The New Jersey Devils face the New York Islanders at UBS Arena in Elmont on Saturday, November 7.
The Devils are coming off a challenging game against the St. Louis Blues on November 5, eventually securing a 5-4 overtime victory.
Ahead of Saturday’s matchup, several players spoke with official team reporter Amanda Stein during morning availability, including Cody Glass.
Among other topics, Glass discussed the team’s progress despite its recent struggles, specifically addressing the game against the Blues.
He also delivered a strong message about the team’s mentality, insisting that they now have a good grasp of things and understand when they are playing well and when they are falling short.
Cody Glass Says Devils Are Locked In Ahead of Islanders Clash
Glass began saying, “I think we’ve improved a lot. Obviously, the last game (vs. St. Louis Blues) we had, you know, a little glimpse of, you know, what was happening kind of last year and how we got away from things. So good learning experience.”
“But yeah, I think we’re heading in the right direction. I feel like we have good systems in place.”
Then he was asked, “What do you feel has been, like, the biggest difference, though, in just the way you guys have been able to continually, like, keep that momentum, right? Like, I kind of go back to the Colorado game you guys lost, but then you got it back. Like what have you seen there from their consistency?”
Glass responded, “I think just everybody buying in from first line to fourth line. I feel like everybody’s doing their job and putting their best foot forward to help this team win.”
“There are no selfish guys here, and I think that’s been a really good adjustment for, you know, this team just being able to, you know, be together, communicate a lot. And I feel like that’s just obviously just carried our momentum into games.”
When asked about what happened in the building in the last game – as in the last two games, things kind of got out of hand and they were able to handle it differently, whether mentally or just in terms of the actual game – he said, “Yeah, it’s all mental.”
“You know, the systems are in place. It’s if you want to do it. It comes down to, as I said, just locking in, buying in, those kinds of things.”
“So we all know we’re capable of doing it. We’ve shown it. We’ve done it against really good teams, and we’ve won. And so we know it’s there. And if we continue to do so, obviously more success will come.”
“But as I said, we’ve kind of had a good buy-in here, and when things have gone south, you know, the team is right there to kind of, you know, lock us right back in. And I feel like we now know what the cause of everything is. So it’s been good.”
Glass Says Devils Have a Good Grasp on What Makes Them Successful
Stein then asked, “Just sort of a two-part question. I just remember, like, in Colorado, going into the locker room after the game and, you know, guys, we talked to you. Like there was no sense of, like, hanging your head. It was just sort of like understanding, like, okay, we can move on from this. And then the last game against the Blues, there was this, like, yeah, we got the two points, but we’re disappointed with how it happened. Is that like a real difference from this group right now, that, like, when you win in a way that you don’t want, do you know what I mean by that?”
Glass responded, “Yeah, I think we have a good grasp on things. And I feel like we know when we’re playing good and when we’re not. And last game was a good example of that where, maybe, yeah, we go up 4-1 but we’re not playing that great.”
“We’re letting Kelly see way too many odd-man rushes, that kind of thing. And yeah, I think it’s a very mature way of us looking at it: you know, yes, we’re winning, but we want to win consistently doing the same thing the right way every single time.”
“And I feel like that’s just been a good job for us to, you know, really just lock in, don’t get away from it, and obviously move on to the next game.”
Cody Glass Sends Strong Message Before Devils vs. Islanders: ‘It’s All Mental’