Lichtenstein: Devils Have Become Powerless On The Power Play
By Steve Lichtenstein
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New Jersey, we have a problem.
Multiple outages have taken the power out of the Devils' power play.
With three failed attempts in Monday's 4-0 defeat at San Jose, the Devils ran their consecutive scoreless streak with the man advantage to 29 opportunities over a nine-game span. Their 12.5 percent conversion rate currently ranks 26th in the league.
If that wasn't bad enough, the Devils surrendered a short-handed goal to Chris Tierney just 1:59 into Monday's game, setting the tone for their most dismal effort of the season.
The absence of power play regulars Taylor Hall, Kyle Palmieri, Mike Cammalleri and Johann Auvitu didn't help matters at the "Shark Tank," but let's not gloss over the fact that this run of futility began when the Devils were at full strength.
MORE: Schwei's Devils Notes: A Winning Streak Then A Losing Streak
Hall, the Devils' most dynamic player, missed all four games of this just-concluded western road swing while recovering from surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. He is still about two to three weeks away from returning, according to the team.
Cammalleri has been home since Nov. 8 due to undisclosed personal reasons while Auvitu (three games) and Palmieri (one game) have sat out with injuries somewhere on their bodies. Their return dates are also a mystery.
What should have been obvious to Devils coach John Hynes was that his club's dysfunction on the power play would eventually catch up to them. After New Jersey's 2-1 overtime win in Dallas to open the trip, the Devils have now lost three in a row to fall to 9-6-3 on the season.
This club hasn't been burning any goal lights at even strength, either — the Devils have scored more than two goals only five times in their first 18 games, and only four teams have fewer than their 26 tallies when skating five-on-five.
That makes cashing in on the power play a necessity for the Devils to keep pace with the teams they will be battling for a playoff berth.
Oddly, the Devils boasted a top-10 power play (19.9 percent) last season with far less talent. After combining to score 18 power play goals in 2015-16, Palmieri has just one so far this year while Henrique hasn't even registered a point.
The Devils did manage to capitalize on seven power play opportunities in their first nine games to open the season, but nothing has hit the back of the net since Travis Zajac's fortuitous follow-up of Palmieri's deflected one-timer late in the second period of a 4-3 loss in Florida on Nov. 3.
What changed?
Again, the failures began long before the above players started falling out of the lineup. Hynes has been adjusting his combinations all season, but he has yet to find units who fit well together.
Hynes constantly harps on the need for his players to have a "net front presence," not just on the power play, but in all situations. Yet few players he selects for the premium service appear eager to get their noses dirty.
With all the injuries, Hynes has tried out Beau Bennett and Devante Smith-Pelly at various times, but both blue-collar players are snakebit at this point. Bennett may have had the best chance to score against the Sharks, but his quest to record his first goal as a Devil was turned aside by goalie Martin Jones.
Jacob Josefson, who was reinserted into the lineup for the second game of the streak, continues to receive ice time on the power play despite his lack of production in that role over his entire six-year career. Not to sound like a broken record, but he rarely budges from the right wing half-wall. He provides no threat to cut inside for a better passing angle or, heaven forbid, shoot.
While skating an average of 1:51 per game on the power play during the seven games he has suited up in this stretch, Josefson has yet to record a single shot on goal.
Generally speaking, there seems to be an overreliance on shots from the point or the left faceoff circle, which opposing goalies have been handling with relative ease because the Devils haven't sent enough bodies to hinder their ability to see/stop the pucks.
Gone are the skip passes and creative back-door plays that Hynes credited his assistant coach Geoff Ward with designing last season. Instead, we've seen a lot of board wraparounds and perimeter passing before low-percentage attempts were sent toward the goal.
The Devils aren't even generating any speed into the offensive zone off the rush. Too often the zone time begins with a 50/50 battle off a dump-and-chase.
And the Devils haven't been winning enough battles as of late, but that's another story.
Even if certain players get clearance to return to action, Hynes won't have much time to try out new power play solutions as the Devils will be flying back to New Jersey on Tuesday for Wednesday's tilt against Toronto at Prudential Center.
If only the power could be turned back on with a switch.
For a FAN's perspective of the Nets, Jets and the NHL, follow Steve on Twitter @SteveLichtenst1
