The New Jersey Devils defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-2 at PPG Paints Arena last night.
Forward Nico Hischier got two goals and two assists, and forward Jack Hughes had two assists in his return from injury for the Devils, who are now 36-14-5 this season. Forward Dawson Mercer added a goal and an assist, and goalie Vitek Vanecek had 29 saves.
Forward Evgeni Malkin had two goals, and goalie Dustin Tokarski made 38 saves for the Penguins, who are now 27-19-9 and have lost their last three out of four games.
Three minutes and 33 seconds into the first period, Malkin scored on the power play to give the Pens the 1-0 lead. Just under five minutes into the game, Mercer tied the game up at 1-1.
Less than four minutes into the second period, defenseman Dougie Hamilton scored on the power play to give the Devils the 2-1 lead. Just over eight minutes into the period, Hischier scored shorthanded to give him his 100th career goal and his team the 3-1 lead.
Eight minutes and 39 seconds into the third, forward Jesper Bratt gave the Devils a 4-1 lead off a one-timer. At 14:43, Geno cut the lead to 4-2 with a wrist shot. With just over two minutes remaining in the game, Hischier scored in the empty net to give the Devils the 5-2 win.
Hughes has gotten 20 points in his last ten games, including at least two points in his previous six games. Devils defenseman Brendan Smith had four blocked shots and played 18:58 in his return from a lower-body injury. Devils defenseman John Marino had a shot on goal and two blocked shots in 24:28 against his former team for the first time since being traded in the summer. He had 64 points in 189 career games with the Penguins. On the Penguins’ side, they now drop to 0-5-3 in their last eight games versus Metropolitan opponents.
