The New Jersey Devils traveled to Canada for the first time this season to take on the Montreal Canadiens. The Devils were coming off a 5-4 overtime win against the New York Islanders. The Canadiens came into the game after a winning 3-1 performance against the Buffalo Sabres and looked to take four out of four points on the back-to-back.
Vitek Vanecek made his third start of the season and went against Cayden Primeau, who started his first game this season. Nico Hischier and Erik Haula were able to suit up for this matchup after not participating in practice due to injuries. The Canadiens announced that they will be without David Savard for an extended period after he was injured in the game against the Sabres. The Devils played a dominant game against the Canadiens and walked away with two points and a 5-2 win. Here are three takeaways from the game.
Devils Yet to Score First
Through the first five games of the 2023-24 season, the Devils have not been able to get the first goal of the game. Due to slow starts and allowing opponents to pepper shots on their net, the Devils do not seem to start clicking until later in the first period. Furthermore, the Devils have allowed at least 11 shots on goal in the first period in four out of five games. They have also been outshot in every first period except against the Islanders. With the elite talent in the lineup and a healthy amount of veteran presence, it is a concern that the team cannot break the trend of slow starts and not scoring first.
The slow start was most present in the game against the Florida Panthers because the Devils were not able to erase a 4-0 deficit. The final score ended up being 4-3 and the team simply ran out of time. However, breaking out of trends is especially difficult when they cannot get into a rhythm due to the schedule. The Devils’ first game was on Oct. 12 and they have only played five games in 12 days. Now, the team will face a much busier schedule with eight games in the next two weeks.
Tomorrow, the Devils will face the only other team that has not scored first in a game, the Washington Capitals. Hopefully, New Jersey will be able to break the streak and leave Washington alone in that category.
Jack Hughes Breaks Franchise Record
Jack Hughes’ hot start allowed him to extend his point streak in the game against the Canadiens. As early Hart Trophy favorites pop up around the league, the young center furthered his case. Furthermore, Hughes also broke the previous record of most points to start a season through five games in franchise history. In the modern era, Patrick Marleau had 13 points in 2013, and in 1982-83, Wayne Gretzky had 15 points in the first five games. Hughes was able to register four primary assists in the game against the Canadiens to break the record. He now has four goals and 10 assists, all being primary.
Related: Devils’ Jack Hughes, Your Early Hart Trophy Favorite
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Along with Hughes’ hot start, Jesper Bratt has had an amazing start with nine points in five games. Very easily overshadowed by Hughes’ production, though.
The unbelievable start has the forward breaking records and notching back-to-back four-point nights. Furthermore, he re-claimed the spot for most points in the NHL as of Oct. 25. Hughes shows no signs of stopping his blazing hot start. No player is playing better than him right now.
Toffoli & the Power Play Stay Hot
Tyler Toffoli is leaving a great first impression on Devils fans as he has four goals and two assists in his first five games with the team. He also has three power-play goals to start the season, helping the already impressive units. In the game against the Canadiens, Toffoli registered a hat trick, with one being a power-play goal.
Against the Canadiens, the Devils’ power play went two for four. However, Alexander Holtz’s goal was seconds after their first power play opportunity expired. Despite it not counting as one, the units looked strong and had multiple opportunities on each chance. On the power play, Nico Hischier was able to record his first goal of the season on a feed from Jack Hughes. Hischier played the third most time on the power play with 4:54, only seconds behind Hughes and Bratt.
The Devils’ win over the Canadiens was their first multi-goal win of the season. As the offense starts to gel and produce more consistently, the frequency of games also picks up. They will look to continue the trend against the Capitals on Wednesday at Prudential Center.
Quick Takeaways
- Hischier had his strongest game of the season. Despite having one goal disallowed, he scored in the third period for his first of the season. He also registered four shots on goal and 19:27 of ice time.
- Michael McLeod had a team-leading three hits and was 86.7% on faceoffs.
- Vitek Vanecek kept the Devils in the game early and made several key saves. He registered a 0.48 goals saved above expected.
- The Devils dominated in the faceoff circle and won 63.3% of the faceoffs.
- Timo Meier added to his point totals with an assist. He was noticeably better and has picked up his play from the first three games.