N.J. Devils: Look What the Capitals Did to Newark, Again

From the desk: THE BRICK CITY STYX

FRIDAY

Capitals 2

Devils   1

FINAL/OT

Devils Woes Against Capitals Go Unchanged; Fall to 0-7 in Season Series

Just brutal ... like being jabbed with your own pitchfork.

Mackenzie Blackwood had just made a brilliant save against T.J. Oshie to keep overtime moving along.  At the other end, Jack Hughes was likewise denied a game-winning opportunity by Capitals goalie Vitek Vanecek.  Washington then recovered the loose puck and promptly headed the other way.  With just 0:21 seconds left in the extra session, Dmitry Orlov, from the left circle, wristed a high shot past Blackwood's right shoulder for the win. 

It seemed somewhat inevitable.  Like an omen, Orlov proved problematic for the Devils throughout this game.  Tied with Alex Ovechkin, he co-led the Capitals with six shots on goal.  In fact, both Washington goals came courtesy of defensemen.

After a scoreless first period, Washington's John Carlson opened the scoring at 8:22 of the second period.  Within four and a half minutes, Michael McLeod tied the game at one.  But the Caps and Devils would again duel through a scoreless third period.

The Devils had their chances.  They put three shots on goal during overtime versus two by the Caps.  But whereas Vitek Vanecek stopped all but one of Newark's 23 shots on goal, Mackenzie Blackwood was peppered with 40 shots on goal by Washington.  Both goalies turned in stellar performances, relatively speaking, that is.  Otherwise, for Blackwood, this was as tough luck as they come. 

Meanwhile, forwards Yegor Sharangovich and Travis Zajac, along with blueliners Ty Smith, Damon Severson, and P.K. Subban, exit the ice with a minus-one. 

Newark is yet to defeat the Capitals in seven games now.  This game marks their second overtime loss against them.  The Devils are also trending again with four losses in their last five games.

N.J. Devils: Mackenzie Blackwood Turns Away Bruins

From the desk: THE BRICK CITY STYX

Devils lead Bruins; 4-1

I - BOS 3; NJD 2*

II - NJD 2; BOS 1#

III - NJD 3; BOS 2

IV - NJD 1; BOS 0

V - NJD 1; BOS 0

*shootout

#overtime

Devils Extend Win Streak to Four Against Boston

Kyle Palmieri's goal at 16:37 of the first period holds up.  It was his seventh of the season.  He now has 16 points in 32 games making the Smithtown, Long Island, native a little more attractive to other teams as the NHL trade deadline approaches.  Since arriving from Anaheim, Kyle has touched or topped 20 goals in each of his first five seasons with the Devils.  Were it not for last year's pandemic shortened schedule, he was on pace for the second 30 goal season in his career but finished with 25 goals and 20 assists in 65 games.

Ty Smith's 17th assist ties his for team-lead with 19 points; Jesper Bratt picked up the second assist on Palmieri's goal.

Boston unleashed 40 shots on goal, and Mackenzie Blackwood stopped them all for his first shutout of the season.  Nine saves came on special teams and 31 at even strength.  He made 17 saves in the third period but none more important than his kick-save with just seven seconds left in regulation - absolute thievery.  It's the Devils' second blanking of the Bruins.  Three weeks ago, Scott Wedgewood likewise shutout the Bruins in a 1-0 final.

The Devils and Bruins resume hostilities on Tuesday.  Afterwhich, Newark hosts the Washington Capitals.  The Devils are winless in six games this season against the Capitals.  However, they have now taken four of five games against the Boston Bruins.

Captain Nico Hischier remains out.  He has played just five games this season.  

Surging New Jersey Devils Set Sights on Washington

From the desk: THE BRICK CITY STYX

Flyers lead Devils; 2-1

I - PHI 5; NJD 3 

II - PHI 3; NJD 1

III - NJD 4; PHI 3

Storming the Capital ... Hockey Team of Washington D.C., That Is.  Tell Your Friends.

No one is trying to kid anybody.  The Devils, like the Rangers, are still a rebuilding club.  They place respectively seventh and sixth in the division as a direct result of Buffalo's ongoing implosion.  Otherwise, the Devils and Rangers would be fighting a four-point battle between seventh and last place.

Of course, with rebuilding come tempered expectations.  There is no need to tell Devils fans, who very recently suffered through a 4-10-2 stretch after the team's return from a mass observance of COVID protocol.  During that time, I remember P.K. Subban one night in post-game commentary saying (paraphrasing) that these Devils still had more learning to do.

