Say what you want about the shootout. Purists, analytics-minded people, journalists, and others have lamented how shootouts are even in the game at all and how they are counted during the regular season. However, they have been a mainstay in the NHL season since 2005-06 and it does not appear to be going anywhere anytime soon. Winning a shootout gives the team a second point in the standings as if they won in regulation. Like them or not, they matter.
And New Jersey Devils fans know this all too well. The 2013-14 squad missed the playoffs by five points.