The New Jersey Devils defeated the Colorado Avalanche 4-3 in overtime on Sunday afternoon at the Prudential Center. The Devils jumped out to an early lead, but Colorado clawed back to tie the game by the end of the first. New Jersey had a rough second period, but came out of it with another lead. Again, the Avalanche rebounded to tie late in the third, but the Devils stuck to their game and landed the final blow in three-on-three overtime. With the victory, the Devils improved to 8-1 and extended their win streak to eight contests. With the loss, the Avalanche fell to 5-1-4.
Game Recap
Period One
The Devils had the early jump against the Avalanche, putting a few good shots on Trent Miner and controlling zone time.
Martin Necas nearly had a breakaway, but Nico Hischier made a nice spinning play to steal the puck and eliminate the chance.
The Devils responded with a rush chance by Paul Cotter that Miner fought off.
Brett Pesce went down after he was caught with an uncalled high stick, and Jake Allen made a big glove save on the resulting chance by Nathan MacKinnon.
New Jersey went the other way, and Arseny Gritsyuk got the Devils on the board first, at 9:09, with a snipe from the far circle off a feed from Timo Meier. Gritsyuk facilitated the play with relentless work along the boards to win the puck and get it deeper in the zone to Meier.
Seconds later, at 9:48, the Devils grabbed a second goal, this time off the stick of Jack Hughes, who beat Miner through a bit of a screen by a defender. Simon Nemec and Brenden Dillon had the assists.
The Avalanche answered back at 12:55 after a shot from the point rebounded right to Valeri Nichushkin in front of the net. Cale Makar and Victor Olofsson had the assists.
The Devils were back on the front foot after allowing the goal and hemmed Colorado in its defensive zone. Gristyuk had another grade A opportunity that he fired just high, and Jesper Bratt rang one off the post as they cycled.
Pesce left the Devils’ bench with just over three minutes left in the period.
Colorado tied the game at 17:03 when a shot from distance hit the post behind Allen and sat in the blue paint for an easy tap-in by MacKinnon. Artturi Lehkonen and Devon Toews had the assists.
The shots were even at 10 apiece in the opening period.
Period Two
Pesce was not on the ice for the beginning of the second period, so the Devils were forced to play with five defensemen.
The Devils had a few good shifts to start the period, but the Avalanche surged after a turnover and a failed zone clearance pinned them in front of Allen.
Dillon laid a crunching but clean hit on Sam Malinski along the half wall that drew some attention from the Avalanche.
Dawson Mercer had a nice takeaway right in front of Miner, but couldn’t bury his chance to regain the lead.
New Jersey got hemmed in its zone again, but the puck was sent out of play by Colorado, stopping the clock.
Gritsyuk stripped the puck and made a break for the net, but was tripped down by Brock Nelson, sending New Jersey to the power play. Meier was called for a high stick with a minute left in the power play, leading to four-on-four before a minute of an Avalanche power play.
All the penalties expired without any goals scored.
The Devils had some extended zone time following the penalty kill and finally registered their first shot of the period, which Miner chested down.
The Avalanche had some zone time, but they got caught by Connor Brown, who blew the zone and beat Miner on the breakaway at 12:51. Nemec had the lone assist.
Luke Hughes was tagged for interference at 13:56, which drew attention from Sheldon Keefe, who was looking for a matching embellishment penalty. Nonetheless, the Devils went down a man but successfully answered the call and killed the penalty.
The Devils didn’t have a good period, getting outshot 9-3, but they got the lone goal of the frame to head into the final 20 minutes with a lead.
Period Three
The Devils looked better to begin the third period, eclipsing their second-period shot total in just over five minutes.
New Jersey maintained their strong play, outshooting Colorado 7-1 at the halfway point of the period, but couldn’t find an insurance goal.
The Avalanche began to press and had a dangerous shot from the blue line that was knocked down by Dillon and cleared to relieve pressure.
The Avalanche gained the zone again, and off a pass from Ross Colton from behind the net, Nelson tied the game at 13:55. Malinski added a secondary assist.
New Jersey responded well, getting a few opportunities from in close that forced Miner to make big saves.
