New Jersey improves to a 7-3-1 record.
New Jersey improves to a 7-3-1 record.
The New Jersey Devils are back in the win column after a 4-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday evening. The team's depth players stole the spotlight, with Dawson Mercer, Max Willman, Curtis Lazar, and Michael McLeod finding the back of the net.
Head coach Lindy Ruff saw his team surrender the first goal for the ninth time this season. Former Devil Taylor Hall scored the opening goal less than two minutes after puck drop. Tyler Johnson collected an assist and now has points in eight straight games versus New Jersey (six goals, six assists).
With five minutes left to play, Blackhawks' forward Ryan Donato scored his third of the season, pulling his team within one, but with a second left in the game, McLeod fired the puck into the empty net, securing the win.
The team's lines without Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes started as the following:
Tyler Toffoli - Dawson Mercer - Timo Meier
Ondrej Palat - Michael McLeod - Jesper Bratt
Max Willman - Erik Haula - Curtis Lazar
Alexander Holtz - Chris Tierney - Nathan Bastian.
Five Things
1. Dawson Mercer Scores His First of the Season
The metaphoric monkey is off Mercer's back. A little over 13 minutes into the game, the 22-year-old scored his first of the season on the power play.
"I've been looking for it for a while now. It just felt good to see it go in early on in the game," Mercer said. "For us to finish it out with a win is a bonus too."
2. Max Willman Made An Impression
With Hughes listed as week-to-week with an upper-body injury, the Devils needed to recall a forward from their American Hockey League affiliate. Max Willman, 28, got called up after appearing in seven games for the Utica Comets, collecting seven points (four goals, three assists).
It took a little under 15 minutes for Willman to find the back of the net. His wrist shot beat Blackhawks' goaltender Arvid Soderblom.
"We saw a lot of good things out of (Willman) in preseason, so easy transition for him to step in," Ruff said. "(We) really didn't even have to talk about how he needed to play. He just went out and played and did a great job for us."
"You hate seeing injuries and guys go down, but for me, I'm trying to take that opportunity and run with it," Willman said.
3. A Full Team Effort
Was it New Jersey's best performance? No, but after a slow start, the team found their legs and gave a full team effort to beat Chicago.
"From the first line down to the Tierney line, everybody produced and played well," said Ruff. "Mercer got on the board, Willman came up and scored a big goal. I thought he played well for us. We knew that we were going to have to do little things right. We started a little bit slow but after that I thought we played pretty well."
4. Vitek Vanecek's Impressive Night
The victory marked Vanecek's 80th career win, which now ranks eighth all-time for Czechia-born netminders. He was tied with David Ritttich entering the game. Michal Neuvirth ranks seventh all-time for Czechia netminders with 105 career wins.
The netminder made 32 saves on 34 shots and finished the game with a save percentage of .941. In the first period, he made a remarkable diving save to preserve his team's 2-1 lead.
According to NHL PR, "Vanecek (139 games played) became the sixth-fastest active goalie to record 80 wins behind Igor Shesterkin (129 GP), Matt Murray (130 GP), Ilya Samsonov (132 GP), Frederik Andersen (133 GP), and Tristan Jarry (133 GP).
5. Jesper Bratt's 400th Career NHL Game
Sunday evening's game marked the 400th of Jesper Bratt's career. He has 294 points (109 goals, 185 assists). With Hughes out of the lineup, the Swede wore an 'A' as an alternate captain.