This is certainly a game where the New Jersey Devils missed their superstar.
It felt like the Devils had plenty of chances to score, but Sergei Bobrovsky was just a little bit better than each Devil on Thursday night.
Would Jack Hughes have changed the outcome? It’s certainly possible.
However, the Devils dropped their second game in a row, this time to the Florida Panthers, after Bobrovsky blanked New Jersey.
Let’s get to how it happened.
Period One
When the puck dropped in Sunrise, the Devils got off to a strong start against the defending Stanley Cup Champions.
New Jersey traded early chances with Florida before they began to take control of the puck and facilitate play in the offensive end of the ice.
In fact, the Devils dominated the puck so much, that the Panthers went nine minutes between shots in the first period. However, when the Cats finally got a shot through to Jake Allen, they opened the scoring, a goal by Sam Reinhart, to give the Panthers a 1-0 lead.
Period Two
Florida kept up the pressure in the second period, leaving the Devils on their heels early.
Jake Allen, however, was strong to keep the Panthers within reach on the scoreboard.
The Devils tilted the ice back to even as New Jersey and Florida traded even strength chances through 15-plus minutes in the second period.
The Devils did, however, have two late-period chances to even the score. At 16:07 of the second, Gustav Forsling sat for a two-minute minor after tripping Paul Cotter.
Yet, the power play couldn’t break through the efforts of Sergei Bobrovsky, who kept the Devils off the board.
The Devils were awarded another late power play before the end of the second period after A.J. Greer tripped Luke Hughes, but the period ended before they could score.
Period Three
The Devils had a short man advantage for just over 20 seconds to begin the third period, but wouldn’t convert before even strength resumed.
The Devils continued to pressure Bobrovsky through the first 10 minutes of the third period, with five shots on goal as opposed to Florida’s one.
New Jersey’s momentum was cut at the 10:35 mark of the third when Simon Nemec went to the penalty box after hooking Reinhart.
The PK unit killed the infraction, however, and the New Jersey offense got back to work at even strength.
Regardless of the 8-4 shot differential in favor of the Devils, the Panthers saw more quality chances on their side at even strength, which kept New Jersey off the board.
With just over a minute left in regulation, the Devils pulled Allen for the extra attacker. New Jersey piled on chances with desperation, trying everything they could to beat Bobrovsky inside the final minute of play.
However, Bobrovsky was a brick wall, and held the Devils off the board to record his second shutout of the season.
Allen turned in a strong performance despite taking his third loss of the season, making 23 saves on 24 shots.
James is the New Jersey Devils beat reporter for New Jersey Hockey Now on Sportsnaut and the PHWAs New … More about James Nichols