Devils Shut Out the Rangers 4-0 in the Season Series Finale

It wasn’t always pretty, but the result certainly was. The Devils delivered a significant blow to the Rangers’ playoff position in a four-to-nothing victory.

The New Jersey Devils entered Saturday’s game eight points ahead of the New York Rangers for the third playoff spot in the Metropolitan Division. The Rangers trailed the Canadiens by two points for the second wildcard position and are only two points ahead of the Blue Jackets. New Jersey had four days off following their win over the Wild and did not want to help Our Hated Rivals in any possible way, let alone allow them to return across the Hudson with a win.

First Period

The Devils started the first period with most of the offensive zone pressure. New Jersey forechecked well, won races to loose pucks, and kept the pressure on the Rangers. One of the Devils’ best chances was a snapshot from the slot by Stefan Noesen after he picked a Ranger pocket. Noesen’s shot was wired, but Igor Shesterkin blockered it away. The Devils kept applying pressure and getting odd-man rushes. New Jersey didn’t allow a shot until just before the midway point of the first frame. Timo Meier and Jesper Bratt tallied a couple of good shots with under ten minutes remaining. Still, nobody broke the ice in terms of scoring.

The Rangers finally managed a shift with sustained offensive zone pressure with just under eight minutes remaining. New York dominated play for about the next four minutes. Within that time, Alexis Lafreniere walked right down the center of the ice and unleashed a hard wrist shot on the net following a giveaway by Luke Hughes in the defensive zone. Jacob Markstrom made an excellent blocker save of his own. Markstrom answered the Rangers’ flurry and made another strong save on Mika Zibanejad about two minutes later. The only shaky moment for Markstrom was a stickhandling giveaway behind his net after miscommunication with Brenden Dillon. Otherwise, Markstrom played very well.

With about three minutes remaining in the period, New Jersey recovered some of their composure, notably the duo of Nico Hischier and Jesper Bratt, who were threatening all period long. Their strong play continued for the remainder of the game, but more on that in a minute. With about a minute left, Bratt and Hischier had a give-and-go along the goal line in the offensive zone, resulting in a Hischier shot that appeared to ricochet off Shesterkin or the pipe and careened out of play.

Despite the offensive zone time and pressure, the Devils didn’t have anything to show for it when the period ended, as neither team scored. Per Natural Stat Trick, the Devils outshot the Rangers seven to four. New Jersey tallied three high-danger scoring chances to New York’s two. Going into the first intermission with the score 0-0 felt like another wasted opportunity.

Second Period

The fireworks started in the second frame, but it did not look like they would go the Devils way early. Unlike the first period, the Rangers had all the offensive pressure in the first half of the second, and Markstrom kept the Devils in the game. New Jersey had trouble breaking the puck out of the defensive zone under the onslaught of a renewed New York forecheck. According to the ABC broadcast, the Rangers had more offensive zone time in the first ten minutes of the second period than during the entire first period.

Within the first minute, Markstrom stood tall and made a crucial save on a Will Cuylle tip-in chance in tight. Just over five minutes into the period, Justin Dowling took a high sticking penalty as he lost his balance in the corner. Markstrom made a variety of pad saves on the penalty kill, none better than a sliding pad save to shut down Zibanejad on the doorstep. In a sign of things to come, Bratt had a shorthanded breakaway where he tried to slip the puck through the five-hole on Shesterkin, but the Ranger goalie made the stop. New Jersey successfully killed the penalty.

Around the halfway mark of the frame, a positive shift by Hischier’s line seemed to kickstart the Devils offensively. With just over nine minutes remaining, Sam Carrick was called for interference, and the Devils wasted no time. Hischier won the next faceoff, and Luke Hughes put the puck on a tee for a Timo Meier one-timed bomb past Shesterkin! 1-0 Devils!!!!

Less than a minute later, Dawson Mercer was called for tripping. A scrum ensued after the whistle for the penalty. Timo Meier and Vicent Trochek were assessed additional penalties for their actions during the melee. After all those penalties were sorted out, the Rangers won the next faceoff. Brenden Dillon blocked a shot by Artemi Panarin. Dillon didn’t stop there. As play continued, Dillon fought off two Rangers in the corner to make an outstanding breakout pass to Jesper Bratt, sending him on a two-on-one with Nico Hischier. Bratt let Hischier carry the puck into the Ranger zone, but Hischier returned the favor, sending it back to Bratt for a net-front tap-in shorthanded goal. 2-0 Devils!!

The Devils killed the remainder of the penalty. They even added another two-on-one opportunity for Erik Haula and Dawson Mercer as the penalty expired. The Devils allowed four more shots from the Rangers in the final six minutes, but New Jersey definitely picked up their play with the momentum shift. When the final whistle blew, New Jersey led 2-0.

