Lichtenstein: If Allowed To Stay, Santini Could Help Cure Devils' 'D' Woes

By Steve Lichtenstein
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When your team isn't winning consistently, the next best thing for a fan is to find young players who can provide hope for a better future.

That's why, in my mind, the Devils' generally nondescript 3-0 victory over visiting Boston on Monday night might just prove to be somewhat pivotal.

Well, not necessarily for this season. New Jersey has a long road ahead to just break out of the bottom tier in the Eastern Conference, let alone contend for a playoff berth. Monday's win was just their sixth in their last 23 games.

The bigger picture, however, was put into a little better focus.

Finally, after failing to crack the big club's lineup early in the season and then enduring a disappointing demotion to Albany, 21-year-old defenseman Steven Santini found his way onto the Prudential Center ice against the Bruins.

Santini, who was raised in the Putnam County town of Mahopac, was the Devils' second-round selection (42nd overall) in the 2013 draft and was signed following the conclusion of Boston College's season last April. Along with fellow rookies Pavel Zacha and Miles Wood, Santini made his NHL debut in last season's finale, a 5-1 win over Toronto.

After recovering from a pair of injuries in Albany, Santini was recalled over the weekend in the wake of John Moore's concussion during the Devils' 6-2 loss to Washington on Saturday.

Now, Santini wasn't exactly the star of Monday's game. He played a little less than 12 minutes on the third defense pair, but did register an assist on the first goal and, more importantly, helped to steady an area that had been rather leaky (a league-worst 81 goals allowed) during the team's current slump.

"It was great to see (Santini) get a point -- that's awesome," said Devils goalie Cory Schneider, who made 22 saves to earn his second shutout of the season. "He looked poised, he looked calm, and he looked like he wanted the puck, had his head up, and didn't just throw it away. He made some poised plays and used a little deception. Who knows what's going to happen here, but I felt pretty comfortable with him on the ice."

Whether Santini is here to stay is up to Devils coach John Hynes, who had to notice the impact of the 6-foot-2 defenseman.

Though he's highly regarded for his stay-at-home skills, Santini's assist showed he also has the ability to not only get pucks through the logjams in front, but also to test opposing goalies.

Early in the first period, Santini's wrist shot from the right point was blocked, but bounced right back to him. With the poise of a veteran, Santini toggled along the blue line to center ice and tried again. Boston goalie Tuukka Rask was forced to make a tough blocker save. The rebound, however, was directed right onto the stick of left wing Taylor Hall, who immediately sent the puck back towards the goal. From the crease, P.A. Parenteau was able to knock it in for his team-leading 11th goal of the season.

"Any time you have a broken play like that, where you have that first shot blocked and then it came right back to me, it's hard for that wing to recover," Santini said of his second effort. "I'm trying to get pucks to the net. I think that's what any good defenseman is going to do."

Aside from the recorded point, Santini's insertion provided some ancillary intangible benefits. For one, his presence allowed the Devils' defense corps to be balanced between right-handed and left-handed shooters for the first time this season. Left-handed Kyle Quincey was able to move to the left side against the Bruins.

"Sometimes it's easier to be able to play your natural side, whether it's how you're going to break the puck out or how you play the line rush against defense," Hynes said. "I thought (Quincey's) attention to detail was better, his net-front boxouts were better. So it was nice to see him play that way."

In addition, and maybe most remarkably, Santini seemed to settle down his partner, Jon Merrill, who has drawn the ire of Devils' fans for much of the last two seasons due to his subpar play. Merrill, who was a minus-5 in the prior 14 games he's dressed this season (only one of which the Devils won), was on the ice for all three goals scored on Monday.

Hynes was asked whether Merrill helped Santini or the other way around.

"I thought that (Merrill) was moving his feet more than he has in the past, particularly in breakout situations or in neutral zone transitions," Hynes said. "He wasn't just sitting and looking to make a read. He was skating. He had some good escape moves. But I thought that Steven is positionally sound, he's always in the right spot, he communicates out there. So I thought it was a combination."

Given Moore's condition, it would seem that Santini will get another opportunity Tuesday in Carolina. Santini, Wood, and Zacha, the trio that came up together for that one magical night last year, have all been shuffled around at various points this season.

That has to stop. Along with the handful of young guns currently shining in the Final Four of the World Junior Championships, they should be the building blocks of a more prosperous future for the Devils.

For a FAN's perspective of the Nets, Jets and the NHL, follow Steve on Twitter @SteveLichtenst1