The education continues, and Newark is suddenly trending with wins in four of their last five games versus the aforementioned moribund Sabres, two of three from the Penguins, and Tuesday's win against the flummoxed Flyers.  The regularly scheduled follow-up game against the Flyers had already been postponed due to COVID, this time affecting Philadelphia's camp.

Therefore, the Devils will re-engage the Washington Capitals in a back-to-back set on Thursday and Friday.  It will be interesting to see how the seemingly smarter and (moreover) healthier New Jersey rank and file measure up.  

The Devils this season are 0-4 against the Caps, getting outscored by an 11-17 margin.  But if the Devils are, in fact, trending in the right direction, and they have indeed finally shaken off the last remnants of COVID from their systems, then they just might be up for the task. 

🏒

On Tuesday, the Devils scored early and held on late to defeat the Flyers for the first time in three tries.  Michael McCleod opened the scoring midway through the first period.  After the Flyers tied the game, Kyle Palmieri put the Devils back ahead on a power-play goal with just 0:06 left in the period.  The second period was all Newark.  Goals from Yegor Sharangovich and Travis Zajac staked the Devils to a 4-1 lead.  Zajac similarly closed out the period with his fourth goal of the season with a mere 0:24 seconds showing on the clock.  The Devils then withstood two goals by Philadelphia, the second coming too late, by Sean Couturier at 18:58 of the third period.  

Rookie blueliner Ty Smith assisted on Newark's first and last goals, giving him 17 points in 20 games.

Mackenzie Blackwood faced 33 shots back in net, making nine saves on special teams and 30 saves overall.  He allowed one goal on the PK in the first and two goals at even strength in the third.

N.J. Devils: Mackenzie Blackwood Puts Penguins Into Deep Freeze

From the desk: THE BRICK CITY STYX

Devils lead Penguins; 2-1

I - NJD 3; PITT 2

II - PITT 3; NJD 1

III - NJD 2; PITT 1*

*overtime

Three Wins in Four Games is a Trend

And that's a wrap!

Jesper Bratt's wraparound goal at the 2:50 mark of overtime was just as artful as the weaving and assists he received from Ty Smith and Pavel Zacha.  

With the Devils coming off Saturday's loss at Newark, Sidney Crosby opened the scoring on Sunday just 3:37 into the first period.  There would be no change in scoring until 4:48 of the second period on Sami Vatanen's second goal of the season.  And that's the way things stayed for the remaining 35:12 minutes left of regulation.

Mackenzie Blackwood returned between the pipes.  He faced 35 total shots, including three on the PK, and stopped all but one during even strength.  Otherwise, after yielding Crosby's goal in the first, Blackwood shut out the Penguins over the final 59:13 minutes of play.

The Devils played near equal hockey, as did their competition.  They finished just minus-one in shots on goal, minus-two in hits, and plus-two in face-offs won.  Both teams were scoreless in two power-play opportunities each.

After playing Pittsburgh three times in four days, including back-to-back nights, the Devils come away with two wins out of three.  They are now 3-1 in their last four.  There's a chance, as I suggested when writing about Mika Zibanejad, many Devils players might finally be getting over any lingering effects of the COVID virus and needing to adhere to quarantine protocols.  

N.J. Devils: Straight Out of the Playbook

From the desk: THE BRICK CITY STYX

THURSDAY

Penguins 2

Devils   3

FINAL

As if by design ... I'm sure this was more along the lines of what Lindy Ruff and Tom Fitzgerald had in mind.

New Jersey's 2019 number one draft pick Jack Hughes opens the scoring midway through the first period on assists from Ty Smith and Kyle Palmieri.  After which, the big-name import, P.K. Subban scored on the power play at 8:42 of the second period from feeds by Jesper Bratt and Jack Hughes.  Just over a minute later, Newark's long-time veteran, Travis Zajac puts the game out of reach at the 10:19 mark of the second period with his third goal of the season assisted by Damon Severson.

Goalie Scott Wedgewood takes care of the rest.   It's hard to say the Devils were lucky to come away with the victory because that just isn't the truth.  Jake Guentzel scored during a Penguins power play with a mere 0:13 seconds left in the second period.  Then, with just 0:05 seconds left in the game, Bryan Rust scored making it a 3-2 game and the final margin of victory for New Jersey.  Otherwise, Scott  Wedgewood faced a season-high 42 shots on goal en route to his third win of the season.  Sidney Crosby accounted for eight shots (and no points).  It's the second time in the last eleven days Wedgewood needed to make at least 40 saves in a game, as this contest harkens back to Wedgewoods's 1-0 shut out of the Bruins.

