The New Jersey Devils won their first three preseason games and were on the hunt to stay perfect Friday night. In their second-straight game against the Rangers on consecutive nights, the Devils lost by a single goal, 2-1. Despite the result, Mackenzie Blackwood looked very strong, and the Devils’ superstar, Jack Hughes, scored a goal.
Game Summary
To put it simply, the Devils got obliterated in the first period. The Rangers had 34 shot attempts and four high-danger chances to New Jersey’s six shot attempts and one high-danger chance at five-on-five. Luckily, the Rangers were unable to beat Mackenzie Blackwood. Blackwood saved 1.17 goals above expected in just the first period alone.
In a turn of events, the Devils were the team that struck first. In the second period, the Jack Hughes, Ondrej Palat, and Alexander Holtz line found themselves with possession in the Rangers’ zone. Palat threw a puck across the zone and it found its way to Hughes. Jack ripped the puck past Louis Domingue and gave New Jersey the 1-0 lead early in period two.
After a relatively even second period, the Devils controlled a lot of the third, but it was the Rangers who cashed two goals. First, Artemi Panarin was found via a cross-ice pass. It appeared that Chase Stillman got sucked in to the middle of the ice and lost track of the roaming Russian.
The Rangers’ second, and game-winning goal, came just over the 11-minute mark of the period. A puck was thrown toward the net from the point, and it bounced off a couple in front and found its way past Blackwood. Despite a flurry of chances with a six-on-four oppertunity at the end of the game, the Devils fell short by a score of 2-1.
Wrap Up
As mentioned, Blackwood was strong, he saved 35 of the 37 shots he faced. The only Devils’ tally was via the Hughes’ first-period wrist shot, Palat picked up the lone assist. New Jersey only generated 26 shots which were handled by Jaroslav Halak and Domingue.
Games Notes
- The star of this game for the Devils was Blackwood. Mackenzie, who has said he is finally fully healthy, has looked it through two preseason starts. In this one, he posted a .946 save percentage and saved 0.71 goals above expected. Saving more goals than expected is something Blackwood rarely did last season. A very encouraging sign.
- The line of Joseph Gambardella, Jesper Boqvist, and Chase Stillman were woeful. When they were on the ice, the Rangers generated 12 shot attempts and eight scoring chances. This in comparison to the three shot attempts and one scoring chance New Jersey generated. Stillman, in particular, appeared to be liable for the Panarin goal as he appeared to lose track of him (see above). Not a good night at all for that trio.
- The Devils best players in the game were not surprising. The Hughes, Palat, Holtz line led the way with a 54.55 Corsi-for percentage (CF%) and a 56.71 expected goals-for percentage (xGF%). Each very strong figures. Defensively, the Devils’ best was the duo of Ryan Graves and Damon Severson. That duo owned a shot-attempt differential of +11/-3 and xGF% of 78.01. Great night for those five.
Next Up: The New Jersey Devils welcome the Boston Bruins to the Prudential Center on Monday, October 3. This will be the Devils’ fifth of seven preseason games.
Statistics via Natural Stat Trick.