Having lost their last three games, including two in the past week to the Tampa Bay Lightning, the New Jersey Devils (45-18-7) needed to prove themselves with a commanding win in the rubber match of a mock playoff series with the Lightning. They got exactly that, redeeming themselves with a 5-2 win and a Jesper Bratt hat trick.
Game Summary
First Period
The Devils got out to a rocky start, Dougie Hamilton took an interference penalty 1:22 into the game to put Tampa on the power play.
The Devils held their own but got lucky when a prime Steven Stamkos shot went wide. Almost as soon as the power play ended, Nikita Kucherov drew first blood for the Lightning at 3:26, his 100th point of the season. Ryan Graves made a terrible play to set up the goal, passing it directly to Kucherov, who dished it to Steven Stamkos only to receive it right back at the slot to snipe it in.
Nobody scored for the rest of the period, but Timo Meier took a slashing call at 18:53, spelling trouble for the second period. It was a head-scratcher of a call, Meier took a high stick in his own zone, but got called a few seconds later for a slash.
Second Period
The Devils started the second period with a penalty kill on their hands, but they held firm against the Tampa special teams. That good feeling didn’t last long because, minutes later, Alex Killorn scored the Lightning’s second goal of the night at 6:30. Erik Cernak wired a beautiful stretch pass to Killorn, who casually glided into the slot, bided his time, and fooled Vitek Vanecek to make it 2-0.
The Devils couldn’t let this game slip away and lose three straight against the Lightning, they had to be resilient. Seconds after the faceoff, Jesper Bratt showed this resiliency with a much-needed goal at the 6:39 mark. Bratt made an impressive solo effort, receiving the puck from Nico Hischier and corralling it through the slot to set up the point-blank opportunity.
Bratt wasn’t done yet, he let fly a wicked wrister from the point that Andrei Vasilevsky couldn’t pick up through the screen. Tie game at 9:22 in the second period.
Nico Hischier didn’t want Bratt to have all the attention, and he jumped in at the 12:02 mark with a goal of his own. Dougie Hamilton set Hischier up and he went to work, skating through the Lightning defense and snapping the puck past a confused Vasilvesky, giving the Devils a 3-2 lead. It was Hischier’s 30th goal of the season.
Third Period
Heading into the third frame, the Devils needed to hold on to a slim one-goal lead if they were to take down Tampa. They did just that and more. Nolan Foote got himself a rare goal halfway through the period at the 9:51 mark to make it 4-2. After a pass from Yegor Sharangovich, Foote rocketed through the neutral zone and held up at the blue line. He waited for a moment, then pounced on the chance, putting it past Vasilevsky.
With minutes to play and a two-goal lead, Jesper Boqvist took a tripping penalty. The Lightning had the man advantage for the fourth time of the night. They elected not to take Vasilevsky out and make it six-on-four, but the move didn’t pay off. Instead, New Jersey’s penalty kill unit stood tall and prevented Tampa from starting a comeback.
Just before time expired, Jesper Bratt scored his third goal of the night.
Game Notes
- Jesper Bratt scored his first career hat trick against Tampa. He drove the team’s offense on a night when they had to have a dominant win. He sported a Devils-themed bucket hat after the third goal.
- Vitek Vanecek had a strong night in net. He stopped 22 of 24 shots for a .917 save percentage. He also posted 0.31 goals saved above expected (GSAx). Starved for quality starts over the past month plus, Vanecek had a night to be proud of.
Up Next
The Devils will return home to face the Minnesota Wild Tuesday at 7:00 PM EST.