Devils Honor Lemaire, Dominate Bruins in Response to Markstrom’s Injury in 5-1 Win

It was a slow start for the Devils’ shooters, but they found the net tonight. Hopefully, they made Jacques proud.

Coming into the game, there was interesting news for the Devils, with the team shaking up the lines. Nico Hischier centered Bratt and Noesen. Hughes centered Bastian and Cotter, who was originally planned to be the third-line center, but replaced Ondrej Palat on the seocnd line due to Palat’s absence. The third line featured Timo Meier, Justin Dowling, and Dawson Mercer, and the fourth line was Tatar, Lazar, and MacDermid.

Before the game began, the team honored Jacques Lemaire as he was inducted into the Ring of Honor. After speaking with the media before the game, he was joined on the ice by Scott Stevens, Scott Niedermayer, Ken Daneyko, Jim Dowd, Andy Greene, Colin White, Travis Zajac, alongside Lou Lamoriello and Larry Robinson and his children. John McMullen’s son, Peter, and Sergei Brylin presented Lemaire with his red jacket. The full ceremony can be viewed below.

First Period

The new-look first line of Jesper Bratt, Nico Hischier, and Stefan Noesen had a great first shift, winning a battle for the puck and working the puck high for a Kovacevic shot through Bratt’s screen — and Noesen forced Jeremy Swayman to make a fantastic pad save on the rebound to keep the game tied. The Devils continued to have the better of play until an untimely change forced Brenden Dillon to go to the right side to defend a two-on-one from the defensive zone blueline. Dillon was able to get his stick on the shot, forcing a faceoff.

Just a couple shifts later, Pavel Zacha intercepted a bad pass from the defensive zone wall off of Bratt’s stick, working the puck down to David Pastrnak, who set up a wide-open one-timer for Morgan Geekie, giving the Bruins a 1-0 lead. Bratt could have easily worked the puck out of the defensive zone, but he decided to pass across the middle. After the goal, Brenden Dillon took a minor interference penalty on Matt Poitras.

The Devils’ penalty kill worked well in the first minute. When the Hughes—Bratt kill unit came onto the ice, Dougie Hamilton just barely averted a rush chance by forcing his man to go around the net with the puck, and a bad pass to the point gave Jesper Bratt a chance to race for the puck. He used his arm to position himself to get the puck, turning inside to bank the puck off Swayman’s pad. Hughes came in and fired a slap shot on the loose puck — but just missed the net.

Justin Dowling had a big chance off a draw, which was earned by a good offensive zone shift for the Hischier line, as he was denied on the rebound of a point shot. He helped cycle the puck as Dawson Mercer was interfered with, but just lost the handle as he had the chance to score again. The Devils went to the power play as his spinning backhand was saved. The first unit did well to protect the puck and create chances, utilizing Noesen and Hamilton a bit more than usual — but they did not hit the net.

Second Period

Jack Hughes was not on the bench for the start of the second period, which sent the Devils into a scare, but he rejoined the team after a minute or so. Just after he was sighted, Dawson Mercer had a shot blocked in the slot, but scored on a turning whack on a loose puck! The Devils tied the game!

Curtis Lazar turned the puck over in the neutral zone, giving the Bruins a two-on-one. Justin Brazeau went crashing into Jacob Markstrom feet-first, and Markstrom had to be helped off the ice. Despite Markstrom being hurt on the play. Brazeau was given a two-minute minor for goaltender interference. (And yes, I think Brazeau was falling before Brenden Dillon did anything to him on the play.) Jake Allen took over in net as the Devils went to the power play.

The Devils were flying this man advantage, but they did not get shots on goal off the opening offensive zone draw. Still, they kept possession and tried to break the Bruins down. Bratt, circling back to and drifting from the wall, took the puck slowly towards the middle, finding Dougie Hamilton in the left circle — and he hit a one-timer past Swayman to take the lead!

Kurtis MacDermid was called for hooking in the offensive zone, as he tied up Nikita Zadorov. The Devils cleared the puck down the ice off the defensive zone draw, then forcing an offsides 24 seconds into the kill. The Bruins’ first unit was not very threatening, but Jake Allen made a couple saves on point shots with traffic in front in the second minute of the penalty.

The Devils had a couple lengthy offensive zone shifts, completely exhausting the Bruins defense as they cycled and shot at will. Starting with the Dowling line, as Meier was denied on a one-timer, set up on a cross-ice feed from Dowling, the Hischier line came on with Jack Hughes at right wing. They possessed the puck for nearly a minute in the offensive zone, generating more chances, with Bratt shooting the puck off the inside of the post on a quick rush after the Devils were temporarily pushed beyond the blueline. Nikita Zadorov was finally able to get off after the fourth line had a go at it, but Andrew Peeke was forced to stay on for nearly four minutes as Swayman was pelted with shots. The Bruins finally got a full change when Timo Meier was digging away by the crease with heavy traffic around him, with Swayman freezing the loose puck.

