The New Jersey Devils returned home to take on the Washington Capitals in their third preseason game on Wednesday. The Devils entered the contest 0-2 in preseason play, however, their lineup was much different than Tuesday night when they lost their second straight.
Wednesday’s lineup featured a full game from Jacob Markstrom as well as Timo Meier, Jack Hughes, Dawson Mercer, Nico Hischier and Dougie Hamilton, among others. Despite that, the Devils fell 5-3 en route to a 0-3-0 start to preseason.
Game Recap
First Period
The opening period saw the Devils draw first blood and with a cannon of a shot. After good puck protection by Ondrej Palat, he drifted around the zone and found defenseman Brenden Dillon. Dillon fired a shot from the blueline that found its way to the back of the net. That would be the only goal of the period and the Devils would take a 1-0 lead into the second.
The first period was tightly contested. The Capitals had one more shot attempt than the Devils did. The one thing the Capitals did better than the Devils was generate better quality chances. Washington went on to have more high danger attempts (5-to-2) and controlled the expected goals share (0.95-0.52). At the end of the, day the Devils found the back of the net, but Washington certainly did some things better.
Second Period
With the Capitals generating the chances, they finally delivered and it was all them in the second period. John Carlson got the tying goal off a great give-and-go to tie the game up.
Delivering the dagger, the Capitals scored two goals in the final minute of the period. Trevor van Riemsdyk stretched a pass to Dylan Strome who scored on a breakaway. Nic Dowd pounced on a loose puck and centered a pass to Brandon Dubaime who poked it home. The Capitals went on to take a 3-1 lead into the third.
The game had strictly been played at five-on-five to this point. Washington once again held the edge in Corsi-for percentage (CF%) post a 58.93 mark. The Capitals continued to generate quality chances in the high-danger area as well, and dominated the expected goals share 1.63-0.48.
Third Period
The third period saw the two teams trade goals and with the Capitals first extending their lead. Off a great passing sequence, Dylan Strome scored his second of the game. It was all Devils the rest of the way.
A Brenden Dillon shot was redirected by Nico Hischier to cut the deficit in half. With the extra skater, Jack Hughes ripped a shot from the point and the Devils were within striking distance. However, Washington punched home the empty net goal and the Capitals would win 5-3.
The Devils put forth a much stronger effort in the final period. They got themselves a power play and even though they didn’t score, they generated some chances. At five-on-five, the Devils out-attempted the Capitals 13-8 and outshot them 7-3. This was the period where they kept the expected goals share close. They stormed a comeback, but it was not enough.
Game Notes
- It is only preseason, but the Devils need to tighten things up defensively. The Capitals held a significant edge in scoring chances (32-19) and held the edge in high-danger shot attempts (13-6).
- The line of Dawson Mercer, Nico Hischier, and Tomas Tatar were good. When on the ice, they finished with a CF% of 70.00. They managed to outshoot the Capitals and not only controlled the expected goals share, but scored a goal as a line.
What’s Next?
The Devils hit the road once again to take on the Islanders Friday night at 7:00 pm ET.