The New Jersey Devils (4-3-0) defeated the Detroit Red Wings (3-1-2) by a final score of 6-2. Detroit would score first, but New Jersey scored four-answered goals and never looked back.

Jesper Bratt had a three-point night (one goal, two assists) and has 12 points on the season. It was the first regulation loss for Detriot this year and the Devils’ first victory on the road.

Game Summary

Before the puck even dropped, the New Jersey Devils had a roster shakeup due to an injury to Ondrej Palat. Fabian Zetterlund and Alexander Holtz found themselves back in the lineup. New Jersey also returned to 12 forwards and six defenseman lineups. The goaltending matchup was the same as the last Devils versus Red Wings matchup from just over a week ago: Vitek Vanecek versus Alex Nedeljkovic. 

Detroit controlled play early on. As a result, the Red Wings struck first as Dylan Larkin scored off a pass from Dominic Kubalik at just about the three-minute mark. It was a soft tip-in that went past Vanecek.

After the five-minute mark, it was all New Jersey. About ten minutes after the opening goal the Devils would find the equalizer. John Marino won a puck battle against the board and then passed the puck to Dawson Mercer as he skated behind the net. Mercer then ripped one past the Detroit goaltender. New Jersey then would get the go-ahead goal, courtesy of Jack Hughes.

Robert Hagg took a delay of game penalty at the beginning of the second period and sent New Jersey to the man advantage. Jesper Bratt added to his point total and scored a goal in consecutive games to put the Devils up 3-1. Later on, a shorthanded goal was scored, but luckily for New Jersey, they were the recipient of this one. It was via Yegor Sharangovich, who sniped it home while a man down.

In the third period, Detroit got their second goal of the game after Kubalik shot a puck from the low slot after receiving a pass from behind the net.

Detroit’s second goal evidently woke New Jersey up after they had been caught sleepwalking through the start of the period. Nico Hischier would add a fifth goal for New Jersey after Tomas Tatar sent a spin-o-rama pass his way from the left of the Nedeljkovic’s crease. Seconds later, Jesper Bratt added his second goal of the night, and third point of the evening, with a top-shelf shot.

Game Notes

• Fabian Zetterlund looked strong. He created several nice opportunities. Despite having a gaudy seven shots on goal, he was pointless.
• Scoring aside, New Jersey’s fourth line of Miles Wood, Michael McLeod, and Nathan Bastian applied pressure and tallied scoring chances all night. The line combined for three shots and eight hits.
• With his goal tonight, Dylan Larkin has four points in two games against New Jersey Devils so far this season.
• Vitek Vanecek earned his first victory of the season and his first as a New Jersey Devil. He made some huge stops, which was encouraging, but only faced a total of 22 shots throughout the night.

Next Game

The Devils return to action on Friday as they take on the Colorado Avalanche at the Prudential Center. Puck drop is at 7:00 P.M. ET and the game can be found on MSG Sportsnet.