Charlie Coyle was called for a one-handed hook of Johnny Kovacevic with a touch over four minutes to play in the period. The Devils controlled off the draw, working the puck back to Nico Hischier in the low slot after Jack Hughes had his first pass to the middle blocked. Hischier tried moving the puck through to Bratt, but it deflected right to Stefan Noesen, who banked it past Swayman! The Devils took a 3-1 lead!

The Dowling line continued to impress. Timo Meier went behind the net and took the puck away, pushing it to Dowling. Dowling found Mercer right in front, who made it 4-1! Mason Lohrei could have wrapped the puck out of the zone, but he lost the handle and left it behind himself, allowing Meier to create the chance.

Third Period

Jeremy Swayman was replaced for the third period, with Joonas Korpisalo taking over in net for Boston. The Devils had 29 shots on goal by this point. Morgan Geekie took an offensive zone high sticking penalty, giving the Devils another power play just over three minutes into the period. Stefan Noesen just missed on the rebound of a Hischier shot as the second unit was starting to trickle on, as the first unit was pushed back a couple times.

Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images

During a neutral zone puck battle, Brad Marchand got into it with Jonas Siegenthaler, and the teams came together, with Lindholm and Noesen in the middle of it. Marchand was sent to the box for roughing, and the Devils went back to the power play, as Marchand ripped Siegenthaler’s helmet off. The Devils had a couple chances with Jack Hughes on the fly, but they gave up a breakaway to Charlie Coyle, drawing a tripping penalty as Hamilton tried to sweep the rebound away and took down Beecher. The teams went to four-on-four for 49 seconds. When the Devils fell back onto the penalty kill, they were able to defend the zone very well, forcing the Bruins to spend most of their time in the neutral zone. Jake Allen made a couple saves on Marchand and Pastrnak at the end of the kill to keep the lead at three.

Vinni Lettieri was sent off for high sticking Luke Hughes with 7:48 to play, sending the Devils back to the man advantage again. The Devils had trouble getting their passes to connect ealry on this power play, but they never lost the zone after getting established. Hamilton finally got a wrist shot on goal from the point near the end of the first minute, and Noesen followed up with a hard shot from the high slot. The Devils got on the rebound, and Hughes tried to put it back into the crease — but it was sent out to the point. Dougie Hamilton kept it in and clapped a shot that was tipped up by Nico Hischier past Korpisalo! The Devils took a 5-1 lead on their third power play goal of the game.

As the game was winding down, Andrew Peeke took a delay of game penalty with 46.1 to go. The Devils sent out the second power play unit to finish the game, as they went back to collect the puck a couple times. The Devils sealed the 5-1 victory, ending their winless streak.

The Game Stats: The NHL.com Game Summary | The NHL.com Event Summary | The NHL.com Play by Play Log | The NHL.com Shot Summary | The Natural Stat Trick Game Stats

The Markstrom Injury Scare And What it Could Mean for the Team

There will be no official update for Jacob Markstrom tonight. After being taken out by Justin Brazeau in the second period, Markstrom was helped to the bench and hobbled down the tunnel under his own power. Visually-speaking, he has a lower-body injury after having his leg awkwardly pushed into the goal post on that collision. According to Sheldon Keefe, Markstrom feels better than he did a few hours ago, but indicated he will miss a few games at minimum.

Currently, the only goalies that are available for recall to the Devils are:

• Nico Daws, Utica Comets: 4-12-1, 3.27 GAA, .892 SV%, 1 SO
• Isaac Poulter, Utica Comets: 8-7-3, 2.90 GAA, .897 SV%, 0 SO
• Jeremy Brodeur*, Adirondack Thunder: 7-6-0, 3.11 GAA, .898 SV%, 1 SO; Utica Comets: 2GP, 1-0-0, 2.56 GAA, 907 SV%
• Tyler Brennan, Adirondack Thunder: 4-8-1, 4.00 GAA, .865 SV%, 0 SO

*Jeremy Brodeur is signed to an AHL contract and would need to be signed to a two-way deal to make an NHL appearance. The Devils have five contract slots available.

As it stands, I have a tough time picking out who I would want to back up for Jake Allen if Jacob Markstrom turns out to have a longer-term injury. Isaac Poulter is having the better season in Utica right now, but Nico Daws has far more NHL experience and has generally performed better with New Jersey than Utica. Neither have played particularly well, though, and I honestly think the team would be best served to sign Brodeur to a contract, knowing they will play Allen on most nights, allowing Tyler Brennan to get starter’s reps in the ECHL while Poulter and Daws try to string together longer runs of good starts. In an AHL career of seven games, Jeremy Brodeur has a 1-3-1 record, .917 SV%, and 2.76 GAA. He has a .908 SV% in his 145-game ECHL career.

