The Devils are fifth in the Metropolitan Division with a record of 20-14-2.
The New Jersey Devils earned their 20th win of the season Wednesday night versus the Washington Capitals, earning a 6-3 victory. Nico Hischier (2), Dawson Mercer (2), and Michael McLeod (2) scored for New Jersey, while Connor McMichael, Evgeny Kuznetsov, and John Carlson found the back of the net for Washington.
Entering the game, the Capitals were 10-1-2 when scoring first and 10-0-0 when leading after the first period this season. The stage was set for a critical opening 20 minutes, and the Devils, who have struggled with slow starts, delivered.
Captain Nico Hischier set the tone and scored two goals within the first 10 minutes, giving his team an early 2-0 lead. His first resulted from a simple play that started with defenseman Colin Miller shooting the puck on net. The puck bounced off Capitals' goaltender Hunter Shepard right to Hischier, who buried it. The second came while his team was on the man advantage. It was another simple play where he deflected Luke Hughes' shot from the point.
The Devils were under pressure in the waning minutes of the first period but survived the onslaught and headed into the first intermission with a 2-1 lead.
New Jersey and Washington exchanged two goals each in the middle frame, including Mercer's first of the night. McLeod scored the eventual game-winning goal with 15.8 seconds left, giving his team a 4-3 lead entering the third.
Mercer and McLeod collected their respective second goal of the night in the final frame, securing their team's first victory of the 2024 calendar year.
"It was a big game for us to start off the (year) right," Hischier said. "I think we did a good job, and we've got to build on that."
Five Things
1. Nico Hischier's Three-Point Night
The young captain once again led the way with his on-ice performance. In addition to scoring his two goals, he collected an assist on Mercer's first goal of the night. It was his first three-point night of the season and the 12th time in his career that he earned three or more points in a game.
Hischier extended his point streak to three games (two goals, two assists) and scored a power-play goal in consecutive outings.
2. Jack Hughes Breaks Another Record
Per NHL PR, "Jack Hughes collected his 30th assist of the season in his 31st game and became the fastest player in Devils franchise history to reach the mark, besting Zach Parise's pace in the 2008-09 season (33 GP)."
3. Head Coach Lindy Ruff Praises Alexander Holtz
Alexander Holtz collected two assists against the Capitals. The 21-year-old was reunited with McLeod, and the duo picked up right where they left off with a combined four points.
When asked about the Swede's performance, head coach Lindy Ruff said, "I thought one of his better games. I thought that line was good. I thought a couple of plays he made was good. I actually thought all three zones he played a real strong game for us."
4. Nico Daws Earns First Career NHL Point
Goaltender Nico Daws earned his first NHL point when he was credited with the secondary assist on Hischier's first goal. He is the third Devils netminder who earned an assist this season, joining Akira Schmid (two assists) and Vitek Vanecek (one assist). Per Devils PR, it is the fourth time in franchise history that three or more netminders recorded a point in a single season for the Devils.
5. The Penalty Kill
One area that needs improvement is the penalty kill. Washington was on the man advantage four times and scored two power-play goals. One observation is that Brendan Smith was not on the ice for any opposing goals. He successfully cleared the puck out of his zone and blocked shots when needed. As much as fans want to see him utilized as a healthy scratch, he is currently one of the team's best penalty killers, and while the unit is struggling as a whole, now is not the time to take him out of the lineup.