New Jersey's 2018 first-round pick, Ty Smith picked up his twelfth assist of the season, and with two points, Jack Hughes now has 16 points in 27 games.  Now in his 15th season with over 1,000 games played with the Devils, Travis Zajac with an assist picked up point number 543 of his career.

With victories over Buffalo and now Pittsburgh, the Devils win back-to-back games for the first time in a full month, when they defeated the Rangers and Bruins in their first two games back on the ice after returning from COVID quarantine protocol.

N.Y. Rangers: Chris Kreider Hat Trick Hastens Devils Disappearing Act

From the desk: RAISE GRESCHNER WITH THE GREATS  &  THE BRICK CITY STYX

BATTLE OF THE HUDSON

Devils lead Rangers; 2-1

I - NJD 4; NYR 3

II - NJD 5; NYR 2

III - NYR 6; NJD 1

SATURDAY

Rangers 

vs.

Devils

FROM 

NEWARK

Filip Chytil's Return Impacts Team in More Ways That One

The beleaguered Mike Zibanejad for major portions of Thursday's game at Newark was withheld from Coach Quinn's ice.  There's no controversy; it was well deserved, in a manner of speaking.  He is otherwise usually out there for the most shifts and ice time.  But despite two points in his last two games and the primary assist on Alexis Lafreniere's third-period goal, everyone knows Mika is struggling with just two goals and eight points through 21 games.  Last season through the same number of games, Mika scored at a torrid pace with eleven goals and 13 assists for 24 points.  Said another way, he is presently scoring two-thirds less than last season.

Meanwhile, Filip Chytil is two games into his return from injury and already has a point, his fourth in only seven games played this season.  But there's a rub.  During Filip Chytil's seven games played, Mike Zibanejad also registered four points.  In Mika's 14 games played in Chytil's absence, he registered only four points.  Now that Chytil is back, he and Zibanejad scored a point in the same game for the third time.  I'm inclined to think none of this is mere coincidence.  

So, what's a head coach to do?  Does Quinn bump Filip Chytil up to the first line and either bump everyone down a spot or leave Ryan Strome on the second line and drop Zibanejad down on the third line?

In the continuing absence of Artemi Panarin, Jacob Trouba, and Kaapo Kakko, the onus is on Blueshirts veterans to pick up the slack.  Pavel Buchnevich has five points in his last four games, and Chris Kreider is in the midst of one of those mind-boggling streaks we've witnessed so many times before.  With a natural hat-trick against the Devils, Kreider now has seven goals in his last nine games, including two hat-tricks.  He now has 13 goals and 15 points for the season.  Let's enjoy it while it lasts because history says these bursts of brilliance come and go.

Here comes Alexis Lafreniere!  After notching just two points in his first 16 games, the Blueshirts teenager now has two goals and five points in his last four games while finally playing consistently alongside the Rangers' other top-five forwards.

Igor Shesterkin was brilliant, that is, until succumbing to a non-contact leg injury with just under 6:00 left in the third period.  He left the ice, clearly favoring one leg.  At the same time, it confirms the need for depth within the pipes.  No confidence was lost with having Alexandar Georgiev minding the net.  But Igor was indeed winning the day.

Moreover, if it wasn't for Igor, the Rangers, in all practicality, should have lost Thursday's game.  The best centerman on the ice, Jack Hughes, opened the scoring at 7:12 of the first period.  But Shesterkin performed cartwheels in shutting out Newark the rest of the way.  Newark won 16 more faceoffs than the Rangers, which correlated into 36 shots on goal versus just 19 shots for the Rangers.  Mackenzie Blackwood was pulled early in the third period of Thursday's game.  At some point, the Devils effectively stopped playing in front of him.  

Blackwood is otherwise sporting a .912 Sv% and 2.77 GAA through eleven starts.

After a quick start to the season, the Devils have now lost seven of eight since returning from COVID hell.  Losing two of three against the Sabres is most troublesome.  They were also playing Thursday yet again, minus their captain Nico Hischier, who is now in concussion protocol, not to mention suffering a broken nose/sinus fracture.  He will not be returning soon. 

Second-year Jack Hughes has five goals and 13 points in 19 games, and despite Newark fortunes, Miles Wood and Ty Smith continue to impress as well.  Wood leads the team with seven goals, and Smith leads with nine assists.  

Should Wood and particularly defenseman Ty Smith be having betters seasons than Kyle Palmiere?  That's a discussion worth having.  The Devils are no doubt strong up the middle, unlike the Rangers.  Bit whereas the Rangers appear string on the wing, the Devils do not.  

