On Sunday afternoon, the New Jersey Devils had a split-squad Metropolitan matchup, with half of the club traveling to Québec City to take on the Ottawa Senators, and the other half staying behind to face the Washington Capitals at home.
The Devils sent a few veterans to play at Videotron Centre, including Evgenii Dadonov, Dawson Mercer, Paul Cotter, and Connor Brown. For the Senators, the roster featured their full NHL squad, including Brady Tkachuk, Thomas Chabot, and Claude Giroux. The Senators prevailed in the end 2-0, with shots 32-14 in favor of the Senators.
Georgi Romanov was the starting goaltender for the Devils, with Jakub Malek as his backup. Romanov remained in net for all three periods, stopping 30 out of 31 shots faced. At the opposite end of the ice, the Senators kept Linus Ullmark for the duration of the game, stopping all 14 of the Devils’ shots on goal.
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The game remained scoreless after an uneventful first period, despite the Senators outshooting the Devils 11-2. However, both teams picked up the pace in the second, even though the scoreboard didn’t reflect it. At the start of the period, the Devils failed to capitalize on a 5-on-3 power play. Then, Tim Stützle was awarded a penalty shot after a collision with Cale Addison shoved him into the net, but Romanov held fast.
A laser for the game-winning goal 🚨#GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/Ii0COrlSZt
— Ottawa Senators (@Senators) September 28, 2025
Both teams were eager to score in the third, but it was the Senators who finally struck with five minutes left, on a power-play goal courtesy of Stephen Halliday. The Devils were unable to recover, and Olle Lycksell sealed the deal with an empty net goal at the end of the game.
Preseason action for the Senators will continue on Tuesday night in Québec City against the Montreal Canadiens. Meanwhile, the Devils won’t play another game until Thursday night, when they will face the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden.
