11/17 Devils at Ducks: 3 Things To Know
by Julie Robenhymer / newjerseydevils.com
The Devils are in Anaheim to take on the Ducks at Honda Center tonight. Here's what you need to know:
1) The bad news is the Devils haven't scored a power play goal in six games. The good news is they've been scoring enough 5-on-5 to win the last five of those six and haven't needed to rely as much on their PP as much as they did last year. The ugly news is that after going 0-21 with the man advantage their effectiveness is a miserable 13.7%. The Ducks are operating at 22.4% on the PP, 85.5% on the penalty kill and have tallied three shorthanded goals, which is tied for the league lead. The Devils haven't allowed a shorthanded goal thus far this season.
2) One of the goals for the offseason was to have a more transitional defense that could contribute on the offensive side of the puck and so far, so good. Damon Severson is tied for the team lead with 12 points and, collectively, the defense has scored nine of New Jersey's 37 goals (24.3%). Only Ben Lovejoy is looking for his first goal of the season (and Jon Merrill, who has yet to play a game due to a broken finger, but was just activated off of injured reserve.) Last season, the Devils' defensemen accounted for only 20 goals, so if they keep this current pace up, they'll blow that number out of the water.
3) The Devils are still without Mike Cammalleri, who has taken a personal leave from the team, but could return at some point on this California road trip. They will also miss Taylor Hall, who had arthroscopic surgery yesterday on his left knee to repair a torn meniscus and will be out for 3-4 weeks. Blake Pietila has been recalled from Albany and has joined the team in Anaheim.
You can watch the Devils go for their sixth win in a row at 10 p.m. ET on MSG+ or listen on WFAN or The One Jersey Network available on the Devils App or iHeartRadio. We have a full slate of game day content for you today, just with some shifted times due to the three-hour difference. The Devils Tailgate podcast will be up at 1 p.m. followed by the Morning Report at 3 p.m. and the Pregame Show at 9 p.m.