The New Jersey Devils have been much better offensively in their last two games. After scoring only 11 goals through the first five games of the season, the Devils scored five against the Detroit Red Wings and seven against the New York Rangers. 

“A lot of that is just the way the players were moving, skating, working, getting to spots, the urgency. So, they recognize it was a big game,” head coach Sheldon Keefe noted after the 7-1 win over the Rangers. Some of the success is coming from the puck bouncing the right way. Some of it comes from the buy-in on Keefe’s fast paced offensive minded system in the neutral zone and on rushes. Most of it came from adjustments. 

It’s not a coincidence that the scoring surge comes after some line changes. In the past two games, Anthony Mantha and Arseny Gritsyuk swapped places in the forward unit, while Dawson Mercer moved to the Nico Hischier line. 

The tweaks had to happen with Luke Evangelista out this week. However, the offense has looked noticeably improved. It’s playing the way the Devils hoped it would when the season began and how it can lead them to the playoffs. 

Gritsyuk had a tough start to the season. The 25-year-old winger had only one goal and one assist in six games, struggling to make much of an impact. This was also supposed to be Gritsyuk's breakout year, where he would build on a 31-point rookie season, but he didn’t find his footing six games in. 

The move to the Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt line changes everything for him. It makes sense considering his skill set. Gritsyuk is a great skater who can keep up with Bratt and Hughes, allowing him to join the rush and be the winger who cleans things up for the dynamic duo. 

In the game against the Rangers, that line was flying and had the opposing defense chasing the game all night. Gritsyuk found the back of the net thanks to a Hughes shot that bounced to him with a wide-open net.

With all three skaters together, the Devils have a line that can burn opponents with speed and take over a game with a highlight goal or two. The Bratt-Hughes duo has always been great and fun for a casual fan to watch. Now, they have a winger who can keep up with them and take their play to another level. 

Mantha is a big skater, a power forward who gets to the net and finishes scoring chances. It’s easy to look at him and think that he’s the ideal winger to play alongside Hughes. The speed and playmaking ability of Hughes would set up Mantha for plenty of scoring chances. 

The problem is that it didn’t happen. Mantha looked slow and was a step behind Hughes. He couldn’t keep up and wasn’t in the play more often than not. It’s why Mantha wasn’t on the scoresheet five games into the season. 

Playing on the same line as Evan Rodrigues allows Mantha to find and create scoring chances. He’s slower and makes his biggest impact when the game settles down in the offensive zone, which is also the case with Rodrigues. Both veterans can score, and they give the Devils another layer of offense. Mantha has a goal and an assist in the past two games, while his center has two goals and two assists since the change. 

Better yet, the Devils have a third line that matches up well against most third lines. Whether it’s Stefan Noesen on the other wing or Dawson Mercer, the Devils have a third line that can score and check. 

It’s odd to see the offense playing great with Evangelista out. He was one of their best players and clearly makes the team better. Yet, he missed the past two games with an illness, and the Devils have 12 goals in his absence. 

The catch is that with Evangelista out, Mercer moved into his spot in the top six, playing on the Nico Hischier and Timo Meier line. It’s unlocked Mercer’s play, and he fits right in alongside the two forwards. So, do the Devils move Mercer to the Rodrigues line? Should they move Evangelista to that line? What about bumping the winger up to the Hughes line, especially if Gritsyuk struggles or regresses? 

This is where the Devils still have some tweaking to do. They must find a way to keep Mercer on a line that works, which has been the case with Hischier and Meier. Likewise, the Devils won’t let Evangelista’s skill go to waste or want his production to fall off a cliff. It’s something the Devils will play out once Evangelista returns. 

There’s a dilemma for every coach in hockey, with Keefe being no exception. Is it better to have all of the same skills on one line or change it up? There’s no correct answer. 

Keefe wanted to have variety on his lines to start the season. Mantha is a power forward and a change of pace from Bratt and Hughes. However, it didn’t work, setting the Hughes line back while the third line also struggled. 

Now, the Devils not only have multiple lines that work, but they also have different lines Keefe can turn to depending on the situation. When Keefe needs a goal or speed things up, he can lean on the Hughes line. When he needs defense, the fourth line is out there. When he needs a dirty-area or a goal in a tight-checking game, Hischier’s line will have more ice time. When an opponent is top-heavy and lacks depth, Rodrigues and Mantha give the Devils a matchup advantage. 

The Devils discovered their offense in recent games, and it’s made them a team that can go up against the best in the NHL. “It's not going to always be perfect, but there's a certain there's a certain standard of play and structure that's required to give us a chance to win night in and night out,” Keefe added after the latest win.