League Record So Far; 1 – 0 – 0, 2pts
CARDIFF, WALES – It was the league home opener for a bruised Devils team looking to avenge a disappointing home stand in the cup and finally right a wrong from the start of the season, beating their old foes Coventry Blaze.
Here are my 10 key observations from a tense night at the Vindico Arena;
1. Thompson demanded, players responded
It was no surprise how seething the coach would have been from the performances last weekend. From costly penalties to lack of focus and impetus, to being shutout after throwing a 3 goal lead to lose in regulation.
Not even a point was salvaged, as they were the only team to not pick up anything from their endeavours across the league in all competitions and deservedly so.
In his interview with BBC Sport Wales, he wanted to put right the dire performance of last weekend and expected a response from his players after some reflection, instead of a beasting.
This was taken in the correct way, as the game provided a tense affair with absolute focus, the right tempo and tenacity and accountability throughout.
Adding a caveat for a shutout was like the icing on the cake, but still a long way to go to meet any expectations, but two points secured is the right way to respond and the players delivered.
2. Bowns Boss again, stands tall and helps to secure stoic win
He made 28 saves on the night but had some luck on the way but demonstrated again why he is a key player and top goalie in this league, with a brilliant shutout performance, his second in all EIHL competitions and first for this season.
That was shutout number 30 in all EIHL competitions for Bowns, which is a great achievement in itself, as the 34 year old club icon enters his testimonial year and certainly doesn’t look like slowing down.
He made the game easier for his team in front of him, which allowed them to battle and maintain their structure, which limited the Blaze to just 2 high danger chances that were never getting through on the night.
One to be proud of for Bowns and a bench mark for the season.
3. Robson downed, but not without effort
In the opposing net, Matt Robson once again frustrated human beings both on and off the ice as he also stood tall, despite an early marker, that eventually became the game winning goal (GWG).
This reflected the nature of the win for Devils, as Blaze pulled him twice, which allowed two ENG’s and almost a Nedjelovic-esque moment for him, which could have been embarrassing.
Despite the final few minutes which were largely out of his control, he was also strong for his team, as without, the score would have been a lot different.
Some might say Blaze deserved more than what was effectively a 1 goal game, however by the xG’s, the scoreline ended up flattering them to a point, either way, a 3 goal differential was the predicted outcome.
He saw off 48 SOG from 76 attempts, much like their previous games, except this one went the right way for the good guys, as defensively, the Blaze are weak and fall off when not on the puck in the DZ.
This was an obvious observation from the outset after their squad was put together and how they have performed to date, so it is on one hand surprising this hasn’t been capitalised in full yet by the Devils, but the other hand, without quality forwards, those results would and have happened.
Blaze are lucky to have such a formidable goalie between the pipes, week in and week out.
4. Martin masterclass
After missing the majority of the start of the season due to an issue with his foot, the Goat, Joey Martin returned to action on the top line and didn’t waste time to get right back at it.
His game opening goal timed at 03:36 in the first period turned out to be the GWG, much to the delight of every Devils fan in the building and else where. It was a cool, sublime finish amongst a bit of chaos on the Blaze net, as mentioned in the previous observation.
He put up 8 shots on the night, in a tightly checked game and was 50% on accuracy, but got the all important goal to help them to the win in regulation.
The top line put in a consistent performance, as MacDonald matched the Goats’ output and even though Barrows was half that, he was 100% on accuracy on the night.
Martin is now 3 games away from 500 all time EIHL appearances.
5. Reshuffled lines made the difference
From the analysis of last weekend, it was suggested there should be a reshuffle of the lines, especially as Martin returned.
Also, there was an expected injury, either Caponi who took a nasty block or Lacroix, who once again got his arm chopped without a call. It ended up being Lacroix as the scratch.
So, when the game sheet was released, it was a pleasure to see some different combinations.
As mentioned with the Martin line, Barrow stood out and was a menace all game, for the right reasons. He created space for the play makers and skilled shooters. Between them they put up 12 SOG from 20 attempts, so not a bad offensive return, against a brilliant goalie.
Elsewhere, the third line created a balanced vibrance that was very nearly rewarded several times, with the empty netters capitalised with those players (Perlini, Brandt).
They put up 11 shots and had 81.8% accuracy on the night, aside from the ENG’s. It was also their work off the puck which was stand out, making good defensive plays and keeping the NZ occupied, to allow the blue liners to get to work offensively.
