Weekend Recap; Back to Back 5-1 Wins A Delight for Devils

League Record So Far; 2 – 0 – 0, 1st Place

Cup Record So Far; 2 – 0 – 0, 2nd Place

CARDIFF, WALES – It was a weekend of plenty for the Devils and their fans as the team comfortably blew away their competition in both league and cup action, with identical tallies at 5:1 per game.

10 goals, 2 conceded and a lot of scorers demonstrated their prowess, depth and talent, despite being a few numbers down, of those, each a big name to their own merit.

There has been growing frustration over the years that Devils can’t put teams away or run up the scoreboard, so far, they have been doing just that.

A scattered pre-season is becoming a fading memory, which most used to write off the teams’ ambitions already, with three games on the bounce of scoring 5 and over. This is the Devils team this fanbase has been longing for since 2019/20 season.

Here were some key standouts from the weekends action;

1. Barrow is a Menace (and long may it continue)

Ryan Barrow has been dutifully praised for his skill, speed, hockey IQ and big body. This season has seen him start on the top line with college friend Olischefski and Busch, which has paid dividends so far.

From the hits and heavy forechecking to the link up plays for goals, the board plays and puck recycling. The tempo has been set with a line expected to be the third, not the top. It has been delightful.

Barrow had a Gordie Howe Hatty vs Storm in cup action, with a goal, assist and a (credit) fight, where their relentless tempo and will to control the puck eventually drew the ire of their opponents, especially when their captain was downed during the game.

2. MacDonald Continues Scoring Streak

Another weekend, another bag of points for the flashy forward with silky mitts and great offensive IQ.

MacDonald put up 4 points in the Devils all EIHL 4 point weekend, with 2G and 2A. He is Devils second best point scorer with O’Brien in the league, with 3 each and leads Devils in the cup with 5 points (1,G, 4A) overall.

8 points in 4GP is one heck of a return, however the bar is set. Now it is to find out if he can continue this production as the season builds ups.

3. Zach O’Brien Masterclass

He was quiet during pre-season, but shown glimpses of what he can do with positioning, his puck handling skills and nouse for driving the play and creating space.

Both he and MacDonald scored some sublime goals, seen here on the highlights package –

He has since the season opened proper, delighted fans with awe of his expert execution and authentic, humble style to produce 3G, 2A in 4GP.

Seamless is a word I would describe the player when he ices out with his lines, especially on the power play. It is really cooking so far. So is he. He is Him.

4. Special Teams Producing Early

Always a slow burner, with previous seasons seeing a lot of possession, passing and passing and passing and passing.

After only two games in each comp, Devils sit 2nd on the PP with 20%, which is around the bench mark average all teams want to hit. In the cup, thy have a very healthy 25% on the PP, which cannot be argued just as yet.

PK is averaged at 82.85% across both comps so far, sitting 2nd overall in the cup. Across both comps for the PP, 22.5% is pretty decent as the most important aspect is the PPGs. 2 each in both comps, means they will get a heavy chance of scoring on the PP.

5. High Offense, Subdued Defense, Bowns Immense

The biggest take homes are points, wins and their key attributes. Do they score more than what goes against?

So far, the lamp lighting has been a special return for the big game nights attendance wise. 19 goals scored and 5 conceded is a fantastic start. At home it has been 8:2, the two conceded were against the run of play, one being on the PK from an odd call against the Chef, but that’s how it goes sometimes.

Of the weekends games, Devils launched a total of 143 shots, with 89 on net. An average of 116 shot attempts over the two games, with 10 goals scored and an 89% chance of a goal being scored from their efforts.

There wasn’t many high danger chances vs Storm, with the majority from the point and goals from the high slot areas.

Against Fife, they were more direct, hitting 11 SOG from high danger chances, scoring twice in that area. Nearly all their goals came from deep in the low slot area, a contrast to their previous night but with the same outcome.

Devastating offense.

At the other end, Bowns produced his magic, especially on breakaways, stone walling Flyers some short handed chances when the blue lines pockets were picked.

The blue liners typically lead the way with blocked shots, with Cody Donaghey (7), Andrew MacWilliam (7), Mark Richardson (5).

Heavy commitment.

Bowns faced a total of 71 shots during the weekend, with 40 on net. The average of course being 20, so a quiet night for him where back to back shut out bids were thwarted. It is coming, that’s a guarantee.

His efforts between the pipes and against equally great net minders proved why he is still one of the best in the league and Great Britains best goalie at 94.4 SV% and 1.00 GAA during the weekend.

Like with the forwards efforts, long may this continue.

Three Stars from the weekend;

Ryan Barrow couldn’t not be included as he seemed to drive the tempo across 120 minutes of hockey, earning a Gordo along the way.

Josh MacDonald leads the team in all comps and added 4 points across the weekends action with 2G, 2A.

Ben Bowns back stopped to near perfect games with 94.4 SV% and 1.00 GAA.

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