11/5 Devils @ Lightning: 3 Things We Learned
by Julie Robenhymer / newjerseydevils.com
The Devils lost, 4-1, to the Tampa Bay Lightning tonight at Amalie Arena with their lone goal coming from Damon Severson. They are now 4-3-3 and 0-3-2 on the road. Here's what we learned:
1) The Devils wanted to get a strong start and they did just that to earn the one goal lead after 20 minutes, but the Bolts pushed back to dominate the second period and the Devils couldn't find an answer until the second half of the third. By then it was too late, Tampa was up 3-1 and tacked on another goal towards the end for good measure. New Jersey has to figure out a way to find its game faster after the opposition derails the game plan.
2) Taylor Hall led the Devils in shots with 37 on the season heading into tonight's game where he added eight (eight!) more. He may not have scored in the past four games, but it's certainly not for a lack of trying as he averages 20 minutes of ice time per game. Behind him is defenseman Yohann Auvitu with 26 shots.
3) The Devils need a short memory. This game wasn't anything to write home about and, while there's plenty of video to review, coach John Hynes said after the game that they can learn from tonight later in the week. They need to quickly turn the page and get mentally and emotionally prepared for tomorrow's game at Carolina.
Also, I found out during the game that general manager Ray Shero told 19-year-old rookie and the Devils' first round draft pick (6th overall) in the 2015 NHL Draft, Pavel Zacha, that he would not be returned to the Sarnia Sting of the OHL and could find a permanent place to live in New Jersey.
The team will fly to Raleigh tonight and look for its first road win of the season tomorrow against the Hurricanes at 6 p.m. You can watch the game on MSG+ or listen to it exclusively on the newly launched One Jersey Network, available on the Devils App and iHeartRadio.