On Sunday, Dec. 14, the New Jersey Devils hosted the Vancouver Canucks for their first matchup of the season. This is a game that many fans look forward to, as the Hughes brothers typically face off. Two days prior, Quinn Hughes was traded to the Minnesota Wild and with Jack still injured, Luke was the only Hughes brother on the ice. Although he and the Devils tried to hold off the Canucks, Vancouver was the stronger team, taking a 2-1 victory.
Game Recap
Just 43 seconds into the game, Dougie Hamilton took a seat for slashing. Early on the extra-man advantage, newcomer Zeev Buium held the puck at the blue line. He passed it to Jake DeBrusk, who then passed it to Conor Garland. DeBrusk made his way to the front of the net, and Garland took a shot. DeBrusk tried to tip it into the net, but Jacob Markstrom made the initial save. DeBrusk picked up his own rebound and scored the first goal just a minute into the game.
Five minutes later, Stefan Noesen took a seat for boarding another newcomer to the Canucks, Liam Ohgren. With a minute left on the power play, Garland skated the puck into Vancouver’s zone. He passed it to Buium, and he took a shot from the faceoff circle. While Brenden Dillon tried to defend the shot, his stick deflected it into the net. Since Buium received the last touch, the goal was credited to him.
Early in the second, Dawson Mercer picked up the puck in the neutral zone. He skated it into the Devils’ zone and passed it to Jesper Bratt. He tapped a pass to Luke Hughes, and he scored the first of the game for the home team.
Despite outshooting the Canucks 8-1 in the third, the Devils only scored the one goal in the second period. The Canucks take the first game in the season series.
Next Up
The Canucks will take on the New York Rangers on Tuesday, Dec. 16. The Devils will take on the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday, Dec. 17.
The season series will conclude in Vancouver on Jan. 23.