Except for the scoreboard, it was an ugly period for the Devils. According to Natural Stat Trick, New Jersey was outshot 11 to five, allowing SEVEN high-danger scoring chances. The Devils were expected to allow 1.81 goals in the period, but Markstrom had other ideas. The difference was Markstrom’s performance and the Devils being opportunistic, capitalizing on two of their scoring chances.

Third Period

Entering the third period, I did not want to see a Devils team content with a two-goal lead and happy to play a possession game, simply dumping pucks into the offensive zone instead of pushing for more. Unfortunately, that is exactly how New Jersey started the period. The Rangers needed to make a push, and they did so to open the frame. JT Miller sent a long snapshot on net within the first three minutes. A few minutes later, Gabe Perreault sent a hard shot from the left circle at Markstrom, who pinned the puck within his pads.

Just over six minutes into the third, Will Borgen was called for a hook, providing the Devils with a massive opportunity on the power play. Except for one chance for Meier on the doorstep, the Devils struggled with zone entries and did not get a shot on net with the man advantage. While on the man advantage, Markstrom made yet another crucial save on a shorthanded shot by Chris Kreider. As per the ABC broadcast, with over 13 minutes expired, the Devils only recorded one shot on net.

With five minutes remaining in the period, Seamus Casey showed off his offensive potential, sending a gorgeous pass from the right point to Meier at the left side of the net. Meier redirected the puck on the net, and the puck barely crept across the goal line behind Shesterkin! 3-0 Devils!!!

The Rangers continued to pepper Markstrom at the other end. Less than a minute later, Cuylle had another Grade-A chance, jamming away at the side of the Devils’ net, but Markstrom made another brilliant save. New Jersey answered Cuylle’s scoring opportunity when the Rangers pulled their net with around four minutes to play. Jesper Bratt controlled the puck into the offensive zone and made a move on two Rangers defenders but could not get the puck past Trochek at the goal line. Fortunately, the puck bounced right to Hischier, who ripped it home! 4-0 Devils!!!!

The Rangers did not muster much energy or offense in the final three and a half minutes of play. Time expired, and the Devils shut out the Rangers with a final score of 4-0.

The third was another shaky period, statistically, according to Natural Stat Trick. New York outshot New Jersey 11 to four. The Rangers accumulated four high-danger scoring chances to the Devils two. New Jersey was expected to allow 1.43 goals in the third, but again, Markstrom stopped everything in an enormous victory! A win is a win.

Game Stats: NHL.com Recap, NHL.com Game Summary, NHL.com Event Summary, NHL.com Full Play-by-Play, NHL.com Shot Report, Natural Stat Trick Game Stats

Takeaways

Another Shutout for Marky

Jacob Markstrom shut out the New York Rangers for the second time this season, and Marky had a fantastic game. Markstrom stopped 3.66 goals above expected and saved all six high-danger shots from the Rangers. The New Jersey goalie has now won his last four starts, allowing two goals or less in the previous three. It is an excellent time for Markstrom to be rounding into top form after returning from injury. The Devils will need him to play this way from here on out.

Special Team Advantage

Per NHL.com, the Rangers have the 27th-ranked power play in the NHL, whereas the Devils are ranked 4th (as of Saturday afternoon). The Devils also have the 4th best penalty kill in the league. The special teams play in this game was reflective of those rankings. New Jersey scored seconds into their first power play, and New York could not convert on either of their opportunities. To make matters worse for the Rangers, they allowed a gigantic shorthanded goal in the second period to go down 2-0.

Stars Came to Play for the Devils

Timo Meier scored twice, continuing his hot offensive play from March. Jesper Bratt had a shorthanded goal and a franchise-leading 67th assist. Nico Hischier had a goal and two helpers. Jacob Markstrom, as already stated, had an excellent game. Hischier’s line with Bratt recorded a Corsi percentage of 56.25, while Meier’s line posted a Corsi percentage of 55.00. All the top performers for the Devils put their stamp on this game.

Who Will be the Sixth Defenseman?

One negative takeaway could be Seamus Casey’s game. During the latter two periods, Casey struggled to break the puck out of the defensive zone under the improved forecheck of the Rangers. In his defense, he was not the only one. Although Casey did make an outstanding pass to Meier for a goal, he did not record a shot and allowed six shots while on the ice, as per Natural Stat Trick. Simon Nemec did not run away with the sixth defenseman spot during the playing time he was given, and Casey certainly didn’t today. I’d like to see Casey get a couple more games to see if he can improve upon this performance, but that sixth defenseman selection remains a big question mark down the home stretch.

Up Next

The Devils will face the Boston Bruins at home on Tuesday at 7:00 PM ET.

Your Thoughts

Who do you think wins that sixth defenseman spot? What did you think of Jacob Markstrom’s game today? Can the Devils’ special teams continue to play this well? I hope so, but let us know in the comments section below. Thank you for reading, and GO DEVILS!!!