Earlier in the month, the New Jersey Devils faced the Utah Mammoth and weren’t prepared for the top team in the Western Conference. The Mammoth had skill at the top of their lineup, but they were also a talented team from top to bottom. 

The Mammoth came at the Devils in waves and overwhelmed them, winning 5-3. The defense, in particular, struggled to stop a team that had youth, speed, and talent on multiple forward lines and at the point. 

The Devils have cleaned things up since that loss, with the defense protecting the net and the high-danger areas. The improvements were on display in their 4-3 win over the Colorado Avalanche. Now, they have another test against the Anaheim Ducks, a team that can show whether the Devils can handle these teams, specifically, the young, high-flying ones. 

The Ducks Have That High-End Skill That is Tough To Stop 

The offer sheets and contract negotiations of the summer distracted hockey fans from the truth about the Ducks, which is that they are a young team that’s only getting better. The core is now locked up for the future, with Leo Carlsson, Cutter Gauthier, and Jackson LaCombe all signed for the long run. 

That trio can beat teams in multiple ways. Carlsson is the do-it-all center who can gash teams on the rush while making the skaters around him better. Gauthier is an elite scorer on the wing who hit his stride last season with 41 goals. 

They give the Ducks a forward group with speed that can gash any team. While the Devils stepped up defensively in their latest game against an Avalanche team known for having top-end talent, they are facing a different type of skilled team. The Avalanche are older, and it showed as they looked a step behind on Tuesday night. The Ducks are a younger team and present the same problems that the Mammoth did. 

It’s why the defense comes into focus on Thursday night. The Devils not only must keep play out of the high-danger areas but must step up in the neutral zone, eliminating rush chances and quick opportunities for the Ducks. A game like this one becomes a good measure of this team and how well they can defend. Likewise, it’s a test of their offense and whether they can match the Ducks goal for goal. 

The Surprisingly Slow Start From The Ducks

Despite all the talent and the trajectory of the Ducks, they’ve stumbled to begin the season. They’ve gone 4-5 and lost their last four games. The offense, which was a strength last season, has underwhelmed, averaging only 2.89 goals per game. 

Like the Devils, the Ducks are still figuring out their roster and managing an offseason of turnover. They had plenty of depth last season and leaders in the room, notably Chris Kreider, Radko Gudas, and Jacob Trouba, whom they let go in the offseason to create cap space. To fill the void, they’ve added prospects to the NHL roster who are going through the growing pains of adjusting to the NHL. 

It’s made the Ducks an easy team to defeat, especially early in the season. If the Devils can handle their top-end talent, they should be fine, and that’s why this is a game where they must take advantage. 

The Notable On-Ice Matchups The Devils Can Exploit

The Ducks are led by an elite core, a young core that just entered its prime and isn’t slowing down anytime soon. However, the Devils have the advantage with their bottom six, which has started to gel thanks to Jesper Boqvist finding his scoring touch, while Anthony Mantha and Evan Rodrigues have given them a third line with physicality and scoring. 

It’s where head coach Sheldon Keefe can match lines to get his third and fourth line more ice time and give the Devils an edge. The Ducks' head coach, Joel Quenneville, is one of the best coaches when it comes to line matching, but this is where Keefe can feel out the game and lean on his depth to win. 

The Ducks also have a lot of new faces in their defense, and it’s caused the unit to struggle, allowing 3.22 goals per game. The Devils can come at this defense in waves, and if Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt are given space to operate, they can make the most of it. 

The Devils haven’t built up much momentum this season. They win a game or two but then drop a game or two. The win against the Avalanche was impressive. Now, they have a chance to string together a few wins with the Ducks coming to town and the Los Angeles Kings coming in on Saturday to wrap up their East Coast road trip.

What are you watching in the Devils game against the Ducks? Comment below!