The Devils’ special teams have been far from special in their Eastern Conference quarterfinal series against the Lightning. While the penalty killing wasn’t a killer in a crucial Game 4 on Wednesday at the Prudential Center like it had been in previous contests, the power is still out on the power play, and that was the decisive factor in New Jersey’s 3-1 defeat.
If it doesn’t get fixed when the best-of-seven series shifts back to Tampa for Game 5 on Saturday afternoon, it will be lights out for the Devils, who now trail three games to one.
The Devils did convert on a two-man advantage in the first period, with Kyle Palmieri’s one-timer from the Ovi-zoid opening the scoring. But they took the collar on five five-on-fours, bringing the series totals to 1-for-16 when one man up.
“Our power play needs to be better,” a terse coach John Hynes said in his very limited postgame remarks.
Hynes did not consider the loss of top defenseman Sami Vatanen, who was sent to the locker room after a high first-period hit from Lightning star wing Nikita Kucherov, as having any impact on the team’s inadequate production on the power play. Instead, Hynes credited Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy for a “fantastic” performance.
Unfortunately, the facts get in the way. The Devils were credited with just five shots on goal on those five power plays, with only one from a high-danger scoring area, per NaturalStatTrick.com.
The Devils simply didn’t shoot enough. Vatanen, who quarterbacks the second unit, likes to fire away. Instead, the puck too often was tossed around the perimeter until it was lost. Marcus Johansson, in his second game back from a concussion, had numerous opportunities from the right circle to funnel pucks toward the net, only to pass in a different direction. The Lightning knew it and got their sticks in position.
“I thought sometimes when there was a pass open, we were shooting, and when there was a shot open, we were passing,” Devils star left wing Taylor Hall said. “We were discombobulated. We’ve been a pretty solid power play all season long, and it’s been a simple mindset. We have to get back to that.”
Hynes and assistant coach Geoff Ward need to go back to the drawing board. They’ll get one last chance to reset the circuits on the power play.
CHICO ON GOALIES
Now, here’s more than a few words about goaltending, since I was fortunate to get an education prior to Wednesday’s game from an expert -- Devils radio analyst on WFAN and the One Jersey Network Glenn “Chico” Resch.
Hynes’ move to switch netminders after his club dropped two games in Tampa was certainly defensible. Cory Schneider, who pitched a third-period shutout in relief of Keith Kinkaid to close the Game 2 loss and then got the job done as the starter in New Jersey’s 5-2 victory Monday, kept his team in Wednesday’s game.
However, I didn’t agree with those who concluded after the Devils’ win that Schneider should have started all along. It’s the “A followed B. Therefore, B caused A” illogic.
While Resch wasn’t taking sides in any goalie controversy, he said he was impressed with how Kinkaid delivered for the Devils down the stretch (16-3-1 in his last 20 starts versus 0-10-2 in Schneider’s last 12 starts) and felt he deserved to open the postseason.
“I remember saying to (Hynes), ‘John, I’m telling you Keith Kinkaid has something special,’” Resch said. “And it was mainly his hands. He catches everything, so that eliminates rebounds, makes great saves, he can play the puck well. He established himself as a No. 1 goalie.”
Resch, who took over for starting goalie Billy Smith in a 1975 playoff series against Pittsburgh after the Islanders fell into a 3-0 series hole -- after which the Isles became only the second professional sports franchise to come all the way back to win -- concurred with Hynes on his change in net.
“You needed to change the psychology of Tampa Bay, who thinks “Kinkaid’s playing well, but we can score on him, we’ve got his number’” Resch said. “Then you throw in Cory, and they don’t know. They haven’t played against him. It’s just the whole mental game that goes on out there.”
While Resch said Schneider may have played well Monday, he was also the beneficiary of some luck.
“I think in the third period, Cory played well, but some of Tampa’s misses (were) luck,” Resch said. “Every goalie has to have it, but that’s what the Devils were hoping for. They were just hoping that he was going to get some breaks that Keith wasn’t getting -- and he did, and they won.”
Resch then discussed the current trend of goalies who prefer to stay deep in the net. Schneider, through the tutelage of Devils goalie coach Roland Melanson, is such a proponent. Kinkaid, meanwhile, tends to challenge more, relying more on what Resch called “his flair.”
“I know they’re bigger (now) -- 6-3, 6-4, you can play deeper,” Resch said. “But if there’s no need, there’s nobody behind you, there’s no back-door play, there’s nobody going to take a one-timer off to the side -- they say goalies are more athletic right now than ever, then that one step out, that one foot, they can’t adjust by moving back? If I was a goalie coach, I would be more, ‘Let’s get back to one step out, just a little bit more aggressive.’ But a lot of other coaches see it differently and so do goalies.”
Both Lightning goals in Wednesday's first period (and the Cory Conacher long wrist shot that was called off after a review due to an offsides infraction on the far wing) went straight into the net with Schneider deep in the crease.
Only one goal among the nine Kinkaid surrendered in games 1 and 2 wasn’t redirected or right at the doorstep. If you’re looking for reasons why the Devils are down in the series — and there are a host of them, from the above-mentioned special teams to loose defensive coverage in front — it wasn’t because they didn’t start it with Schneider in goal.