Devils Come Up Short and Fall to Coyotes in Shootout

"Definitely not our A-game, but a win is a win, and come January, it will just be two points."

New Jersey Devils forward Jack Hughes wasn't wrong when he made that statement after his team's 4-3 victory over the Detroit Red Wings.

At the end of the day, it is about a team collecting as many points as possible so that by December, they aren't scrambling to climb into the playoff picture. However, a team can only skate by for so long when they consistently display bad habits.

One of New Jersey's worst last season was their slow starts. Their habit of not starting the game on time led to them leading the NHL with 26 comeback wins last season, which set a new franchise record. This habit has followed them into the 2023-24 campaign and ultimately led to the club earning only one point in their game versus the Arizona Coyotes.

Lineup versus Arizona

New Jersey

Timo Meier - Nico Hischier - Dawson Mercer

Tyler Toffoli - Jack Hughes - Jesper Bratt

Ondrej Palat - Erik Haula - Alexander Holtz

Tomas Nosek - Michael McLeod - Nathan Bastian

Jonas Siegenthaler - Dougie Hamilton

Kevin Bahl - John Marino

Brendan Smith - Luke Hughes

Akira Schmid

Arizona

Clayton Keller - Barrett Hayton - Nick Schmaltz

Jason Zucker - Logan Cooley - Alex Kerfoot

Matias Macelli - Nick Bjugstad - Lawson Crouse

Michael Carson - Jack McBain - Liam O'Brien

J.J. Moser - Matt Dumba

Juuso Valimaki - Travis Dermott

Sean Durzi - Josh Brown

Karel Vejmelka

Five Things

1. Another Game, Another Sluggish Start

"Disappointing start to the game," said head coach Lindy Ruff. "The first period again, (our opponent) looked fresh. They were ready to play their first game. I thought their energy was really good. I thought they got a step on us in most places."

For a second straight game, New Jersey allowed the first four shots. It took approximately five minutes for Smith to log his team's first shot on Vejmelka. It was an eerily similar start to their season opener and is something the team needs to work on ahead of their game versus the Florida Panthers on Monday, Oct. 16.

"Obviously, the starts of our game is something we can learn a lot from. We're going to adjust that at the next practice. Obviously, something we're going to work on as a group, and I think it's just our own mentality to come out harder in the first period."

2. Jack Hughes Isn't the Only Devils Player Looking Like He's in Midseason Form

Jesper Bratt wasted no time earning his first multi-goal of the season, scoring two goals against Arizona. His first goal came off a two-on-one where J. Hughes fed him the puck, and the second was scored on the power play. The Swede is coming off a preseason where he potted five goals and added four assists for nine points in four games.

3. Plenty of Penalties

By the final horn, the Devils and Coyotes were called for a combined 14 penalties (six for Arizona and eight against the Devils). A surprising nine infractions were called in the middle frame, which led to the Devils scoring two goals on the man advantage.

"There were a lot of crazy calls both ways," said Ruff after the game. "It seems like a lot of marginal stuff is getting called, so our discipline needs to be better."

After two games, Jack Hughes and John Marino have a team-leading four PIM.

4. The Meier - Hischier - Mercer Not Clicking... Yet

Over the summer, Tom Fitzgerald signed Timo Meier to an eight-year, $70.4 million contract. Expectations are high for the former San Jose Sharks forward, and through two games, there seems to be a disconnect between him and his linemates.

After the Devils' first game versus Detroit, Ruff spoke about each of his lines missing something, and when it came to the club's top line, he pointed to 21-year-old Mercer.

"(Mercer) struggled with the puck and maybe didn't skate as well as he can skate. I thought every line had something missing."

Versus the Coyotes, the trio had a combined six shots on goal but could not offensively contribute.

5. Nate Bastian Made his Season Debut

On Friday night, the coaching staff decided to take Curtis Lazar out of the lineup in favor of Bastian. Against Arizona, he played a little over 10 minutes, including 1:22 on the penalty kill. He had one shot on goal, two takeaways, five hits, and one blocked shot.