Thursday, the Devils dropped their season opener to the Hurricanes in Raleigh, 6-3. A back-and-forth affair was capped off by a late Seth Jarvis goal to put Carolina in front. This was then followed by an empty netter as well as another insurance tally, extending the score out to 6-3. The Devils fall to 0-1-0 on the season.
Recap
Period One
The first period was dominated by Carolina, especially for the first half. It didn’t take long for them to strike as Taylor Hall deflected a shot from the point to make it 1-0. Evgenii Dadonov had a great opportunity to tie the game off a feed from Jack Hughes, but Frederik Andersen was up for the task. Carolina had a handful more chances, but Jacob Markstrom denied all of them. The Canes led just 1-0 after one.
Period Two
The Devils came out much stronger in period two and led to them tying the game. Dougie Hamilton got the puck in the slot and threw it on net past Andersen to even the score. Shortly after, K’Andre Miller would float his own shot on net to make it 2-1 on a puck that took multiple funky bounces. However, the Devils refused to enter the intermission down. Luke Hughes sent a beauty of a pass to Cody Glass who snipped the puck top corner to make it 2-2.
Period Three
The third period was more of the same from both teams, but just over half-way through the period Carolina would strike again. K’Andre Miller blasted a shot that went off Markstrom’s shoulder and into the back of the net to make it 3-2. The Devils were quick to respond for the last time as Jesper Bratt whacked the puck past Andersen off the rush.
The two teams had their fair share of chances, but it would be Carolina who got the last laugh. Seth Jarvis, who hit the post multiple times prior, finally broke through on a nice deflection to put Carolina in front. An empty net goal and a garbage time tally sealed the deal. Carolina took the game 6-3.
Game Notes
Raleigh Struggles
The Devils have now lost their last 11 games in Raleigh, dating back to January of 2023. They are 3-16-1 in their last 20 games in North Carolina, in those contests the Devils have a negative-37 goal differential. It’s been rough goings for the team in Raleigh, and hopefully if they match up with the Canes come playoff time they can actually take one on the road.
Dadonov Injury
Evgenii Dadonov took just two shifts in the third period before leaving the bench and being replaced on his line by Ondrej Palat. Dadonov was good in his Devils debut with a 61.63 expected goals percentage (xG%), Palat was not. The now fourth year Devil had a 21.65 xG%. Sheldon Keefe said the X-rays were negative for Dadonov which is a good sign.
What’s Next
The Devils next game is on the road Saturday against the Tampa Bay Lightning at 7:00 pm ET.