The New Jersey Devils (6-0-0) defeated the New York Rangers (2-4-0) 5-2 on Wednesday night in their final home preseason game. The Devils remained perfect in preseason action, including a second win over the Rangers in a week.
Game Summary
First Period
The game began slowly with both teams working their way into the game. However, the Devils had the first early chance when the Rangers took a too many men penalty seven minutes in.
Less than ten seconds into the man advantage, Jesper Bratt found space in the slot and picked out the top corner. It was his fifth goal of the preseason, giving the Devils a 1-0 lead.
Just 32 seconds later, Luke Hughes doubled the lead. With Erik Haula screening Jonathan Quick, the youngest Hughes brother fired a wrister from the point, making it 2-0.
After the quick pair of goals, the game took a physical turn. Kevin Bahl rocked Ryan Lindgren with a hit before Jacob Trouba crunched Tyler Toffoli into the boards. Chances slowed down after that and the period ended with the Devils up 2-0.
In the first period, shots were 7-3 Devils, while at five-on-five, NJ had a 63.64 Corsi-for percentage (CF%) and a 83.81 expected goals-for percentage (xGF%).
Second Period
There was far more offense to come by in the middle frame. After creating very little in the first, the Rangers controlled the play early on.
That pressure paid off almost immediately. Will Cuylle stashed home a puck that had rebounded off the end wall two minutes into the period to cut the Devils’ lead to 2-1.
The Rangers continued to push, but Adam Fox got caught pinching and hooked Nico Hischier to prevent a rush. On the ensuing powerplay, the Devils regained the two-goal advantage. Timo Meier was tripped on a breakaway by Jacob Trouba, but Dawson Mercer buried the rebound, making it 3-1 New Jersey.
Then it was the Rangers’ turn to showcase their elite powerplay. New York had 1:10 of five-on-three time and took advantage when an Adam Fox cross-slot pass deflected off Jonas Siegenthaler and past Vitek Vanecek.
The Devils had one more chance on the powerplay in the second period, though, and Jack Hughes made it count. He buried a one-timer from the top of the left circle to make it 4-2 New Jersey, which was the score after two.
In the second period, shots were 8-8. The Rangers controlled the play at five-on-five with a 83.33 CF% and a 84.01 xGF%.
Third Period
The third period was more uneventful with both teams playing more disciplined hockey.
The best chances of the final frame came from the Rangers’ penalty kill unit. A couple of defensive zone misplays gave clear looks to Mika Zibanejad and Barclay Goodrow in close, but Vitek Vanecek was equal to them.
The Devils were able to get away with those mistakes unscathed, and with 2:25 to go, Nico Hischier hit the empty net to seal the 5-2 win.
In the third, shots were 10-4 Rangers and New York posted a 80.00 CF% and a 92.56 xGF% at five-on-five.
Wrap-Up
For New Jersey, Ondrej Palat had a three-point night with a trio of assists. Nico Hischier, Timo Meier, Jack Hughes, and Dawson Mercer also had multi-point nights.
In net, Vitek Vanecek played the full 60 minutes, stopping 19 of 21 shots in the win. He stopped 0.37 goals above expected.
For the game, shots were 21-19 Rangers with New York holding a five-on-five advantage with a 59.09 CF% and a 68.72 xGF%.
Game Notes
The Hischier Line
Nico Hischier’s line with Timo Meier and Alexander Holtz was absolutely dominant at five-on-five. In just over 10 minutes of action, the trio posted a 75.00 CF% and a 97.87 xGF% and had a 2-0 edge in high-danger chances.
Power Play
The Devils’ powerplay has been humming throughout the preseason, and last night was no different. New Jersey went three-for-five on the man advantage against the Rangers in Wednesday’s win.
In just over six minutes of powerplay time, the Devils generated 1.42 expected goals. For some context, the Rangers’ powerplay is considered among the league’s best, and in eight extra seconds, New York generated just 0.32 expected goals.
It was another great night for New Jersey’s powerplay. For the preseason, it is now eight-for-18 (44.4%).
Smith-Hughes Pairing
Despite Luke Hughes’ goal, it was not a great night at five-on-five for the Brendan Smith and Luke Hughes pairing. At five-on-five, the pair were the two lowest Devils’ skaters with a 5.57 and 11.12 xGF% respectively. Both were on the wrong end of 3-0 high-danger chances margin as well.
Hughes has been playing with different defense partners throughout the preseason as Lindy Ruff looks to find his ideal pairings, but Wednesday night was certainly not the best audition.
Next Up
The Devils wrap up their preseason schedule Friday night at the Islanders. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 pm ET on MSGSN.
Note: All statistics via Natural Stat Trick.