The New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers matched up on Monday evening for another rendition of the infamous Hudson River Rivalry. Coming into it, the Devils had not defeated the Rangers since their Game 7 clincher in May 2023 – 581 days ago. But that changed tonight as the Devils dominated the Blueshirts, 5-1. Jacob Markstrom was phenomenal, stopping 38 of 39 (.974 save percentage) for his 12th win of the season.
Just 1:27 into the first, Jesper Bratt went five-hole on Igor Shesterkin to put the Devils up one. Then about six minutes later, Dawson Mercer corralled a rebound and scored, doubling their lead. The Devils then had an “epic” penalty kill – play-by-play announcer Bill Spaulding’s words – where they blocked five shots in a tremendous effort.
The Devils had a brief 5-on-3 advantage in the second, and Dougie Hamilton struck to make it 3-0. Then Luke Hughes, who was buzzing all night, had his shot deflected, and his brother Jack spun around to put it by Shesterkin.
Hughes news in NYC: Jack scored a beaut. pic.twitter.com/0xwNKTIppd
— New Jersey Devils (@NJDevils) December 3, 2024
Chris Kreider then struck on the power play to get the Rangers started. But that momentum was short-lived, as the Devils’ power play struck once more. This time it was J. Hughes’ second of the night, making it 5-1.
In the third period, the Devils really shut things down knowing they had a sizeable lead. They blocked a ton of shots and when Markstrom had to, he came up with the stops. At the final horn, the Devils had 24 blocked shots and their first win against the Rangers in a very long time.
There were multiple “Let’s Go Devils” chants echoing through the arena in the third period. Bratt, who had four points, told The Hockey Writers, “That was great to hear. It gives us a boost. And you see their team getting frustrated with it too…having so many fans here cheering you on towards the end of the game felt really good.”
Both teams will get a nice break before heading back to action. The Devils will make the 13.4-mile trip home and face the Seattle Kraken on Friday night. The Rangers will also be home then to take on the Pittsburgh Penguins.