But aren't they too a rebuilding team?

On that note, Coach Lindy Ruff doesn't seem to be winning over the masses either.  Rangers fans know what that's like from when he coached the Broadway blueliners to certain fan dissatisfaction.

Rangers vs. Devils: Battle of the Hudson Resumes

From the desk: RAISE GRESCHNER WITH THE GREATS & THE BRICK CITY STYX

BATTLE of the HUDSON

TUESDAY

New Jersey Devils

vs.

New York Rangers

FROM

The 33rd Street Ice House

DEVILS PUSH BOSTON BRUINS TO OUTER LIMITS

Playing for new head coach Lindy Ruff, the young New Jersey Devils wrapped up two tightly contested games against the Bruins.  Last Thursday's season opener saw the Devils fall behind late in the first period on a power-play goal by Brad Marchand.  Miles Wood ties the game at the 8:51 mark of the third.  After yielding a second power-play goal to the Bruins, Ty Smith ties the game at two, and into overtime, they go.  After a scoreless extra session, Newark comes up empty in the shootout.  Brad Marchand once again finds the back of the net against Mackenzie Blackwood.

On Saturday, the Devils answer back.  Miles Wood opens the scoring at 16:15 of the first period.  But the Bruins tie late in the second on a short-handed goal from Patrice Bergeron.  After a scoreless third period, the two teams once again head into overtime.  Mackenzie Blackwood pitches a shutout, and with just 0:01 left on the clock, KHL vet and 22-year old NHL rookie Yegor Sharangovich scores his first career goal with the Devils ... game over.

• Goalie Mackenzie Blackwood, through two games, has faced 65 shots on goal, with 62 saves.  All three goals against have come on special teams.  
• Jack Hughes, through two games, has assisted on all three N.J. goals.  
• Travis Zajac begins his fifteenth season with the Devils.
• Nico Hischier remains out with a leg injury.
• The Devils and Rangers will play four games straight game in April.

A LOOK BACK AT RECENT DRAFTS

• 2017 - Devils select (C) Nico Hischier with the number one overall pick; Rangers select (C) Filip Chytil with the 21st overall pick.
• 2018 - Devils select (D) Ty Smith 17th overall.
• 2019 - Devils select (C) Jack Hughes with the first overall pick of the draft; Rangers select (RW) Kaapo Kakko with the very next pick (second overall).
• 2020 - Rangers select (LW) Alexis Lafreniere with the first overall pick of the draft; Devils select (RW) Alexander Holtz with the seventh overall pick. 

Alexis LaFreniere and Kaapo Kakko are both just nineteen years old.  Selected in the first round of the 2018 draft, K'Andre Miller is about to join 2017 first-round pick Filip Chytil as the team's resident 21-year olds.  Otherwise, the Rangers have fifteen players age twenty-five or younger and just two players over thirty years old.

ISLANDERS ADMINISTER OPENING NIGHT BEATDOWN

In last Thursday's opener against the Islanders, Igor Shesterkin faced 33 shots and made 29 saves, allowing two power-play goals and two at even strength.  At the other end of the ice, Semyon Varlamov faced just 24 shots by the Rangers, stopping them all for the shutout.  The Rangers' shot total is a direct result of affording the Islanders eight power-play opportunities.  You can't generate offense if you're too busy killing penalties.  Mika Zibanejad, who battled COVID, led the Rangers in shifts and with five shots on goal.  No other Ranger exceeded two shots on goal.  Once the Islanders achieved a 4-0 lead in the second, all they needed to ensure was the Rangers stayed in their playpen.

REMATCH: RUGRATS STRIKE BACK

As if with a flip of a switch, the Rangers roll the Islanders in likewise fashion on Saturday.  This time, the Isles afford the Rangers seven PP opportunities, who convert once in the third period.  Conversely, the Rangers limit the Islanders to four opportunities.  The Islanders still won face-offs 31-25, but unlike Thursday, the Rangers played more even-strength hockey and thus put more shots on goal.  Pavel Buchnevich sent an early message with an opening goal at the 2:12 mark of the first.  Artemi Panarin made it a 2-0 game midway through the period.  Buchnevich scored his second goal in the second period, and youngster Kaapo Kakko scored his first.  Panarin capped off the Rangers scoring in the third also with his second goal of the game.  

The performance in goal was similarly like night and day.  Alexandar Georgiev made the start.  He faced 23 shots and stopped them all for the shutout.  But unlike Thursday, the Rangers played far more competently in front of Georgiev than for Igor Shesterkin.