3 Takeaways From Devils’ Explosive 7-1 Victory Over Rangers

On Thursday, Oct. 15, the New Jersey Devils hosted the New York Rangers for their first matchup of the 2026-27 NHL season. The first period got a little chippy, with both teams taking penalties, three for the Rangers and two for the Devils. No goals were scored off of special teams, but the Devils scored the first goal of the game seconds before the period came to a close.

Early in the second, the Devils scored their second goal to increase their lead. By the time the middle frame ended, the Devils were up by five goals. The final frame started with the Devils adding another goal to their tally, but the Rangers got on the board with a power-play goal shortly after. A final goal from the Devils, and a shorthanded one at that, gave New Jersey a 7-1 victory over New York.

Devils Offense Explodes in Second Period

Evan Rodrigues scored for the Devils in the first period, just 30 seconds before the end of the first 20 minutes. 18 seconds into the first period, Luke Hughes kept the scoring going. In the fourth minute, Nico Hischier scored his first of the game, and 31 seconds later, Arseny Gritsyuk put the Devils up by four. A late second goal from Hughes gave the Devils a commanding five-goal lead after 40 minutes.

Nine different players recorded points in the Devils second period, with three different players scoring goals. Hughes scored two goals, while Timo Meier and Brett Pesce each recorded two assists. The Devils managed to pull off a major team effort that gave them a huge, necessary win against the better-performing Rangers to start the season.

Daws Excelled in Net

Although the Devils controlled the puck in their offensive zone for the most part, Nico Daws still faced shots from the Rangers. He stopped all 11 shots they took in the first two periods but allowed one goal on the eight shots that New York took in the third period.

This was Daws’ third game of the season, but just his first win. In the last two games Daws played in, the Devils were scoreless in five of the six periods. Daws did all he could to keep the Devils in each of these games; however, he can’t do much when the rest of the team doesn’t score. Against the Rangers, not only did Daws have a great performance, the Devils also had his back.

Special Teams Had Bright Spots and Weak Spots

The Devils special teams were on display throughout this game. The Devils and Rangers each had four power play chances, and once again, New Jersey couldn’t make the most of the extra-man advantage. Late in the game, the Rangers capitalized on their third power play chance of the night.

New Jersey gave up a final power play opportunity to New York with just six minutes left in the game. However, it wasn’t the Rangers who managed to score while they had the extra man on the ice; it was the Devils who netted a shorthanded goal. Cody Glass scored his first of the season while the Devils were down Johnathan Kovacevic for an interference call.

The Devils have had limited success on the power play to start the season. They are ranked 12th overall in the entire NHL but only have a 20% success rate. Their penalty kill is even weaker, ranked 26th overall with a 71.4% success rate. Now that Glass scored a goal while they were shorthanded, the rest of the team will have to rally to build the special teams up to a stronger force as the rest of the season continues.

Devils Back at It on Saturday

The Devils will be back in action on Saturday, Oct. 17 against the Washington Capitals at Capital One Arena. This will be a matinee game, with puck drop scheduled for 1 PM ET.