The New Jersey Devils (20-167-1) are 0-2-1 in three games since Jack Hughes has returned to the lineup, and the team is near full health. Who saw that coming?
Hosting the Washington Capitals (20-13-5) at the Prudential Center on Saturday night, they finally scored more than one goal, but couldn’t take two points in a 4-3 overtime loss.
Once the puck dropped in the first period, play was all Devils through the first 10 minutes. New Jersey pressured Capitals goaltender, Logan Thompson with an 8-0 shot advantage in the first eight and a half minutes of the game.
However, the Capitals powered back into the game, with eight shots on Jake Allen in the following two minutes of play.
Washington believed they scored first when Tom Wilson led an odd-man rush to the Devils’ end of the ice. He dished to Aliaksei Protas, who created a rebound for Dylan Strome to tap in a goal. However, Sheldon Keefe successfully challenged for offside, and won the review.
The Capitals still opened the scoring, however, and did so at the very last second—literally—of the first period. With seconds dwindling on the final buzzer of the first, Alexander Ovechkin threw a puck on goal, and Aliaksei Protas tapped in the rebound with 0.3 seconds to go.
The Devils had two grade-A chances to tie the game at the start of the second period. First, Jesper Bratt sprung himself for a breakaway, yet shot it right to the chest of Thompson, and then Nico Hischier in a high-danger area completely missed the net.
New Jersey’s luck finally turned in the second period when they went to the power play after Brandon Duhaime held Brett Pesce.
On the man advantage, Luke Hughes‘ shot from the point created a rebound, which Hischier picked up and slid to Bratt who scored on the open net to tie the game at one.
Anthony Beauvillier regained the Washington lead after Jack Hughes turned the puck over in the Devils’ slot. A 3-on-0 Capitals scoring chance turned intp a goal by Beauvillier to give the Capitals a 2-1 lead.
In the final minute of the middle frame, Hischier found a bouncing puck on his stick for a semi-breakaway, but Thompson came up with the late, clutch save to maintain Washington’s lead heading into the second intermission.
Exactly seven minutes into the third period, Bratt netted his second goal on a floater from the point. Ondrej Palat screening Thompson provided the blind, and the Devils tied the game at two goals each.
32 seconds later, Connor Brown fed Cody Glass on a broken odd-man opportunity, and No.12 scored his seventh goal of the season to give the Devils their first lead.
Yet, Ovechkin pulled the Capitals back into the game a minute and a half later, tying the game at three with his 15th goal of the season.
After regulation didn’t settle the score, the Devils and Capitals went to overtime.
Despite heavy puck possession during 3-on-3 play, Jakob Chychrun downed the Devils with his 15th goal of the season on the rush.
Allen suffered his ninth loss of the season, making 29 saves on 33 shots.
