Some notes on technical jargon:

SAT%: Also called Corsi, measures shot attempts directed towards an opponent versus shot attempts directed by the opponent. An SAT% above 50 denotes that your team is directing more shots to the opponents net than the opponent is directing towards you.

USAT%: Also called Fenwick, similar to Corsi except the measurement only includes unblocked shot attempts.

Close: A modifier that only includes measurements taken when games are tied or within one goal.

ZS%: measures the amount of faceoffs in each team's zone. A ZS% above 50 shows that your team in taking faceoffs in the opponent's zone more often than they are taking in their own zone.

SPSv%: Also called PDO, often used as a meaure of 'luck'. It combines team save and shooting percentages. This metric trends towards 1000, meaning that teams showing a SPSv% above 1000 are receiving a higher than normal amount of 'luck', either relying on abnormal and/or unsustainable shooting or save percentages. Think Colorado during Patrick Roy's first year. Teams above 1000 tend to regress in following years, and teams below tend to improve.

Looking at some of these stats we can see that the Devils rank last or near-last in most possession categories:

SAT%: 46.15 ( 29th) Only 46.15 percent of shot attempts were from Devils players

SAT% Close: 46.94 (27th) Marginal improvement when games are close

USAT%: 46.95 (26th)

USAT% Close: 48.29 (23rd) Higher level of improvement in unblocked attempts in close games

ZS%: 45.74 (30th) Shows play often ends in the defensive zone, as New Jersey has trouble controlling play

5on5 S%: 7.2 (19th) Closer to league average shooting percentage

5on5 Sv%: .924 (18th)

SPSv: 997 (17th)

Opposing teams direct more shots towards the Devils than they direct towards their opponents, both unblocked or otherwise. What is encouraging is that in close situations their possession metrics are better, although the difference may not prove significant.

We can see how this impacts the flow of the game by looking at zone starts, or ZS%. While the correlation isn't perfect, we can see that opposing teams are getting the chance to make more shot attempts than the Devils, and play is starting more often in the Devils defensive zone. This means that in order for New Jersey's offensive players to get shots on net, they are having to win more defensive zone faceoffs and try to successfully break the puck out. Compared to a team with a ZS% above 50, the Devils have to take defensive zone faceoffs more often, forcing offensive players to focus on defensive play in high-danger situations. Even if the Devils had the same amount of shots as other teams, which they don't, their players are working harder to get them.

The Devils SPSv is below 1000, meaning that if anything the team should see some small statistical improvement in shooting and save percentages next season as they move towards the mean.