In their final game before the All-Star break, the New Jersey Devils (24-20-3) fell to the Tampa Bay Lightning (27-18-5) 6-3, punctuating a tough 1-3-0 stretch to end the month of January. The Devils fought back into the game a couple of times, but ultimately, they couldn’t overcome their injury-riddled lineup to beat a strong Lightning squad.
First Period
The Devils had a decent start to the period, getting some good offensive pressure. Tampa’s defense played well throughout the period, however, holding the Devils shotless for the first half of the period. The Devils held their own defensively, however, holding the Lightning to just one high-danger chance. New Jersey’s best chance came midway through the period when Tyler Toffoli stripped the puck at the blue line to set up a two-on-one with Dawson Mercer but Vasilevsky positioned himself perfectly for the shot.
The Devils and Lightning had a relatively even number of chances with New Jersey notching a 53.85 Corsi-for percentage, but they got the edge on the quality of their chances, scoring a 74.68 expected goal percentage (xG%).
Second Period
But the injury-riddled Devils couldn’t hold up against a red-hot Lightning team forever. Tampa was all over New Jersey in the second frame, holding them without a shot for long stretches of time. On top of this, the Lightning peppered Vitek Vanecek with shots, outworking the hurting Devils’ defense.
Nicholas Paul opened the scoring for the Lightning at the 1:09 mark, tipping a shot from Taylor Raddysh at the blue line. Brendan Hagel extended the lead at the 10:40 mark, burying a rebound from in tight after a strong offensive zone shift.
The Devils’ underlying numbers reflected the eye test in the second, posting a 17.14 CF% and a 13.34 xG% The result: the Lightning outshot the Devils 18-4 in the period.
Third Period
The Devils responded to a disastrous second period with a strong start to the third. Ondrej Palat finally got New Jersey on the board at the 2:49 mark, pouncing on a rebound in the slot off a shot from Nico Hischier. However, Tampa quickly retook a two-goal lead at the 3:49 mark, as Steven Stamkos netted a rebound off Vitek Vanecek after a defensive breakdown.
Jesper Bratt cut the lead to one goal again at the 7:19 mark, firing a nasty wrist shot through Vasilevsky from the point. The Devils hadn’t gotten a power play all game, but they got a much-needed one halfway into the period, giving them a chance to swing the momentum in their favor fully. They couldn’t capitalize, however, as they fell flat after giving up an odd-man rush to open the man advantage. Brayden Point made it 4-2 a few minutes later, sniping an easy slot shot after Kevin Bahl sent the puck to the middle of the ice with no one home except him.
Desperately needing a goal, head coach Lindy Ruff pulled Vitek Vanecek with under four minutes to play. Tyler Toffoli brought the Devils some life with three minutes to play, potting a rebound off a shot from Simon Nemec. It was in vain, however, as Brendan Hagel and Brayden Point scored two empty-netters to seal the 6-3 win for Tampa.
Despite letting up four goals, the Devils played a much stronger third period, posting a 47.22 CF% but only posted a 37.43 xG%.
Results
Although the Devils had spurts of offense from their top scorers, the Lightning outworked their depleted lineup. As the Devils limp into the All-Star break lagging behind in the playoff race, Nico Hischier implored his team to “figure something out” if they want to be a playoff team.
The Devils now own a record of 24-20-3, good for fifth in the Metropolitan Divison. The Lightning have a record of 27-18-5, third in the Atlantic Division.
Game Notes
Vitek Plays Well, Defense Fails Him
Vitek Vanecek put up a rare gem for New Jersey but didn’t get any help from his teammates. He allowed four goals on 40 shots for a .900 SV%. While this seems lackluster, he posted 1.1 goals saved above expected (GSAx), a testament to the sheer quantity of good chances the Lightning had. The Devils’ banged-up defense simply couldn’t collapse in on high-danger plays, hanging Vanecek out to dry.
Kevin Bahl’s Rough Go Of It
If not for Kevin Bahl, the Devils might have won the game. He made a crucial error late in the game by digging a puck out of the corner directly to Brayden Point’s stick. Had he made a smarter play, Toffoli’s goal a few minutes later would have tied the game. These kinds of momentum swings have cost New Jersey dearly over the last few games, and it stems from plays like these.
Up Next
The Devils have a week off for the All-Star break, returning on February 6th against the Colorado Avalanche.