I generally consider myself an optimistic fan, but on the "hey, it could happen" list of hypothetical outcomes of a potential standings swapping game against the back-to-back Stanley Cup Champions you'd have to turn a couple dozen pages to find "Travis Zajac leads a full-on blitzing of the Pittsburgh Penguins". Not only does his offensive prowess leave as much to be desired as the hockey knowledge (or lack thereof) possessed by those who despise him so much you'd think they were funding his salary, but - more importantly - you wouldn't consider scoring to be his primary concern when going up against the team with the most dangerous one-two punch down the middle in the entire league. As it turns out, when centering two guys - in Blake Coleman and Stefan Noesen - that are made relentless by a refusal to play without the puck, the best defense is an overbearing offense. That was pretty obvious throughout a thoroughly dominating effort that proved - if only for one night - that there's a basis for the recurring dream of Travis Zajac sliding into the role he was born to play as a top notch third line center. I'll never underestimate his haters, but if Saturday's win didn't make them accept that the preferred destination for their foot might be their mouth then they are just flat out ignoring how the rest of the locker room feels about the longest tenured player in it...
Look, for a team as experienced as the Penguins, getting outshot 38-16 by a younger, hungrier group was nothing more than a mid-season let-down on the ass end of a back-to-back. However, for a team like the Devils that's actively seeking litmus tests, outgunning the arsenal they are largely (and unsurprisingly) being built in the mold of was an affirmation that they are on the right track. They finally have a top 6 that's sets in relative stone, and if Saturday's three stars continue to align with half as much chemistry as they displayed against Pittsburgh then you might even accidentally trick yourself into believing it's a top 9. For all it's warts, the blue line - led by the offense of Damon Severson and the defense of Sami Vatanen - has done a great job suppressing opportunities as of late. If the offense can continue to create them from the top of the lineup on down, there's no reason to think that they can't stay hot and avoid suffering too many knockdowns in the gauntlet that is their upcoming, Metro-heavy schedule.
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