There were 28 shots from the blue liners, with Mosey (9) having the most on the night, earning a secondary assist on the GWG. The space created for them, with much better puck control and movement off the puck created problems for the visitors all night,
Against a different goalie, that xG would be higher, indeed.
6. Perlini impressive, secures the win
As mentioned with his line, Perlini commanded some excellent skills, plays and provided a key veteran presence, as he has slowly adapted into the flow of the season.
Unlike last season, with some time off before being able to truly get going, he has been trying to find ways to contribute and apply his skills with vision and deft hands.
Last night paid off in spades, as he was able to dead stop plays, find sublime passes, coax players offside and attract defenders to him, to allow his line mates to forecheck hard.
The goal and assist on the EN was a reward but not a true enough return for his play, as his IQ when on full brightness mode is a remarkable thing to witness. Like a puppet master, pulling the strings.
7. Puck control noticeable in a game under full control
The only reason the scoreline was so close was arguably because of Matt Robson, as Devils never looked like they were under threat the entire game. Even when they were on the PK.
In fact, despite that. They coughed up 4 PPG’s last weekend against the same team, the main reason was errant plays, not enough focus with the puck and inability to find tape to tape passes.
Total opposite on the night, much like in previous years, when they connect, the game is under full control.
They dominated the NZ, shut down the DZ and held on to possession with a lot more focus, which helped to generate so many higher grade scoring chances, particularly from the mid to high slot and low point areas.
Last time, they only managed 8 B-Grade chances, last night it was 22. Much more time and space to find the net and put the goalie to work, which in contrast, amazingly saw more goals the last game.
This fed into the discipline, even when short handed, there was an assured presence and determination from every player. They understood their assignment and responded correctly.
8. Powerplay still missing the mark
They turned around their discipline misfortunes last night, earning three PP opportunities, but they went untaken.
Again, the build up was slow, over played at the blue line and by the time they were ready to fire at net, the PK unit in front of them clogged up the mid slot to collect and send the other way.
Knowing that each player (according to Thompson) had their weaknesses picked apart in their post-weekend ear bashing, one point I would have liked to see an improvement was Estes being a more efficient puck mover as the PP QB.
Alas, this wasn’t to be, as there were 3 more chances squandered because they took far too much time to slingshot behind the net, reset and attack the play.
They are now 1 in 10 on the PP in the last 3 EIHL games, against the same teams in back to back weekends.
9. Tightly checked game, excellent composure
There were moments in the third where it could have gone off the rails, as Blaze were clearly frustrated by the hard hitting wingers and gutsy play from the Devils 4th line.
This reflected in the penalties as they only saw off two PP’s, with a lot more offsides and icing being called instead.
The game was so tightly checked, the hits total ran up at 17 each, which shows just how matched they were and how little space there was for the opposition.
It was also aided by a face off masterclass on the dots, with Devils winning 30:17 on the dropped biscuits. Again, with the offsides and icings, this fed into an engine which drew in fuel from Blaze like oxygen to the lungs.
The discipline and calmness under pressure, even when the game wasn’t going to their liking, showed how much they missed their captain, despite having Richardson and Oligny. Martin brings a different edge to so many aspects of the bench, it was a surprise he was never the captain in the last few years.
The face off takers were roughly above 60% on the night across the board, taking the puck away from the speedsters of the Blaze, opened the chances to move them about from east to west, get behind them and force mistake after mistake.
Total opposite from last week.
This lead to the road team losing their structure several times, forcing some great stops by Robson and panicked clearances from the opposing blue liners.
An excellent performance of game management.
10. Expectations set
They know they can win tight games, produce comprehensive performances and grind out shutout wins.
They know they have the tools to turn the game on its head and approach the OZ with a variety of offensive threats.
They know they can keep their composure and not get drawn into silly shenanigans and maintain control of the puck.
They also know, they can go on the road to Nottingham and come away with two points.
They also have a weighted and mouth watering reason to do it again, against the team that beat them in the playoffs last season, that blew them out of their own barn last week and would be raising the banner of said defeat from that playoff final.
It is good to see a response in one game, the expectation is to now return the favour of last weeks’ embarrassing defeat and remind their doubters they have what it takes to get the job done and truly respond to their coaches’ demands and fans expectations.
This is the one that matters.
Three Stars of the Game vs Blaze;
1st Star; Joey Martin
2nd Star; Ben Bowns
3rd Star; Matt Robson
HockeySteve Stats & Insights 
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