Jack Hughes made a nice move in front, but again Miner came up with a sprawling save to keep the game tied in the dying minutes.
60 minutes wasn’t enough as regulation time expired, and the Devils went to their first overtime of the season.
The Devils outshot the Avalanche 9-5 in the third period.
Overtime
The Devils had possession early, and Dougie Hamilton fired a shot that was gloved away by Miner. The Avalanche retrieved the puck but couldn’t get any shots through to Allen.
New Jersey got the puck back, and Jack Hughes made a series of stick handles to dance through Colorado’s defense and fired a backhanded shot just wide.
Nemec made a great play along the wall to win the puck back and put it to the stick of Jack Hughes again, who didn’t miss on his second chance, burying the game-winner over Miner’s shoulder at 1:53. Nemec had the lone assist.
The Devils had the only two shots of the overtime period
The shots were even at 24 apiece in the full 60-plus minutes of play.
Takeaways
Adapt and Overcome
The Devils faced some adversity against Colorado, but they embodied the “bend, don’t break” phrase.
In the first, they jumped out to an early two-goal lead and were controlling play. However, the Avalanche hung around and got one back on a bit of a fortunate bounce in front of Allen.
After Pesce left the bench, the Devils looked disjointed, and Colorado benefited from failed zone clearances that gave them extended zone time, and they eventually tied the game.
The second period was ugly for New Jersey, as they were clearly fighting the puck while simultaneously, the Avalanche had found their legs and were pressing. Despite allowing nine shots by Colorado and only generating three of their own, the Devils were opportunistic and cashed in on a breakaway chance.
The third was much better for the Devils, who had the edge in play, but still, the Avalanche were able to tie things up a second time, sending the game to overtime, where the Devils put the final dagger in it.
They faced adversity throughout the game but were able to withstand and respond each time, something that prior teams sometimes struggled with. They don’t let things spiral out of control when opponents are pressing and seem to have learned to navigate the natural ebbs and flows of games better than in previous seasons, which is a great sign.
With an opponent as talented as the Colorado Avalanche, it isn’t realistic to expect to dominate the full 60 minutes, but the Devils weathered the storm when they needed to and grabbed the reins when the opportunity presented itself, leading to a win over a perennial cup contender.
Who Steps Up?
While the goalies’ health has improved, the injuries to skaters have piled up in the early going, forcing guys to step up into new roles.
Gritsyuk has been impressive on the defensive side of the puck, something that has been a welcome surprise. His scoring touch is undeniable, but his work along the boards, forechecking and backchecking, along with making smart plays in the defensive zone and in close quarters, has made him a good fit in the top six alongside Hischier.
Gritsyuk’s strong play gave Keefe the flexibility to move Mercer down to play third-line-center with Cody Glass out due to injury.
Now, with Pesce out for at least the next four games, the rest of the defensemen will also have to adjust and step up to cover an integral cog in New Jersey’s defense group.
Against the Avalanche, Nemec was up to the task, especially on the offensive side of the ice. He picked up three primary assists, including one on the overtime game-winner, and was a +2 on the afternoon.
The Devils will likely call up another defenseman from the Utica Comets as they head on the road for four games. Seamus Casey made a strong impression last year, but started this season with an injury and only recently got back into game action with the Comets.
He may get the call as the Devils look to cover for Pesce’s absence.
Injury Updates
Brett Pesce suffered an injury in the first period and left the game. He did not return.
Postgame, Keefe indicated that it was an upper-body injury that resulted from a blocked shot. He also stated that Pesce is “not great” and will miss some time. He will not travel with the team as they depart on a four-game West Coast road trip.
There was some positive injury news for the Devils, who saw Jacob Markstrom backing up Jake Allen on Sunday afternoon, indicating his return to action sometime in the next few games. In a corresponding move, Nico Daws was assigned to Utica following the game.
Up Next
The Devils hit the road for their West Coast swing, which kicks off on Tuesday night at Ball Arena, again, against the Colorado Avalanche.
Puck drop is set for 9:00 p.m. on MSGSN2.
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