The New Jersey Devils headed into Sunday afternoon against the Colorado Avalanche as the top team in the NHL, having rattled off seven in a row. While they faced more adversity than previous games, the end result remained the same: Jack Hughes‘ overtime winner — his eighth goal in as many games — propelled the Devils to a 4-3 victory.
Related: Jack Hughes Propels Devils to 4-3 Overtime Win Against Avalanche
For the First Time in a While…Adversity.
The Devils have been so hot for so long that adversity has been tough to come by. When they surged out to a 2-0 lead, it seemed like it would be more smooth sailing to an eighth straight victory. Quickly, the Avalanche said not so fast as Valeri Nichushkin and Nathan Mackinnon each scored in a span of ~4 minutes to knot things up. To that point, the Devils hadn’t seen a lead creep away like that all season.
To make matters worse, Brett Pesce blocked a Brent Burns shot with 5:21 to go in the first and did not return to the contest. The Devils, down a defenseman, still managed their way to out-battle one of the NHL’s premier teams and complete a sweep of their three-game homestand.
Jack Hughes has eight goals in his last eight games.
— Daniel Amoia (@daniel_amoia) October 26, 2025
The #NJDevils haven’t lost since he scored his first. pic.twitter.com/F8SrkkYsDE
Unfortunately, Brett Pesce is “not great”, according to head coach Sheldon Keefe, and will not travel with the team on their upcoming road trip. That just makes their ability to overcome adversity all the more important, as we saw today.
“It’s kind of a call to action there when you lose not just a defenseman, but an integral defenseman like Pesce, especially against a team like [Colorado] that is so dynamic offensively,” said Keefe. “But we just got back to work. We had some chances late, and then obviously make good in overtime (…) It’s a bit of a taste of what you’re going to be dealing with all season long.”
Arseny Gritsyuk Continues to Produce
With how poor the Devils’ depth scoring situation was last season, Arseny Gritsyuk has been an absolute revelation. He’s now on pace for 18 goals and 55 total points. While many fans clamored for the Devils to add a top six winger in the offseason, Gritsyuk is starting to prove he belongs there for the long haul.
It’s not just the point production: he’s been surprisingly physical and shown a mature defensive game, prompting head coach Sheldon Keefe to call him a “complete player” after their contest vs. Minnesota. Today was no exception: he led the whole team in shot attempts (10) and was second in scoring chances (3), while also leading in hits (3).
His line with Timo Meier and Nico Hischier certainly played well, in fact, they didn’t allow a single rush chance in 12:21 of ice time against some dynamic talent for the Avs.
“[Arseny] has come in here and played really good hockey,” said Jack. “I think people probably didn’t know what to expect with him, and I know myself and the guys in this room are really pumped with how good he is. He’s a guy that can be part of our core for a long time, hopefully.”
Brenden Dillon Continues to be Rock-Solid
Brenden Dillon had 16 points all of last season; he’s now on pace for ~45 as he added another assist today. While that pace may not be sustainable, it’s not just the offensive production that’s made him such an important piece during this streak:
After undergoing artificial disc replacement surgery in the offseason, he looks like he hasn’t missed a beat. According to NHL EDGE, his max skating speed of 21.29 miles per hour (MPH) is above league average, placing him in the 64th percentile. Today, the Devils had to lean on him more once Pesce went down; he played 19:31 in total. Despite some tough competition, the Devils out chanced the Avs 9-6 with Dillon on the ice. (via Natural Stat Trick)
Aside from the numbers, there will always be little things that don’t show up on the scoresheet when it comes to Dillon. In the second, he had a massive hit that Keefe credited for giving the team “a boost”. With about 5:30 left in the third, the Avs were buzzing in their zone but Dillon used an active stick to effectively break up a scoring chance that would have led to a high-danger shot on goal.
“He had this little stretch where he shot a couple in the net for us, but that’s him stepping out of character. But what you do come to expect is him being solid and competitive,” added Keefe.
His steadiness has helped young defenseman Simon Nemec get off to a very solid start — seven points in nine games, including three assists today. The fact that the Devils’ defense is deep enough (when healthy) to have Dillon on the bottom pair is an absolute luxury. Nemec and Dillon are on pace for a combined 108 points this season — while that is surely unsustainable, it truly speaks to the depth of their defense.
Moving Forward
These two teams will face each other once more to finish their home-and-home on Tuesday (Oct. 28) in Colorado (9:00 PM EDT).
