Devils' Goaltender Markstrom Struggling In a Big Way

When you are the second best team in your division, conference, and the third best team in the entire NHL, you should not have too much to worry about right?

Well, if you are the New Jersey Devils, the answer to the question is wrong with a capital "W". Right now, they are obviously worried about the health of Jack Hughes.

After a freak injury to one of his fingers at a team dinner last week, Jack is expected to miss at least eight weeks. Jack currently leads the team in scoring (20 points on 10 goals and 10 assists), is a key contributor on the power play, scores big goals, and is noticeable every game, so for him to miss a lot of time is a huge blow to this hockey club.

With that said, this article is not about the Devils worrying about Jack's injury. Rather, this is about why the Devils should be worried about the poor play of their starting goaltender, Jacob Markstrom.

As of this writing, Markstrom, 35, is 5-3-0-1 with a 3.83 goals-against average and a .864 save percentage. Those are terrible numbers for any goaltender, let alone one that is a starting netminder who recently signed a two-year contract extension.

For starters, Markstrom is obviously allowing too many goals. For a team that is just 16th in goals scored, Markstrom is making games interesting in a bad way by giving up a lot of goals. Here is what he has allowed in his last five games:

- November 1 vs. the Los Angeles Kings: One goal allowed on 44 shots (Win)
- November 6 vs. the Montreal Canadiens: Three goals allowed on 19 shots (Win)
- November 10 vs. the New York Islanders: Three goals allowed on 24 shots (overtime loss)
- November 12 vs. the Chicago Blackhawks: Three goals allowed on 20 shots (Win)
- November 18 vs. the Tampa Bay Lightning: Five goals allowed on 29 shots (Loss)

That is 15 goals allowed in five games, which means that he is allowing at least three goals a game. While he was lucky enough to win three of them, things could have easily gone the other way had his team's offense not come through for him.

What is also worrisome is that he is giving up a lot of goals despite not facing many shots. When you are a goaltender who is allowing three goals on 20-25 shots a game, that is not the kind of goaltending that will help your confidence.

Speaking of confidence, it is clear that that is something that Markstrom is currently struggling with. He is giving up at least one soft goal a game, is getting caught out of position, and looks like he is fighting the puck, all things that combine to make a recipe for disaster for a masked man.

Lastly, he is getting outperformed by the team's backup goaltender, Jake Allen. Allen, 35, is currently 10-7-2 with a 2.24 goals-against average, and a .916 save percentage.

In looking at Allen's numbers, it should be clear that Markstrom does not deserve to be the starter right now until he gets his game in order. With Jack Hughes expected to miss significant time, the Devils need to find a way to stay afloat and continue getting wins.

Right now, Markstrom needs to figure out a way to get his game in order. If he is not able to do that, the Devils could end up having a big predicament on their hands.