On September 28, the New Jersey Devils played a split game in Game 4 of the preseason. Many of the Devil’s stars like Jack Hughes, Jesper Bratt and Nico Hischier stayed at home to serve as the Washington capital when some of the Devil’s players headed north to the Ottawa Senators in Quebec City. Although the first 60 minutes of the game led to a draw, the Capitals won 3-2 after five minutes of overtime and gunfights.
Game review
At 13:56, Kurtis MacDermid put on the box and held Trevor van Riemsdyk. With the last few seconds of the power play, the capital was in the offensive zone. Ilya Prots shot a shot and was blocked by Jacob Markstrom. Patrick Thomas picked up the rebound from behind the net and passed it to the center of the ice. Graeme Clarke picked up the loose puck when MacDermid exited the box. He fired, opening the score for both teams.
Six minutes after the second phase, Van Riemsdyk picked up a loose puck in the Devils’ offensive zone. He sent it for Ryan Leonard, who slid it online. He surpassed Timo Meier who tried to defend him. No one guarded him, Leonard’s shot immediately found the mark, and the capital’s shot was two.
With five minutes left for the second time, Andrew Cristall sat down and tripped Timo Meier. In the confrontation that followed, the Devil won control of the hockey. Jack Hughes passed it to Jesper Bratt, who sent it back to him. Hughes passed to Nico Hichennis on the right. He shot, bringing the Devil into a goal.
With four minutes left in the third stage, the Devil tied up the game. Simon Nemec put the puck on the blue line and passed it to Hughes. He found Shane Lachance in front of the net and passed it to him. He shot a shot in front of Charlie Lindgren and tied for the devil’s team. The capital challenges goalkeeper interference, but the goal is considered a good one. With Lachance’s late goal, the game started overtime to decide the winner.
Thirty seconds overtime, the Devil played a strong match after Pierre-Luc Dubois was asked to trip Meier. The capital successfully killed the fine. With one minute and five seconds left, Pierre-Luc Dubois went to the box to pick up Hughes, and Hischier did it roughly. Both teams continued to play 3-on-3, but neither team could score, and the match was played with a gunfight to determine the winner.
Hughes’ first shot in the shootout, sending it over Lindgren’s shoulder. Dubois glided, lifted the puck across Daws’ mat and entered the net.
Blatt walked next, his shot was blocked. After Leonard scored, he only needed a gunfight goal to win.
Arseni Gritsyuk once again gave the devil life after he received his third shot in the gunfight. Jakob Chychrun’s shot was saved by DAWS and both teams competed.
Meier and Aliaksei Protas both missed the fourth round and sold the gunfight to fifth. Hischier missed his shot, but Cristall scored to win the game for the capital.
What’s next?
The capital will continue on the road to wear a Columbus blue jacket on Tuesday, September 30. The Devil will reorganize and play together at Madison Square Garden, and they will be joining the Rangers on Thursday, October 2.
