Devils’ Power Play Fails Them as Team Is Unable Capitalize on Gift Wrapped Opportunities

after Thursday's game, New Jersey is 2-for-46 on the power play, a measly 4.3 percent, in its past 14 games.

On Thursday night, 16,650 hockey fans traveled to Prudential Center to watch an intense rivalry game between the New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers.

Just as things were getting underway, New Jersey was awarded a five-minute power play at the 2:25 minute mark after Matt Rempe's hit on Nathan Bastian.

While opportunity rarely comes gift-wrapped, this one came tied with a shiny red bow.

The Devils coaching staff sent out Luke Hughes, Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, Tyler Toffoli, and Jesper Bratt. The unit could not sustain any offensive zone time and eventually skated to the bench, allowing the second unit on the ice.

Unfortunately, Simon Nemec, Ondrej Palat, Erik Haula, Timo Meier, and Alexander Holtz did not do much better. Like their teammates before them, they forced passes and could not apply prolonged pressure on Igor Shesterkin or the rest of the Rangers' penalty killers.

The Devils were awarded four more power plays throughout the game, including another gift in the second period when Kaapo Kakko was assessed a double minor for high-sticking Simon Nemec.

New Jersey played over 11 minutes on the man advantage and had zero goals to show for it.

After 60 minutes, the hockey fans sporting blue jerseys celebrated their team's 5-1 win and ninth straight victory.

The fans in red were left with feelings of anger and frustration. With fingers being pointed in multiple directions, it can't be understated that after Thursday's game, New Jersey is 2-for-46 on the power play, a measly 4.3 percent, in its past 14 games.

"The biggest thing is special teams play when you look at the game as a whole," head coach Lindy Ruff said.

It is hard to fathom that mere months ago, the Devils had the top power play in the league and that New Jersey has scored two or more power-play goals in a game nine times this season.

It begs the question: What happened?

It can't be overlooked that the Devils are without Dougie Hamilton, who was signed to a long-term deal in part because of his ability to run the power play. With his absence, New Jersey has been using rookies Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec.

"They've probably done a better than expected job for me, both those kids, and they're going to continue to grow," Ruff said. "There's a lot of stuff you like about their game, but I think you know that with young defensemen, there are going to be mistakes. There's going to be some poor decisions at times. You have to live with that, and you have to grow through it."

Most fans can accept that rookie defensemen make rookie mistakes, and neither can replace what Hamilton can bring.

The most perplexing problem to fans is that there is too much offensive talent between Hughes, Hischier, Bratt, Toffoli, Meier, and Holtz not to convert at least once on the man advantage.

As Devils reporter Sam Kasan pointed out, "Since Dec. 5, the Devils' power play has gone 10 for 96. A few more power-play goals in the past two-plus months could have helped the Devils earn a few extra points in the standings, and it could be the difference in the playoff hunt."

In November, TNT studio analyst Paul Bissonnette spoke about the team's then-successful power play.

"So far this year, without this red-hot power play, I think (the Devils) are a .500 team," he said. "Five-on-five this year, they have not looked good. Way too many mistakes. ...They have to go in with a different mindset into these games."

The Devils have since proven Bissonnette to be correct, as they have been unable to string together more than three wins at any point this season. Inconsistencies and mistakes within multiple areas continue to haunt the club.

The TNT analyst and former player mentioned mindset, which Jack Hughes spoke about Thursday night.

"We have to wrap our heads around changing our attitude and really believing in ourselves and not just talking and saying that, but actually doing that."

Whether it is the players' mindset, a misuse of personnel by the coaching staff, or the absence of Hamilton, there is no acceptable excuse for such an extreme drop-off in the Devils' play on the man advantage.

On Thursday night, Ruff said he and his staff would go through the power play to see what changes needed to be made to improve it.

Ruff, his staff, and players are running out of time, as the club is five points out of the second wild card spot with 26 games remaining.

Come April, it is going to be a tough pill to swallow if the Devils miss the playoffs because of wasted gift-wrapped opportunities like the ones fans witnessed on Thursday.