With one game left in the regular season, the New Jersey Devils have secured home-ice advantage for the first round of the NHL playoffs, though their opponent remains unknown.
Tomas Tatar scored twice and added an assist, helping the Devils secure a 6-2 victory over the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday night. The victory ended Buffalo’s postseason hopes.
The Devils trail the first-place Carolina Hurricanes by one point in the Metropolitan Division. If the Devils finish second, they’ll face the New York Rangers in the first round. A division win would pit them against the Eastern Conference’s seventh seed, which is yet to be determined.
“If you asked me at the start of the year, I probably wouldn’t have guessed this,” said Jack Hughes, who scored a late empty-net goal for his 97th point, setting a new franchise single-season record. “I was just hoping to play meaningful hockey games down the stretch. Personally, we far exceeded my expectations.”
Jesper Boqvist, Jonas Siegenthaler, and Miles Wood scored as the Devils matched their franchise record with 51 wins. Vitek Vanecek made 36 saves, handing Buffalo just its second regulation loss (7-2-1) in 10 games.
The Devils now have 110 points, a significant improvement from last season’s 63 points. This 47-point turnaround ties the record held by Colorado (2017-18) and Pittsburgh (2006-07) for the largest improvement in NHL history.
Devils coach Lindy Ruff credited the turnaround to better defense and increased focus.
“We found many different ways to win games, even when we were down by one or two goals,” Ruff said. “Quick turnarounds in games helped keep some streaks alive, so there were many different factors.”
Jeff Skinner and Mattias Samuelsson scored for the Sabres, whose late-season surge wasn’t enough to secure their first playoff berth since 2011. The 12-year drought is currently the longest in the NHL. Emerging 21-year-old star Devon Levi made 24 saves in the loss, his second in six starts.
Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin expressed the team’s disappointment.
“Honestly, it feels pretty empty,” he said. “I didn’t expect to feel this way. But the boys fought hard, and now we know what we can do. We just started playing well a little too late.”
The game also marked the NHL debut of defenseman Luke Hughes, the younger brother of star center Jack Hughes. The No. 4 overall pick in the 2021 NHL draft signed with the Devils last weekend after his season at Michigan ended in the Final Four.
New Jersey led throughout the game, starting with a 1-0 lead after the first period and extending it to 3-1 after the second.
Boqvist opened the scoring in the first period with a shot from the left circle that deflected off Buffalo defenseman Henri Jokiharju’s skate. Siegenthaler scored early in the second period on a counterattack, assisted by Nico Hischier.
After Skinner cut the lead in half with his 34th goal of the season, assisted by Casey Mittelstadt, Wood ended a 14-game goal drought by scoring on a rebound. Tatar extended the lead to 4-1 in the third period. Samuelsson scored his second-season goal with 6:45 to play, but Tatar and Jack Hughes each added empty-net goals to seal the victory.
Luke Hughes had limited ice time, skating 13 shifts for 11:15. He was minus 1 and did not register a shot on goal.
“It lived up to expectations, and winning was a big bonus,” Luke Hughes said. “It was a really cool day, and it was great to be out there.”
The Devils/Rockies franchise has previously had two sets of brothers play for the team: Patrik and Peter Sundstrom in 1989-90 and Bob and Paul Miller for Colorado in 1981-82.
Game Notes
- Patrik Elias held the previous Devils franchise record of 96 points, set in 2000-01.
- Devils center Michael McLeod did not dress for the first time this season.
- New Jersey has four players who have played in every game: Tatar, Dawson Mercer, Dougie Hamilton, and Jesper Bratt.
- Mittelstadt has points in four straight games for Buffalo.
UP NEXT
- Sabres: Return home to face Ottawa on Thursday night.
- Devils: Finish the regular season at Washington on Thursday night.
