The New Jersey Devils suffered defeat to the New York Islanders for the second time this season. It took until the final minute of the game, but an Adam Pelech goal sank the Devils. It was a game where the Devils were the better team, but the results didn’t reflect their efforts.
New Jersey heads into Christmas with a 20-16-1 record.
Game Recap
First Period
The first period had good pace to it. Both teams traded chances early and even saw Jacob Markström make some key high-danger saves. The Devils pressed and after all the chances they generated, they finally grabbed the lead. After winning a puck battle in the corner, Nico Hischier fed a pass to a wide open Brett Pesce in the slot. He made no mistake ripping his shot top shelf over David Rittich for his first goal of the year. As the horn sounded, the Devils took a 1-0 lead into the second period.
The entire period was played at five-on-five, as both teams were disciplined. The Devils held the edge in shot attempts (24-19) and held a slight edge in high-danger shot attempts (6-4) as well. What stood out the most was the expected goals share. The Devils generated quality, having 1.77 expected goals to the Islanders’ 0.98. They certainly were the better team and got the lead.
Second Period
The first half of the period was very back and forth. Each team generated quality scoring chances with both goalies standing tall. The Islanders saw Casey Cizikas and Matthew Schaefer each glide through the slot and have a good chance to score, but Markström stood tall. Moments later, the Devils got a break of their own and saw Jack Hughes get robbed on a breakaway attempt. The Islanders kept pressing and ultimately tied the game.
A bad break by the Devils led to the puck going into the net. As Markström tried to play the puck up the wall, it hit the skate of Jonas Siegenthaler and bounced over to Holmstrom. He made no mistake firing it into the empty net. A pivotal third period awaits, as the teams headed to the final period tied.
The Islanders showed tremendous pushback this period. They out-attempted the Devils 30-12 and outshot them 13-6. The Devils had no answers for high-danger chances, as they allowed 10 attempts in the second period.
Third Period
A period that was defined by quality chances and goaltenders standing tall. For the Devils, they’ve had plenty. Luke Glendening got stoned right on the door step and Connor Brown got robbed on a breakaway. Moments later, Ritchie found himself a high-danger chance and he was robbed by Markström. Both teams traded chances and in the final minute of the game the Islanders took the lead.
After excelling in transition, a Holmstrom slap shot banked off the backend of the boards and found the stick of Adam Pelech. Pelech ripped a slap shot past Markström to make it 2-1 spelling the end to the game.
Wrap Up
This game was defined by good goaltending and a lack of capitalizing on chances. Brett Pesce scored his first goal of the season to open up the game. After that, it was all Islanders. Holmstrom tied the game in the second and Adam Pelech scored in the final minute of the third period. The Islanders defeated the Devils for the second time this season.
Game Notes
- This game is defined by the Devils not finishing their chances. They were the better team, as they had 4.1 expected goals compared to the Islanders 2.8. The Devils generated 14 high-danger attempts, but nothing came of it. Rittich was a brick wall, finishing with 3.16 goals saved above expected.
- Timo Meier had himself a nice game. He had 10 shot attempts, generated one expected goal in all situations, and finished with an expected goals for percentage of 59.9.
What’s Next
The Devils return home Saturday to take on the Washington Capitals.