Wednesday, the New Jersey Devils won 4-3 over the Toronto Maple Leafs in a shootout. Anthony Stolarz tried to steal a win for the Leafs, but a late game-tying goal by Connor Brown helped the Devils to victory. The win propels New Jersey to 31-29-2 on the season.
Recap
Period One
The Devils and Leafs played a pretty even first period, but it would be Toronto who struck first. Matias Maccelli got the puck in the slot and wired it short-side high on Jacob Markström to put the Leafs up 1-0. Just a couple of minutes later, Timo Meier got a pass in the slot from Nico Hischier and ripped it home to even the score. The Devils would control most of the first period after this, but failed to beat Stolarz again. The game would remain 1-1 after one.
Period Two
The Devils struggled off the jump in the second period, which led to an early Toronto goal. Easton Cowen fired a puck that went off of William Nylander’s leg and past Markström to put the Leafs back in front. The Devils once again responded quickly however, as Arseny Gritsyuk went near-side and in on Stolarz from the high slot to tie the game. For Gritsyuk, it’s now two goals in two games. The Devils made a strong push to take the lead in the back-half of the frame, including a handful of power plays, but Stolarz stayed strong for Toronto.
Period Three
New Jersey dominated the third period, getting high-danger chance after high-danger chance on Stolarz, but he stopped all of them. Then, with just about six minutes to play, John Tavares took the puck in with Matthew Knies on a two-on-one and Knies buried the puck to give the Leafs their third lead of the game.
The Devils continued their push afterwards, this time attempting to tie the game, and they finally broke the seal with Connor Brown’s first goal in 10 games to even things up with just over two minutes left. The Leafs would try to finish the game in regulation, with Nick Robertson being robbed by Markström in the final seconds.
Overtime/Shootout
Much like most of regulation, the Devils dominated overtime. This culminated in the final seconds when Jack Hughes and Connor Brown both hit the post in the final seven seconds of overtime.
In the shootout, however, the Devils made quick work of the Leafs. Paul Cotter and Jesper Bratt scored on nasty moves, and Jacob Markström denied William Nylander and Auston Matthews. The Devils won 4-3 in the shootout.
Game Notes
Why Luke’s Great
Almost everyone on the Devils looked good to some extent Wednesday night, but Luke Hughes was especially spectacular. He had a 64.71 Corsi-for percentage (CF%) and 60.50 expected goals percentage (xG%) at five-on-five. He also picked up an assist on the game-tying goal in the third period by making an excellent play in transition. Nights like Wednesday are why Luke Hughes is a special defenseman and makes you see why he’s a $9 million-man.
Good in the Shootout?
From 2013-14 when Ilya Kovalchuk left the team to 2024-25, the New Jersey Devils played in 90 shootouts, fifth-most in the NHL. Even more impressive somehow, is the fact that they have by far the worst record of any team in that span at 29-61. This poor shootout history has made the team’s surge in the skills competition this season even more surprising.
The success this season is in large part thanks to Jesper Bratt, who is 4-for-4 in the shootout on the season, and Paul Cotter, who is 2-for-4. Simon Nemec is the only other Devils skater to contribute.
In net, Jake Allen and Jacob Markström have also been great. Markstrom stopped both shots he faced in the shootout tonight, and Allen went 8-for-9 in the first three. Overall, the Devils .909 save percentage (SV%) in the shootout is second in the NHL this season.
That mark is first among teams that have faced at least 10 shots in the final decider this season. That number is also almost 300 points higher than the dead last .630 SV% the team had from 2013-2025.
What’s Next
The Devils homestand continues Saturday against the New York Rangers at 3:00 pm ET.