After taking nine days off for the NHL All-Star break, the New Jersey Devils are back in action, facing off against the Colorado Avalanche. Fans were excited to see the players hit the ice again, especially against a tough team like the Avalanche, who currently sit in the fourth spot in the league with 68 points. Let’s dive into the details of the Devils’ 5–3 win.
The excitement among Devils fans for this game began brewing early in the morning when news broke that Jack Hughes had returned to the ice for practice, hinting at his imminent comeback. With the matchup against the Avalanche on the horizon, fans were hoping for Hughes’ return to the lineup. While Hughes’ return didn’t materialize for the game, there was still some exciting news as it was announced that player Tomáš Nosek had been taken off injured reserve and would be hitting the ice for the game.
As the puck dropped for the first period, the Devils initially struggled to find their rhythm, allowing Mikko Rantanen of the Avalanche to score first. However, the Devils quickly answered back with an unexpected goal from Chris Tierney, marking his debut goal as a Devil. Not much happened during this period, but we did get to see the rookie Luke Hughes make some great plays. One including him shutting down a rush from Nathan MacKinnon.
Following the first twenty minutes of play, it was evident that the Devils had utilized the intermission to their advantage. Although they gave up the first goal of the period, after review, the goal was taken back because of goalie interference. In the aftermath, we got a highlight-worthy goal from Jesper Bratt. The goal was a fun back-and-forth from him and Nico Hischier. Watching the chemistry between those two on the ice never gets old.
Following that was a goal from the 22-year-old Dawson Mercer. He cleaned up the loose puck in front of the net that was sent from Erik Haula. His goal led to a penalty for the Avalanche because he was tripped during the chaos in front of the net. Mercer didn’t get much time to rest after his goal, though, because of his teammate Tyler Toffoli being out with an illness. With Tiffoli being out, that pushes him up to the first power play unit for the team.
The Avalanche had a hard time controlling the puck that period, but the team didn’t fail to keep their current title as the best third-period team in the league. They managed to tie the game with eleven minutes left. The first goal was from the latest all-star, Cale Makar, only 29 seconds into the period.
As tension mounted, the tie was finally broken by an insane goal from defenseman John Marino. It was set up by a great pass from the captain himself, Nico Hischier. Marino had to take a fall on the ice for the goal, but it was definitely worth it.
At the end of the game, we got an empty net goal from Erik Haula. He got the goal from the side of the bench, meaning he got to celebrate with all his teammates already there by his side. This was definitely one of the most entertaining games the Devils have played all season. The energy in the arena was insane, and the team’s performance was better than what we have seen most of the season. It’s games like these that really get fans, and the team pumped. Let’s hope this win sets the tone for a strong finish in the second half of the season for them.
ITR 35: Round One – Inside The Rink
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