Otherwise, Tom Fitzgerald will need to play the waiver wire. Unfortunately, Jakub Malek, their best non-roster goaltender under contract, is on loan to Ilves in the Liiga, where he is 11-9-4 with a .910 save percentage, three shutouts, and a 2.16 goals against average. Malek is the 1A for Ilves, with Dominik Pavlat working alongside him, so it is not at all likely that he is released from his loan in the case of a long-term injury for Markstrom. The Finnish regular season does end about a month before the NHL playoffs begin, so Malek should become available to the Devils when Ilves (in third place) is either eliminated from or victorious in the playoffs in March or April.

Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images

Hopefully, it’s just a week-to-week thing for Markstrom that Daws can fill in a night or two for. The looming Four Nations break should give him time to rest up as well, assuming he will now be replaced on that roster.

Jake Allen played great for the team tonight. He stopped all 16 shots he faced in relief of Markstrom, facing 2.11 expected goals against and saving seven high-danger shots. The Devils’ offense certainly kicked it up a notch in response to what happened to Markstrom, but Allen gave them the time they needed to build and solidify the lead. And on the note of responses, I was disappointed that Kurtis MacDermid did not meet up with Justin Brazeau after Brazeau served his penalty. If he’s going to be in the lineup, this was a moment for him to get involved if I’ve ever seen one.

A Win for Jacques

I know a good number of fans were worried that the team, on the heels of their losing streak, would stink up the Prudential Center in front of Jacques Lemaire after his Ring of Honor ceremony, as they did following Sergei Brylin’s ceremony last season. They did anything but that, playing an incredibly confident game despite the blow they suffered in the second period. A weaker Devils team might have fallen apart at the sight of their top goalie going down with an injury. But tonight, the power play was clicking, the defense was lapsing less than they have been recently, and mistakes were few after Bratt’s turnover in the first period. I am glad they played a game they could be proud of in front of as legendary a man of hockey as Jacques Lemaire.

Congrats to Zajac and Colliton

Travis Zajac, who joined the ceremony for Lemaire, was also honored as part of the Devils’ quarter-century team. But his night did not end there. During first intermission, Travis and his son, Zenon, took the ice with Zenon’s Pee-Wee hockey team, which is coached by Travis and will be going to Quebec for a major tournament. But Zenon is not the only son of a Devil on their way to Quebec, as Jeremy Colliton’s son is a member of Zajac’s squad.

Colliton’s power play now sits second in the league, working at 31.0% efficiency. They are second only to Winnipeg, who has scored on 33.9% of their opportunities. Without Colliton’s contributions to this team, their outlook for the season might look a lot different.

Nico Hischier Snubbed From the Quarter-Century Team

While Travis Zajac was honored as part of the New Jersey Devils Quarter-Century Team, the Captain, Nico Hischier, was snubbed. Jack Hughes was named to the First Team, and I can’t help but feel that’s a pretty big disconnect. With Hischier leading this team over the last few years, I cannot see how Hughes can be on the First Quarter-Century Team, with Hischier not on either.

Personally, I would have taken Hischier, Brian Gionta, or even Jesper Bratt above Jamie Langenbrunner, who has fewer points with the franchise than Hischier and Bratt despite playing more games with the Devils than they have to this point. I know some are probably pointing to Gomez and Zajac as questionable picks, but I find it hard to argue with Gomez, who was one of the best offensive players in team history during his tenure. Travis Zajac was also a long-time team leader as their top center by average ice time from 2008-09 to 2018-19, except for 2011-12, when Patrik Elias took that role due to Zajac’s achilles injury. So, I probably would have gone Elias-Gomez-Parise and Hughes-Zajac-Hischier as my first and second teams.

Hischier and The Squad’s Offensive Burst

Hischier had a big night tonight, as his three points led the team, bringing him to 23 goals and 42 points in 50 games. Had Bratt not made that terrible turnover, there would have been nothing wrong with his line’s night. His usual partner, Timo Meier, was on the third line with Justin Dowling and Dawson Mercer — and they had a great night as well. Meier got up to 33 points with his helpers, while Dowling played his best game at center of the season. Mercer, of course, was named first star for his two goals, as he potted his 11th and 12th goals of the season, bringing him to 23 points. At this rate, Dawson should have his third straight 20-goal season in his fourth in the NHL. And one of the biggest drivers off all this offense was Dougie Hamilton who got his second slap shot goal of the season before getting a second point on an assist, with another shot being deflected by Hischier. Dougie now has seven goals and 31 points — about on par with his career averages. However, if the power play continues to work through Dougie as they did tonight, I think he’ll start pushing towards the type of production he posted over the last two seasons. Working low to high can work wonders for creating space between the dots.

Your Thoughts

What did you think of tonight’s game? How pleased were you with the power play productivity? Are you worried about Markstrom? How did you feel about Allen’s night in goal? How did you feel at the end of the first period compared to the end of the game? Were you able to watch Lemaire’s ceremony? Leave your thoughts in the comments below, and thanks for reading.