New Jersey Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe entered the first round against the Carolina Hurricanes with the understanding that he was facing a unique opponent.
"You have to go into the game expecting that they are going to have a lot of control," Keefe said ahead of Game 1. "They control the game, for the most part, when they play, but they don't win all the games. We have to find a way to be one of those teams that manage their surges and their pressure but do our part to get enough goals to win the game."
"They spend more time in the offensive zone and the least amount of time in the defensive zone than anybody else in the league, and it is not even close," he continued. "They are in a league of their own in that regard. You are not going to outshoot them. That is not our focus. Our focus is to outscore them."
Leading up to the series' opening game, Keefe used the same lines at back-to-back practices in Newark, prompting The Hockey News to ask how important it was for each player to buy into his role and each line to have its own identity.
"Having the lines connected and on the same page is important, but we have to be flexible, too," he said. "Guys are going to move around and move around inside the game. They have to be able to adjust to that as we manage the minutes and the matchups."
It did not take long to see that flexibility come to fruition.
Game 1 Adjustments
Keefe began Game 1 against the Hurricanes with the following four lines:
Stefan Noesen - Nico Hischier - Jesper Bratt
Erik Haula - Dawson Mercer - Timo Meier
Paul Cotter - Cody Glass - Daniel Sprong
Ondrej Palat - Justin Dowling - Nathan Bastian
The Devils coaching staff wanted to keep Glass with Cotter and Sprong, which led to a fourth line of Palat, Dowling, and Bastian.
At the start of the third period, with New Jersey down 3-1, Keefe rearranged his forward group for the final 20 minutes:
Palat - Hischier - Meier
Haula - Mercer - Bratt
Cotter - Glass - Noesen
Sprong - Dowling - Bastian
"We needed to change it up and get a bit heavier alongside (Hischier)," Keefe said after Sunday's game. "With (Meier) there, just trying to get a little more traction on the lines. I thought the Glass, Sprong, Cotter line was taking on water in a big way for us, and we had to mix that up, but also just change the mixup in our top six a little bit and see if we could shake something free there."
During Monday's media availability, New Jersey's head coach shared that the Hurricanes heavily dominated his initial bottom two lines in Game 1.
"From shot attempts, scoring chances, and all those kind of things," Keefe said on Monday. "Our other two lines did a pretty good job, and that's against two tough lines. We have to do a better job lower in our lineup. That is really important. I hope with some time and some adjustments to the lineup, that can help us in Game 2."
It is worth noting that New Jersey has four extra forwards in North Carolina: Nolan Foote, Curtis Lazar, Kurtis MacDermid, and Tomas Tatar.
Game 2 Projected Lineup
Glass left the third period of Game 1 after taking a whack from his goaltender, Jacob Markstrom's stick, so his status for Tuesday night was unknown.
Reporters at Lenovo Center confirmed Glass was on the ice with his team for their 10:30 am morning skate. During his availability, Keefe shared that the 26-year-old is available to play.
The Devils are expected to use the following forward lines to start Game 2:
Palat - Hischier - Meier
Haula - Mercer - Bratt
Cotter - Glass - Noesen
Tatar - Dowling - Batian
Sticking with what worked for the Devils in the third period of Game 1, Keefe and his staff made the only change: swapping Tatar in for Sprong.
Game 2 will be at the Lenovo Center in North Carolina on Tuesday night. Fans can watch on MSGSN and ESPN or listen on the Devils Hockey Network.
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