Through 40 minutes the New Jersey Devils seemed to have their game Thursday night against the Calgary Flames fairly in hand, looking strong on the defensive end and capitalizing on their offensive chances. The third period woes on defense showed up once again, however, the goalie wasn’t able to bail them out this time. Calgary scored four goals in the third and dominated play to secure the regulation victory.
Game Recap
First Period
The first period was a pretty tight checking, low-event frame. The physicality was certainly on display early and often, even if it did lead to a couple of penalties. The Devils’ penalty kill kept grooving right along and really didn’t give up much at all. New Jersey’s power play also had a couple of chances but was unable to capitalize on their opportunities.
Finally, with just three minutes remaining in the period, Nico Hischier scored his 29th of the season and break the 0-0 stalemate. After burning former Devil Kevin Bahl with a stop-and-go move, Hischier circled behind the net and tossed a wrap-around chance on goal that snuck between Calgary goaltender, Dustin Wolfs’, legs and in. The goal was initially given to Timo Meier, but ultimately awarded to Hischier during the intermission.
Second Period
Early on in the second it looked like Tomas Tatar was going to be able to make it 2-0, but Wolf kept up his stellar goaltending on the evening. Tatar found himself alone in front and went for a backhand-to-forehand move but Wolf followed him the entire way.
The Devils capitalized just a couple minutes later, however, and got the 2-0 lead. Daniel Sprong won’t end up with an assist but did a great job maintaining the puck in the offensive zone and ultimately making a play towards the net which led to Brian Dumoulin picking up the loose puck and quickly shifting it over to Erik Haula. Haula ripped a shot from the slot that was going wide but banked in off of Kevin Bahl and in; the second time the former Devil ended up directly involved in a Devils goal.
Calgary finally got on the board on their third power play of the night after Brett Pesce went off for a delay of game. Matthew Coronato attempted to feed a backdoor pass through the crease to Nazem Kadri that ended up going off of Dawson Mercers’ stick and beat Markstrom. Timo Meier, then, immediately took another delay of game penalty, but the Devils managed to successfully complete the kill thanks to Markstroms biggest save of the night in the final seconds of the shorthanded situation.
With just 36 seconds remaining in the period, Paul Cotter gave the Devils a 3-1 lead. Cotter made a great move shielding off the defender on his drive to the net and then beat Wolf with some quick hands in tight.
Third Period
Calgary started off the third period on the offensive and eventually paid off. After some zone time, Connor Zary let a shot go from the high slot that ultimately ended up leaking through Markstrom and in, making it a 3-2 game.
Calgary got a chance to tie things up on a power play following a trip by Jesper Bratt, but it was the Devils who got the best chance as a Dawson Mercer breakaway was stopped.
Unfortunately, unlike the Columbus game, things got out of hand fast for the Devils. Calgary tied the game with just over four minutes left on a nice give-and-go play between Blake Coleman and Daniil Miromanov resulted in a tie game. Then, just one minute later, Jonathan Huberdeau scored his 29th of the season to take the 4-3 lead. To top it off, Kadri buried the empty netter to secure the 5-3 victory in a stunning comeback.
Game Notes
Markstrom’s Woes continue
Markstrom didn’t always look all that comfortable through the first two periods, but it seemed like a chance to grind out a win at least. That was until the third period hit.
Since his injury, Markstrom has posted a .828 SV% and a 4.23 GAA. The Devils are going to need Markstrom come playoff time, but for right now wouldn’t be surprised to see Jake Allen take over for a stretch.
Luke Hughes Domination
The result may have been unfortunate, but young defenseman Luke Hughes had a terrific game. He led New Jersey in Corsi-for percentage (and expected goals-for percentage. This all while playing 17:40 of five-on-five ice time.
What’s Next
The Devils get right back out on home ice Saturday night against the Ottawa Senators. Puck drop is scheduled for just after 7:00 pm ET.