Devils Third Period burst not enough to catch Rangers

The devils now drop to 2-6-1, with some 'growing pains' still needing to be worked out. We need to take shots when we have the chances, that's obvious. One period of aggressive play is not enough to win a game. The devils have rarely played a full 60 minutes, and again tonight it showed. We have to move past another loss, but use the third period to build upon with a long road trip coming up. Danyeko mentioned before the game that the team needs to have some bonding while away. This is extremely important with so many new faces.

Jacob Josefon still impresses me with his skill and awareness. The late penalty was him being overly aggressive but that will work itself out over a few more games. Zubrus' pass to kovy late in the third resulted in the loan goal for the devils. Zubrus' play has been strong along the boards and has had scoring chances over the past two games.

One of the shows on MSG had mentioned top 5 coaches on the chopping block, one being Maclean. I like his coaching style and being a rookie coach isn't easy when you have such veterans like Brodeur, Kovalchuck, Jamie and others. Maclean will earn their respect and be a fine coach. Don't forget last year we had a rough start at home as well. The end of last year we finished poorly due to rough second periods, if I recall properly. This issue of the team not playing together is just a continuation from last year, Maclean will repair this as I hope this 6 game road trip helps as well.

One more side note: Management needs to get the Elephant out of the room. I know Rolston is out on long term injury and so is salvador, but the lingering question of who will stay and who will go can still be a factor to some of this team.

-Ross