The New Jersey Devils defeated the Seattle Kraken 3-2 on Friday night to kick off a five-game homestand. The Devils have been looking to improve their record at home, and they started on the right foot with a convincing performance. Although it was a one-goal game, the Devils heavily outshot the Kraken and carried play for most of the night, earning them the victory. New Jersey improved to 18-9-2 while Seattle dropped to 13-14-1.
Game Recap
Period One
The Devils came out hot, holding the Kraken without a shot through the first five minutes of play.
The game was wide open, with fast breaks for each team and eventually, Seattle opened the scoring at 10:16. Andre Burakovsky got through the defense and fired a shot into the upper corner behind Jacob Markstrom. Vince Dunn had the only assist.
The Devils answered right back at 12:27 with Luke Hughes’ first goal of the season, which he banked off Philipp Grubauer’s helmet. Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt had the assists.
New Jersey drew a late power play but couldn’t get anything past Grubauer despite some good chances.
The Devils outshot the Kraken 15-5 in the opening period.
Period Two
The Devils got tagged with a high-sticking penalty, and the Kraken converted at 3:41. Shane Wright was left wide open in front of the net and buried a loose puck with assists from Eeli Tolvanen and Jaden Schwartz.
New Jersey tied the game at 8:03 with a goal from Bratt, playing in his 500th career game. Jack Hughes and Brenden Dillon had the assists. While his name didn’t appear on the score sheet, Ondrej Palat facilitated the play with a perfect screen in front of Grubauer.
The New Jersey Devils continued to carry the play, but the press for offense left some odd man rush chances open for Seattle. Luke Hughes and Markstrom made some big plays to eliminate chances and make the necessary saves.
New Jersey got another late power play after Jack Hughes was slashed on a breakaway, but they couldn’t light the lamp to take the lead.
The Devils outshot Seattle 14-8 in the middle frame.
Period Three
The Devils grabbed their first lead less than a minute into the period after Timo Meier cleaned up a sloppy play by Dunn that left the puck sitting behind Grubauer in the blue paint. The unassisted tally marked Meier’s 200th NHL goal.
The Kraken mounted a push, and the Devils killed a power play to regain momentum. Seattle had another grade-A opportunity to tie the game but missed a nearly empty net.
The Devils answered with an excellent shift by the Jack Hughes line in the offensive zone that forced Grubauer to make some strong saves.
Seattle pulled the goalie with two minutes left but New Jersey defended the one-goal lead to earn the victory.
The Devils outshot the Kraken 36-19 in the win.
Takeaways
Milestones
The Devils celebrated three huge milestones for players on Friday. Jesper Bratt skated in his 500th NHL game, all played for the New Jersey Devils. As a 6th round pick in the 2016 draft, Bratt has been a massive success story with the Devils, having notched 396 career points, including a goal and an assist against the Kraken.
With his game-winner in the third period, Timo Meier scored his 200th career goal and his ninth of the season. The achievement came less than a week after he tallied his 400th career point. Since his trade from San Jose, Meier has played 118 games with New Jersey and tallied 46 goals and 40 points.
Dougie Hamilton also skated in his 800th career NHL game. Hamilton began his career in 2012 with the Boston Bruins and played seasons in Calgary and Carolina before landing a seven-year deal with the Devils in 2021. In 193 games with New Jersey, he has 41 goals and 100 assists. While Hamilton didn’t get on the scoresheet against Seattle, he had three shots on Grubauer and was a +2 on the night.
Hughes Defense
While Jack Hughes is rightfully known for his talent in the offensive zone, his defensive impacts have been a welcome surprise for Devils fans this season. Since Sheldon Keefe became coach, Hughes has been implemented in key defensive roles at crucial points of games.
In the final minutes of the second period, Hughes intercepted a pass along the blue line and sprung himself on a breakaway. While he didn’t cash in, he was able to draw a power play for New Jersey. He also saw the ice in the final few minutes of the game as the Devils defended a one-goal lead with Seattle’s goalie on the bench in favor of an extra attacker.
Jack Hughes’ elite vision and understanding of the offensive side of the game allow him to anticipate and intercept plays in his own end. Not only does that eliminate potentially dangerous chances for the opponent, but it also creates offense for the Devils.
Up Next
The Devils look to win a third consecutive game when they take on the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday night at the Rock.
The Avalanche sit 4th in the Central Division with a 14-13-0 record. They play the Detroit Red Wings in Detroit on Saturday night, meaning they will be in the second half of a back-to-back when they face the New Jersey Devils.
Puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. on MSG, ALT2 and NHLN.
ITR 35: Round One – Inside The Rink
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