New Jersey Devils Had Incredible Season Despite Round 2 Series Loss

The New Jersey Devils’ incredible season has come to an end. New Jersey fell to the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 5 of their Round 2 Stanley Cup Playoff series by a score of 3-2 in overtime.

Though the players are disappointed at the moment, those who follow the team know this has been a great season. While every team has the ultimate goal of winning the Stanley Cup, the Devils are just beginning their rise back to glory. This is just the first step in their journey. Just look at how far this group of young players have come in just one season.

“Obviously it sucks right now, disappointed, but it is what is now. Not much to say,” Devils captain Nico Hischier said post-game. 

Considering where the Devils were at this point last season, and while the pain still stings of losing, New Jersey took a big step in the right direction. And the players know it, but in the moment of losing it is tough to see.

“It’s frustrating, but we had a great year,” said Jack Hughes. “It sucks that we are out now, but we have a bright future ahead of us.” 

Who would have thought the Devils were going to make it this far? Entering the season, the Devils were picked to miss the playoffs. Many thought the Devils would challenge for a wild-card spot, but just ultimately fall short.

Well, from the beginning of the season, the Devils proved a lot of people wrong. Their incredible season started slow going 0-2 before going 18-1-1. Still, there were doubters. However, as the season progressed the Devils were not going away. Yes, this young team hit a wall and faced some adversity, but got it back on track.

As the incredible season progressed, the Devils were in a position to be buyers at the NHL Trade Deadline. That is where they acquired Timo Meier. Meier fit right into the lineup alongside fellow Swiss players Hischier, Jonas Siegenthaler, and Akira Schmid.

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One thing the Devils showed during this incredible season was the heart and mindset of a champion. No lead was too big for them as they led the NHL in comeback wins. It was a total team effort night in and night out. New Jersey used their speed game to their advantage. The Devils were one of the fastest teams in the league. That speed game translated into wins.

As we saw in Round 1 against the New York Rangers. Despite being down 0-2, the Devils won the next four out of five games as they kept things simple and used their speed to their advantage. Their speed was most evident when the forwards came back to help through the neutral zone to help out the defensemen.

The Devils used their speed to create an aggressive forecheck. Not only that but that speed was clutch as the Devils transitioned from defence to offence. Especially when the game was 5v5.

In addition, the Devils got historic performances from their top players of Hughes, Jesper Bratt, Dawson Mercer, Dougie Hamilton, Hischier, and Meier. With everything clicking the Devils made the playoffs for the first time since 2018. And made the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 2012.

The Devils were able to get away with their top players not performing in Round 1, but in Round 2 their struggles continued. Meier picked up his game in the final three games, but the Devils needed more from Hischier, Hamilton, and Bratt.

Give credit to the Hurricanes for shutting these players down. Carolina matched the Devils speed and used their forecheck against them. Not to mention, the Hurricanes got the timely save, but the Devils did not. Goaltending once again became an issue for the Devils. More on that another time.

But as the old saying goes a team has to learn to lose before they can win. This second round is a learning experience for this young Devils team. They now know what it takes to win in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

“Getting to the second round was huge for our team, beating the Rangers was awesome,” said Michael McLeod. “Just recognizing playoff hockey, how it’s different and how we can be better. Just really proud of our group.” 

While the Devils will be disappointed with the result at this very moment, they can look back on this incredible season as a success.

“The future is bright,” head coach Lindy Ruff after the team’s loss in Game 5. 

And he is right. Just look at the core players that are locked up long-term, the Devils will be back in this position consistently going forward.