Goundhog Day - New Jersey Devils: Thanksgiving Eve Edition

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The Devils seem to have found themesevles in their own version of the movie Groundhog Day. Except their version takes place in a packed arena on Thanksgiving Eve. 

 Opening Scene

*Pan Camera to the Prudential Center*

The Devil’s take the ice on Thanksgiving Eve looking to extend their win streak as their opponents in blue come into town. The referees make & miss many questionable calls against them, they go down early in the first and the opposition goalie stands on his head. Fans clutch their chicken nuggets, with flashbacks to two years ago where they face a similar fate…thinking to themselves will this happen again every thanksgiving eve?

*Fade to Black*

End Scene


Photos by Rich Graessle/Getty Images
Before the puck drop, the team put together a wonderful presentation for Markstrom in honor of his 500th game. That was the end of any of the good vibes last night. A few seconds into the game, the referees decided to ignore an obvious trip which lead to the Blues going up 1-0 early. When an egregious mistake like this happens, the officiating crew acknowledges it and usually give the team who was on the short end of the stick a make up call. This was not the case last night. The officials instead decided to give the Devils a very soft too many men on the ice call, then ignore a crosscheck on Pesce that allowed the Blues to go up 2-0. The Blues added insult to injury, going up 3-0 with a little over three minutes left after Seigenthalers clear bounced right to Halloways stick. While the Devils put together a few good shifts at the end of the period Binnington was up to the task. The shellshock from the quick non call and goal was too much for the boys to overcome and ended the 20 minutes down three. As they left the ice there were boos coming from the fans which was mostly directed towards the refs, but I feel like some were at the players lack of effort.

Photos by Rich Graessle/Getty Images

This period was one that the Devils needed to move on quickly if they had any chance to get back into the game. They came out in the second period and peppered the Blues, outshooting them 11-1, creating an xG of 2.377 in the twenty minutes but Binner and the Blues kept the goose egg up on the board. The Blues had the better of the chances in the third, with Markstrom making a nice backdoor save to keep the score at 3-0. The Devils were unable to breakdown either Binner or the Blues defense, who did a great job protecting the house and limiting second chance opportunities for the guys.

Photos by Elsa/Getty Images

The month of November has been an interesting month for the Devils. They have looked like they have found their game having a record of 8-4 on the month, but the four losses they do have were all shutouts. The team has some great firepower up front but is still in need of a top six forward to elevate the Hughes & Bratt line. While last night was a tough game to watch, the positive is that today is Thanksgiving, and the Devils are currently in a playoff spot. Since the 2005-06 season, 76.7% of teams in a playoff spot on this holiday have gone on to make the playoffs. The Devils look to bounce back vs. Detroit tomorrow & Washington on Saturday.


I would like to thank all of you who have been reading these posts so far and want to wish you and your families a Happy Thanksgiving!

Lets Go Devils!

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