Match Summary
This has been an odd stretch of New Jersey Devils’ hockey, to say the least. With their 6-3 loss to the Edmonton Oilers yesterday, the Devils have now lost three straight games by a score of 6-3. This includes game against the Vancouver Canucks and Calgary Flames. The Devils had their bright spots yesterday and even seemed like they were on the cusp of victory at times, but were simply outplayed by Connor McDavid and the Oilers. This could, in part, may be due to the flu bug that circulated around the team yesterday. Either way, yesterday didn’t go the way New Jersey had hoped for.
First Period
Things got dicey quickly in the first period. Leon Draisaitl wasted no time, scoring a minute into the game. It was a back-and-forth contest for a while after that. However, after missing an earlier chance, Jesper Bratt tied the game with a breakaway goal of his own. The teams went into the first intermission with the game tied 1-1.
Second Period
The second period got off to a chippy start, with Mason Geertson and Zack Kassian going to the box for fighting. The rest of the period was defense-heavy, neither team could do much of anything in the offensive zone. That was, until, Evander Kane scored a wrap-around goal to give Edmonton an one-goal lead. No other goals were scored in this frame, and it was 2-1 when the horn sounded for the second intermission.
Third Period
The third period was undoubtedly the most exciting, yet disappointing of the game. The Devils mounted a comeback early in the frame, with goals from Jesper Bratt and Nico Hischier to make it 3-2. Unfortunately, the wheels came off for Jersey, and they let up three unanswered goals to fall behind 5-3. After that, Connor McDavid potted the empty-netter to send the Devils home with an embarrassing 6-3 loss.
With yesterday’s loss, the Devils now hold a record of 22-35-5 and are in eighth place in the Metropolitan Division. The Oilers, on the other hand, own a record of 35-23-4 and sit in third place in the Pacific Division.
Game Notes
John Gillies Crumbless Again
It was to be expected, but it was still disappointing that goaltender John Gillies had yet another bad game yesterday. With Nico Daws out of the lineup with a case of burnout, it was up to Gillies to hold down the fort in the crease. He did exactly the opposite, letting up easy goal after easy goal and notching a .872 save-percentage (SV%) Overall, Gillies has had a season to forget, posting a .887 SV% and a -11.77 goals saved above expected (GSAx). We can only hope that Nico Daws will be ready to go on Tuesday against the Rangers.
Jesper Bratt Shines
As mentioned earlier, the Devils did have a bright spot yesterday, and his name is Jesper Bratt. The Swedish forward pretty much carried the offense, scoring two goals and an assist for a three-point game. Bratt has been elite this year, scoring 60 points in 57 games thus far.
Up Next
The Devils and New York Rangers will face off on Tuesday at 7:00 PM EDT.