Rookie Jack Hughes recorded his first NHL point, and P.K. Subban scored his first goal with the New Jersey Devils as they secured their first victory of the season, defeating the New York Rangers 5-2 on Thursday night.
Kyle Palmieri and Miles Wood found the net in the second period, while the Devils snapped a six-game losing streak to start the season. Blake Coleman and Nikita Gusev also scored, and Matt Tennyson contributed two assists. Goalie Mackenzie Blackwood was solid, making 29 saves.
“We really needed that,” Blackwood said. “Everyone played their part, and we got the bounces we needed. It was a great team effort with huge blocks and sacrifices all around. You could feel the desperation in the group.”
The Devils, who entered the game struggling on both the power play and penalty kill, scored their first power-play goal of the season and held the Rangers to 0-for-6 on their power-play opportunities.
“The penalty kill was due,” said Devils coach John Hynes. “We made some adjustments, and the guys really dug in. That’s the type of penalty kill we need moving forward.”
Tony DeAngelo and Jesper Fast scored for the Rangers, who had only played three games in the first 14 days of the season. Alexandar Georgiev made 33 saves in the loss.
“I thought this was the most energetic and physical game we’ve played so far,” Rangers coach David Quinn said. “There were some positives, but we need to win hockey games at the end of the day.”
This game marked the first matchup between top draft picks Jack Hughes and Kaapo Kakko. Hughes, who centered the top line in place of the injured Nico Hischier, recorded his first NHL point with an assist on Wood’s goal. Kakko, who has one goal this season, was held scoreless.
After the Devils took a 3-1 lead heading into the third period, the Rangers pulled within one on a goal by Fast at 2:22. However, Gusev capitalized on a turnover by Artemi Panarin and scored on a breakaway with 7:39 left to restore the two-goal cushion. Subban added an empty-net goal in the final minute to seal the win.
Palmieri’s goal early in the second period, New Jersey’s first power-play goal of the season after 20 unsuccessful attempts, broke a 1-1 tie. Wood extended the lead to 3-1 by deflecting a shot from Tennyson past Georgiev.
The Rangers scored first with a goal by DeAngelo in the first period, but Coleman tied the game later in the period with a shot that slipped past Georgiev.
Game notes:
- Nico Hischier missed the game due to an upper-body injury and is considered day-to-day.
- The Devils have now won seven of their last nine home games against the Rangers.
- The teams will face off three more times this season: Nov. 30 at Prudential Center and Jan. 9 and March 7 at Madison Square Garden.
- The Rangers have now lost in regulation to the Devils for only the sixth time in their last 24 meetings, with a record of 14-6-4.
- The Rangers began a stretch of five games in eight days with this game.
UP NEXT:
- Rangers: Travel to Washington on Friday night for the second game of a back-to-back.
- Devils: Host the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday before a stretch of just two games in 12 days.
