In their final home game of the season, the New Jersey Devils (42-36-3, 7th Metropolitan) defeated the Ottawa Senators (43-27-11, 5th Atlantic) 4-3 in overtime at the Prudential Center Sunday night.

First Period

The Devils got out to a strong start and broke the ice five minutes into the period. Nico Hischier scored the goal for New Jersey, pouncing on a rebound off Dawson Mercer’s initial chance to give the Devils an early lead.

New Jersey continued to put the pressure on Ottawa, outchancing them in the offensive zone through the middle of the period. They almost went up 2-0, but Dawson Mercer’s goal was waived for offside. The Senators caught a big break 13 minutes into the game when Lenni Hämeenaho got four minutes for high-sticking. 

The Devils’ penalty kill got the job done and then some. They killed off the early part of the penalty, then Connor Brown went the other way, got behind the defense, and scored shorthanded to give the Devils a 2-0 lead.

New Jersey killed off the remainder of the Senators’ man advantage, but the Senators kept their foot on the gas at even strength, getting a high number of chances in the Devils’ zone. Time ran out in the first period, however, and the Devils escaped with their two-goal lead.

Second Period

The Devils got out to a strong start in the second period, and they were rewarded with their first power play opportunity of the night early in the second period off a Jordan Spence tripping call, but Ottawa killed it off with no issue. 

Ottawa wrested control of the game after the kill and finally got on the board at 7:42. Michael Amadio scored the goal, tipping an Artem Zub shot past a fooled Nico Daws to cut the Devils’ lead to one goal.

The Senators weren’t done yet. Dylan Cozens went on a breakaway and threatened to score, but Lenni Hämeenaho took a well-timed hooking penalty to keep the Devils in front. Ottawa had the last laugh, however, because Shane Pinto scored a one-time goal from the high slot on the ensuing power play to tie the game. Claude Giroux had the assist on the goal, threading a pass through the seam to Pinto.

The Devils were out of sync after the game-tying goal, and they paid the price for it. Jack Hughes committed a brutal turnover in front of Daws late in the period. Former Devil Fabian Zetterlund collected the puck and dangled it beautifully, fooling Daws and giving him an open net to shoot at. The go-ahead goal made it a 3-2 game.

New Jersey was noticeably quieter after they ceded the lead, though they did have a strong offensive shift to end the period. Still, the Devils had a disastrous second period, starting it with a two-goal lead and ending it down by one.

Third Period

The Devils got another power play early in the third period when Nick Cousins got called for tripping Simon Nemec, but the Senators’ penalty-kill unit got the job done again to retain the lead.

New Jersey got a spark of life after the power play and caved Ottawa in shift after shift. There was some confusion in the middle of the period when two New Jersey goals were called back. Connor Brown seemingly tied the game after a referee signaled that his shot crossed the goal line, but upon further review, it had actually glanced off the crossbar. Then, Jack Hughes’ shot trickled over the goal line, but an official thought James Reimer had covered the puck and blew the play dead, inviting the boos of the sold-out home crowd.

The Devils got a bit of a makeup call on a cross-checking doled out to Nikolas Mantiplao soon after this mishap, but Jack Hughes got called for a questionable interference on the power play to make it four-on-four, causing more boos to reign down at the Prudential Center.

The Senators got an abbreviated power play, but the Devils’ penalty-kill unit struck again. This time, Dawson Mercer received a chip-pass from Nico Hischier, got behind the Senators’ defense, and scored a backhand shot to tie the game 3-3.

Ottawa made a big push late in the period in a desperate effort to regain the lead, but the Devils held on to force overtime in their final home game.

Overtime

The Devils had all the momentum to start overtime, caving Ottawa in and threatening to end the game multiple times. They went on a rush and forced a great save from Reimer. They drew a penalty soon after, giving them a four-on-three power play. 

Dougie Hamilton teed off for a couple of shots that went wide, with one of them banging off the crossbar. It wouldn’t be Hamilton to end it, however, and who else but the captain, Hischier, to seal the win for New Jersey. The Devils won a faceoff in the offensive zone, Jack Hughes shot it from the blue line, and Hischier scrambled for the rebound and scored to win it for the Devils 4-3.

Results

Sunday night was a microcosm of the Devils this season. They played a strong game overall, but a disastrous second period nearly doomed them. Unlike many of their other games this season, though, the Devils came back and won it in overtime. It was a feel-good final home game despite the fact that the Devils won’t be seeing postseason action. 

Game Notes

• Nico Hischier was, of course, the hero. He scored twice, including the game-winner, earning first star honors. He now has 28 goals and 65 points this season.
• Dawson Mercer continued his hot streak by notching a goal and an assist Sunday night. He’s scored twice and earned three points in his last two games. He now has 20 goals on the season.
• Jack Hughes contributed two assists Sunday night, a significant feat because it makes him a point-per-game player throughout his career. He now has 428 points in 428 games played.

Up Next

The Devils will play their final game of the season at Boston on Tuesday.