Picks
World Junior Championship All-Time Leading Scorers

World Junior Championship All-Time Leading Scorers

2021 Guide To the World Junior Championship

2021 Guide To the World Junior Championship

Masthead

Newsletters

RSS Feeds

Privacy Statement

Contact Us

About THW…

Founded in 2009, The Hockey Writers is a premier destination for news and information on everything hockey. Updated daily with news and features from over 130 writers worldwide. Over 2 million monthly readers now come to THW for their hockey fix.

© The Hockey Writers 2020. All rights reserved.
logo
  • HOME
  • Hockey Headlines
  • NHL Rumors
  • North Division
    • Calgary Flames
    • Edmonton Oilers
    • Montreal Canadiens
    • Ottawa Senators
    • Toronto Maple Leafs
    • Vancouver Canucks
    • Winnipeg Jets
  • East Division
    • Boston Bruins
    • Buffalo Sabres
    • New Jersey Devils
    • New York Islanders
    • New York Rangers
    • Philadelphia Flyers
    • Pittsburgh Penguins
    • Washington Capitals
  • Central Division
    • Carolina Hurricanes
    • Chicago Blackhawks
    • Columbus Blue Jackets
    • Dallas Stars
    • Detroit Red Wings
    • Florida Panthers
    • Nashville Predators
    • Tampa Bay Lightning
  • West Division
    • Anaheim Ducks
    • Arizona Coyotes
    • Colorado Avalanche
    • Los Angeles Kings
    • Minnesota Wild
    • San Jose Sharks
    • Seattle Kraken
    • St Louis Blues
    • Vegas Golden Knights
  • World Juniors
  • CHL
    • Ontario Hockey League
    • Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
    • Western Hockey League
  • THW Podcast Network
  • Store
  • FREE Newsletter
  • Search THW
  • More…
    • Join Our Team
    • The THW Archives
    • Prospects
    • The Goalie Page
    • NHL Salary Cap Information