If there are two things the New Jersey Devils wanted to work on after three games, it was the defense and the power play. The defense allowed 11 goals in the last two games, while the power play has one goal in 14 attempts. 

Both issues were a focus in Friday’s practice, with the Devils preparing for a gauntlet. They face the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday afternoon and play five games in eight days. They need a strong power play to turn things around and prove they are a better team than the first three games suggest. 

The power play is typically a strength for the Devils, especially with Jack Hughes, Jesper Bratt, and Nico Hischier on it. “We need to get better there. I think everybody knows that, and that's why we're trying to put the work in,” Hischier stated after Friday’s practice. They have the talent to turn it into a strength, and now it’s about putting all the pieces together. 

The Devils have enough skill in their top six to have a great power play. Specifically, they can move the puck around in the offensive zone and find open looks on the net. That’s why they focus on effective puck movement to find open looks on centering and cross-ice passes. 

It was noticeable in their 5-3 loss to the Utah Mammoth, where the Devils made the extra passes in the offensive zone for the open shots. It also stood out in practice with the passes to the slot or the point for a shot through traffic. After all, that’s how Luke Evangelista scored his power-play goal against the Mammoth as he got into the shooting lane and deflected the puck in. 

The Devils have the players on the unit to make it a great one. Hughes can skate and open things up as a puck handler. Hischier, Evangelista, and Timo Meier can get to the net and find those second-chance shots. The key is putting everything together, starting with the stretch of games ahead. 

Hischier admitted that the power play struggles when the Devils don’t put pressure on the opposing goaltender. “I think that's mainly when the power play is not doing that well,” he noted after Friday’s practice, adding, “I think it just helps when you try to pepper the goalie and just get pucks there, and then things will open up.”

It’s one thing to generate shots on net. It’s another to generate good shots that force the goaltender to make a great save. A skater flinging the puck on the net from the blue line and hoping for the best is not a great shot (even if the fans in the arena are yelling “Shoot!” as it happens). Passing the puck on the net instead of shooting it isn’t a great shot either.

A good shot often comes from the high-danger areas or off a rebound when the goaltender is out of position. It’s why the Devils want to make those passes to the slot or use the tic-tac-toe plays to find those open looks. It’s also why some shots are coming from the point, where the puck can be redirected into the back of the net. The Devils are searching for those shots and are eager to generate plenty of them in the upcoming games. 

The Devils allow Hughes and Bratt to drive the play in the offensive zone. They’ll typically handle the puck and set up scoring chances. However, the Devils need their defensemen at the point to give the power play the edge. 

Luke Hughes and Dougie Hamilton are the defensemen who can add a scoring touch at the point. “Luke and Dougie, those are the two guys who need to drive it offensively back there, right?” Jack Hughes stated after the 3-2 opening night win. 

On the power play, it’s more important for the defensemen to give the Devils that spark. The surprise is that they haven’t done so to start this season, especially Hughes, who was expected to take a big step forward as the top-scoring defenseman. The defense won’t make or break the unit, but it will give it an edge, and in close games, they’ll need it.