Pressure is on Devils Players to Reset | FEATURE

"It's brutal, it's frustrating. COVID, we're missing guys, we're not playing good, we're losing, just everything that seems that could be going wrong seems to be right now," a dejected Damon Severson said following the Devils' 5-2 loss to Detroit on Dec. 18.
The following night, New Jersey would lose its sixth game in a row, the longest losing skid of the 2021-22 season to date. The Devils lost multiple players to the NHL's COVID-19 protocol list, the majority of the available roster was battling everything from the flu to the common cold, and players were tired mentally and physically. Those reasons and more led to the league postponing New Jersey's game on Dec. 21, and the Devils went into the December break with time to heal.
The break is over and the Devils need to get back in the win column after going 1-8-1 in its last 10 contests. In a media availability on Dec. 20, Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald discussed how his team played that led to an exciting, promising start to the season.
"I was really happy with the team coming out of training camp, start of the season, first 15, 16 games," Fitzgerald said. "Our record showed, we were rewarded for our structure, our commitment to structure, our commitment to details, our commitment to each other … we just need to find that team."

How can they find the team the Devils once were?
"I believe it has to come from that room. They have to keep each other accountable, they have to push each other, they have to be committed to each other, the guy next to them, the guy across from them … we can lay down structure, we can do this, but until they push each other like we were doing at the beginning of the year I don't know if we're going to see change."
Captain Nico Hischier agreed with his general manager about the beginning of the season, and explained the team's focus moving forward into the second half of the 2021-22 campaign.
"Beginning of the season we were just playing our game. We weren't thinking too much," said Hischier, who returned to practice after missing five games due to COVID. "Sometimes thinking too much can cost you some games. If it's not going your way, you don't really have confidence. That was a little part of it too.
"At the end of the day, all of this doesn't matter now. We do really want to have a new start here with the second half. That's what we're focusing on, we know what we have to work on out there and we'll do it. At the end we just have to go out there and execute it."
Using speed and being relentless will also help the Devils get back to the way New Jersey was playing at the start of the season.
"We need to be a team with energy that plays fast, and really is on guys and takes away time and space," defenseman Ryan Graves said following Monday's practice. "(At the start of the season) we had a lot of energy, we basically were on top of everybody, our forecheck was relentless, we were back checking, just lots of energy overall. We're a young team so we should have and we need to play like that."
With several days of practice before the Devils next scheduled game against the Buffalo Sabres on Dec. 29, Devils head coach Lindy Ruff has a plan to use this time to help his team rebound and get prepared for the second half of the season.
"We just have to focus on the parts of our game we're going to try to improve," Ruff said. "After being off three or four days, (Sunday) was a day to just try to get everybody's legs underneath them, get good flow, get a good practice in, get a good sweat.
"(Monday) we'll dig in a little bit deeper where we'll get back to system play, more competitive, more 1-on-1, more small ice battles … a lot of drills like that to get ready to play a hockey game."
Whether the break and practice time will help the Devils dig out of this hole is yet to be seen; however, the players are ready to reset and move forward.
"It's almost like a new start. The last couple games haven't gone the way we wanted to," Hischier said. "Now it's all about the second half of the season and being dialed in from the get go."