Introduction
Another game, another win for the New Jersey Devils. After falling behind early on a pretty far side goal by Nikita Soshnikov, the offense responded with four unanswered goals and tons of strong opportunities. The new additions certainly made their presence felt, with Ondrej Palat recording one assist and Erik Haula lighting the lamp with a goal late in the second period.
The goaltending duo of Vitek Vanecek and Akira Schmid looked good as well, saving a combined 24-for-25, which included five strong penalty kills.
Alexander Holtz also made his presence felt in this game, however it was his playmaking ability that was really on display. Holtz had his head up all game and finally got rewarded with an assist on the Jack Hughes goal, showing why the “H2O line” (Holtz, Hughes, and Palat) could really be fun to watch this year.
Game Summary
1st Period
- Soshnikov and the Islanders strike first. Dufour sent a perfect stretch pass to spring Soshnikov, who put his shot perfectly inside the far post and beat Vanecek with the 1-0 lead.
- Sharangovich showed his goal-scoring prowess as he beat Sorokin glove side from the slot to tie things 1-1.
- Less than a minute later, Dougie Hamilton would score the game-winning goal via a wrist shot through a sea of bodies and inside the near post for the 2-1 lead.
2nd Period
- After nearly setting up Palat with a goal earlier in the game, Holtz once again had a beautiful setup pass leading to the Jack Hughes’ goal. Holtz and Palat won a strong puck battle below the goal line, leading to a trailing Jack Hughes being found open in the slot. Hughes showed once again his immense finishing talent.
- The fourth and final goal would come with just over two minutes remaining in the period. Newcomer, Erik Haula, took the feed from Wood, slipped past the defender and went bar-down shortside to beat Cory Schneider and make it 4-1.
3rd Period
- The third period was a bit of a carousel to the penalty box, but neither team was ever able to capitalize with the odd-man opportunities.
- Schmid came in for relief of Vanecek and had a pretty solid showing, stopping all 11 shots he faced.
Game Notes
- Neither goalie was overly tested, but Vanecek and Schmid both looked solid in their ice time.
- Holtz really was making his presence felt in the offensive zone and showed great awareness and playmaking ability.
- Newcomers Palat and Haula both have looked as advertised so far and should be strong additions to the middle-six of the offense.
- Zetterlund flashed at times, including nearly scoring after some silky puck work through the defense.
- Don’t overreact to the amount of penalties taken, it’s only preseason and officiating usually calls things tighter.
- Simon Nemec had a decent showing as well, playing just over 20 minutes in his first ever game. He didn’t appear overwhelmed or outmatched, but does clearly still have plenty of room to grow.
What’s next
New Jersey returns to the ice Thursday as they travel to Madison Square Garden to take on the New York Rangers. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. and can be viewed on NHL Network or MSG.