It’s Miller's Time After Solid Devils Debut
With so many Devils missing early-season games due to injuries, it was nice to see one of them come back to the ice on Thursday night in Pittsburgh.
No, it wasn’t All-Star center Jack Hughes or captain Nico Hischier; it was only depth defenseman Colin Miller who made his Devils debut in a much-needed 5-2 victory that broke a three-game losing streak.
Miller, an offseason free agent pickup who crashed into the end boards at an October 29 practice, played 17:30 as the Devils went with an 11/7 configuration after it was determined that top-six forward Timo Meier hadn’t sufficiently recovered from an ailment suffered in the previous game at Winnipeg.
Not that Miller did anything spectacular on Thursday, though he was credited with two shots on goal. It’s what he didn’t do—no negligent mishaps in puck management or defensive zone coverage failures that led to a high volume of scoring chances against—that made the night noteworthy.
Obviously, a one-game sample size might not be predictive of future results, but the Devils did post a 71.3% expected goals for share when Miller was on the ice at even strength, which grew to nearly 87% when he was paired with rookie Luke Hughes, per NaturalStatTrick.com.
So why bother to bring these numbers up? Because Hughes had previously been hamstrung by having 34-year old Brendan Smith as his partner for the vast majority (128:10, per NST) of his five-on-five minutes over the first 14 games this season. That duo’s expected goals for percentage was a hideous 39.5%.
When Devils Head Coach Lindy Ruff has something closer to his full complement of forwards—there were hints that Jack Hughes might return for Saturday’s showdown against the Rangers at Prudential Center—he now has zero reason to continue to roll with Smith, even if Ruff speaks glowingly about his intangible value.
To be fair, Smith has performed very well on New Jersey’s penalty kill. In fact, the Devils have outscored their opponents, 2-0, during the 33:31 that Smith has been on the ice while shorthanded, per NST. That includes Curtis Lazar’s crucial shorty in the first period that tied Thursday’s affair at 1-1 (though Smith had absolutely nothing to do with that particular sequence).
Still, Smith is a glaring liability in all other situations. Not only can’t he skate or pass pucks out of trouble or contribute on the rush, he often gets caught too far up ice to be able to track back on opposing counters.
That’s not the way to orient Hughes, a No. 4 overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft, to the pro game. He needs to have a more reliable cohort on the back line to begin to unlock his potential. He has produced an admirable ten points in 15 games, but five have been on the power play. (Note: Since my last Devils post where I advocated for a Hughes/John Marino pairing, the Devils have scored twice versus zero goals against during the 5-plus minutes that duo was paired together at even strength in the last two games, according to NST. Just sayin’,)
Miller, 31, should be the better fit for Hughes in so many ways. The Devils don’t need him to be an offensive force—he has shown off a hard shot but has just 35 goals in 466 NHL games going into the season—he just needs to provide some sense of steadiness on the back end. Smith always looks like he’s in dire straits when the puck is in his vicinity. It helps that Miller is a right-handed shot, which allowed the lefty Hughes to play more pucks in the Devils’ zone on his forehand on Thursday than when he was on Smith’s right.
When discussing Pittsburgh defensemen Ryan Graves’ comments about his previous two seasons in New Jersey after Thursday’s morning skate, Ruff mentioned how some defensemen need an adjustment period to play his system. It requires more puck pressure than some players, even veterans, are used to.
Miller might have been the victim of another similar acclimation case, as he was pretty bad during the preseason. That opened the door for Smith to start the regular season in the lineup.
Now, I just think every Devils fan has seen enough of Smith for a while. Let him lead from the practice rink, not on the game ice. It’s Miller’s time.