Game Preview #45: New Jersey Devils vs. Vegas Golden Knights
The Devils honored Sergei Brylin before their last game…but not *during* their last game. Is a bounce back in the cards?
The Matchup: New Jersey Devils (23-18-3) vs. Vegas Golden Knights (27-14-5)
The Time: 7:00pm ET
The Broadcast: MSGSN, SCRIPPS
Last Devils Game
On Saturday, the Devils inducted Sergei Brylin into their Ring of Honor, a well deserved and long awaited tribute. The feel good vibes ended right there though, as New Jersey put together an embarrassing effort in a 6-2 loss to the Dallas Stars. It was as bad a loss as we’ve seen this season, which is saying something at this point.
Last Golden Knights Game
Vegas was also in action on Saturday, and they did New Jersey a solid by defeating the Pittsburgh Penguins in regulation, 3-2. The Knights entered the third period down 2-0, but stormed all the way back to get two points from the Pens.
Another Game, Another Disappointment
The Devils embarrassed themselves on Saturday. The players were a step behind all night, the coaching staff didn’t seem to have any tactical answers, and the Stars were more than happy to take advantage. I would be tempted to say it was just one of those games that you burn the tape and move on from, but efforts like these have been alarmingly common this season. So instead of burning the tape, it feels like a game the Devils absolutely need to learn from.
As doom and gloom as things are around the franchise, this team is still above .500 and right in the mix for a playoff spot. That being said, it is very difficult to make up ground in the NHL thanks to the loser point, so it really feels like the Devils can ill afford any more efforts like Saturday. But do any of us really believe we won’t see anymore efforts like that the rest of the way? I wouldn’t bet on it.
Fire Lindy 2: Electric Boogaloo
We all know the story by now: Last season, the Devils lost the first two games of their season (which really felt like games 83 and 84 of the previous season). During the second of those two games, the home opener against the Detroit Red Wings, some fans started to chant “Fire Lindy”. Shortly thereafter, the Devils went on a franchise-record tying 13-game win streak, and the rest of the regular season was a magic carpet ride with only a little turbulence in December. This led to fans chanting “Sorry Lindy” at a game, to which Lindy responded by accepting their apology.
Well dear reader, I regret to inform you that the “Fire Lindy” chants are back. It’s been faint, but audible at recent home games. Fans are getting fed up with Ruff all over again. The results of this season have played the biggest role in this of course, but in my opinion, Ruff committing several unforced errors with the media has really hurt his cause as well.
If you remember back to the season opener from 2022-23, a 5-2 loss in Philadelphia, NJ.com’s Ryan Novozinsky asked Ruff about Jesper Bratt’s ice time, or lack thereof. Ruff acted like a petulant child and abruptly ended his media availability there:
Very recently, we got a deja vu scenario with that same reporter asking another ice time question. This time Novozinsky asked about Alexander Holtz’s ice time…or lack thereof. This was Ruff’s response:
Apparently Ruff does not enjoy questions about how much ice time he gives to Swedish wingers.
Then after last game, Ruff had this to say:
This one I’m torn on, because I can remember way back to the 2010-11 season when John MacLean coached the Devils into an abyss, and Lou brought Jacques Lemaire back to help resurrect New Jersey’s season (it didn’t work, but it came shockingly close to doing so). In his first press conference back, Lemaire preached roughly the same message to the team after they went down early.
But context matters, and the context here is that Ruff seems to be losing his grip on the team. So when he preaches forgetting the score and “winning the rest of the game”, it doesn’t come across all that well.
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