Devils Head Coach Peter DeBoer has come to the conclusion that Devils goalie Cory Schneider needs to pretty much be perfect every start the way his luck has been this season.
“He was great. We don’t give him a lot of run support”, said DeBoer. “I think he’s starting to get used to that. He’s figured it out he’s just got to pitch a shutout”, added DeBoer.
Schneider did just that as the Devils ended a three game losing streak to pick up an important win 1-0 against the Dallas Stars, January 9 at Prudential Center.
Schneider, who saved 26 shots for his 3rd shutout of the season, has had some tough luck this season despite a 2.13 goals against average coming into the game. On this night he was just happy to be a part of the win anyway he could.
“It’s nice to contribute and win,” Schneider said. “Whether it’s 5-4 or 1-0 the win is what’s important”, he added.
And wins and points are what the Devils need at this point in the season. “We need to get points”, Dainius Zubrus said. “We are in a spot where every game we have to look to get points out of it”, he added.
“I thought it was a gritty win” said Devils captain Bryce Salvador after the game. “It was a tight game right down to the end”, he added.
The Devils, who were coming off a 3-2 overtime loss to the Philadelphia Flyers two days earlier took at 1-0 lead at 8:17 of the second period as Michael Ryder fired a shot off of a Travis Zajac feed in front of the net past Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen.
Ryder’s third goal in three games and fourth in five games would be all the Devils would need on the night. “He’s got a knack for getting in the right place at the right time at the right moment of the game”, said DeBoer on Ryder’s recent hot streak. “He’s a goal scorer.”
Lehtonen saved 33 shots on the night, but took the loss for the Stars, who have now lost four games in a row.
A key point in the game was when with just over five minutes left in the 2nd period Stephen Gionta was called for a double minor penalty for high sticking Jamie Benn.
The Stars had their chances but couldn’t put anything past Schneider as the Devils killed the penalty.
“That was critical”, DeBoer said of the penalty kill. “Those are turning points and lately the other teams found a way to get one in those situations. Tonight we killed those”, added DeBoer.
The Devils will next host a struggling Florida Panthers team, and know one thing they can’t do after a big win is suffer a letdown and lose. “We can’t afford to drop any games, we know that,” said DeBoer.
With defensive performances like this one and the play of Schneider, the Devils hope this is the start of their second half playoff push.
