New Faces For New Season In New Jersey Will Yield Familiar Results
Five Predictions For The 2021-22 Devils
I have yet to see a pundit predict anything beyond modest improvement for the 2021-22 Devils, who literally have nowhere to go but up in the standings. Also-rans in eight of the last nine seasons, including division cellar-dweller finishes in three of the last five, New Jersey, the NHL’s youngest team (average age of 25.2), is hoping that a few major upgrades from outside the organization and developmental leaps from those within can transform them into a surprise team this season the way Taylor Hall magically lifted the 2018 squad into the playoffs.
Since the NHL game is one of marginal errors, where a hot goalie and some puck luck can swing a season, I guess anything is possible. In a stacked Metropolitan Division, however, a Devils quantum leap is quite a longshot.
The league schedule makers gave the Devils the gift of a relatively easy opening slate with five straight home games to start the season, but Lady Luck often has a way of evening things out. Injuries could possibly wipe out the team’s second defense pair of Damon Severson and Ty Smith for Opening Night on Friday versus Chicago. In addition, left wing Miles Wood, who tied with Pavel Zacha for the team lead in goals with 17 last season, joined them on the club’s injured reserve list while number one goalie Mackenzie Blackwood’s status is up in the air due to issues with his surgically-repaired heel. At least backup goalie Jonathan Bernier was back on the ice on Wednesday, ending the shivers in fans who recall the Corey Crawford affair from last season, when “maintenance days” at the end of training camp morphed into a sudden retirement.
The point is that this is a fragile club, one which is untested in adversity and can ill afford a start like the 0-4-2 disaster from two seasons ago.
So, which way will this season go? For some clues, here are five bold predictions for the 2021-22 Devils:
1) Yegor Sharangovich will prove his rookie season was no fluke
The 2018 fifth-round pick was a sprinkle of sunshine on a cloudy day for the Devils last season, potting 16 goals in 54 games with a knack for skating into open areas to create room for his lethal shot. With the benefit of being able to grow his game alongside center Jack Hughes, look for increased production this season for Sharangovich, enough to lead the team in goals.
2) Recurring Item—the Devils will lag in team save percentage
Since 2010, the Devils have been mired in the bottom half of the league’s team save percentage rankings in all but two seasons, including last season’s dreadful 29th-place .897 mark. Blackwood literally and figuratively didn’t start off this season on the right foot, limited in the preseason with his heel issue and then some inconclusive COVID-19 tests arising out of his refusal to get vaccinated. Bernier is being touted as something more than a Band Aid in case Blackwood gets the blues, but color me skeptical—just for kicks, I looked up Bernier’s save percentage in shootouts, and he ranks 82nd all time among the 110 goalies with at least 40 shots against, one place below former Devils sieve Cory Schneider. Let’s just say I consider New Jersey’s goaltending situation murky until it proves otherwise.
3) PP will get boost from Dougie Hamilton; PK will remain an eyesore
The biggest impact from the Devils’ offseason signing of defenseman Hamilton to a massive free agent contract will be felt with the man advantage, where his exquisite skating, passing, and shooting skills will create space for the elusive Hughes to work his magic off the half-wall and either Zacha or Sharangovich to find seams to unleash their heavy shots. On the other hand, the odds for improvement in the league-worst penalty killing efficiency don’t appear to be as promising. Between coach Lindy Ruff’s system that seems to allow for unattended opponents to set up camp at the net front for deflections and rebounds, the integration of new blood into the units, and a general aversion to blocking shots (league-worst 10.84 per 60 minutes last season), the Devils can only hope their power plays can keep the nightly special teams battle close.
4) Alexander Holtz will be called up before New Year’s Day
I can’t argue with the Devils 23-man roster decisions, with right winger Holtz, the 7th overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, sent down to AHL Utica while center Dawson Mercer, who was selected 11 slots later, secured a berth on the big club. Mercer obviously earned Ruff’s trust to play in all situations, including both special teams, whereas Holtz wouldn’t receive the ice time here to avoid the risk of stunting his development. That doesn’t mean we’ve seen the last of the sniper in New Jersey. No, my crystal ball shows Holtz lighting it up on the farm and forcing the Devils’ hand when injuries necessitate a call-up.
5) Ruff will be fired after the season
Last season was Ruff’s 20th in the league as a head man behind the bench and I’d note that his calmness while in the midst of difficult circumstances was welcome. Some young players took significant steps forward and the team competed despite glaring talent disparities with their division opponents. However, Devils owners Josh Harris and David Blitzer are getting antsy. They want to see progress in the standings, not just in player development. Ruff is paid to win games. That just won’t happen enough this season and Ruff will feel the heat. Some of it, such as with the aforementioned penalty killing woes, will be deserving. His teams, including the three seasons he served as a Rangers assistant, have qualified for the playoffs just twice in the last decade. This one won’t either and it will cost him his job.
Season Prediction: 33-36-13 (79 points, no playoffs)