Dawson Mercer and Max Willman scored in the first period, leading the New Jersey Devils to a 4-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday night.
Key Contributions
Curtis Lazar and Michael McLeod also found the net for the Devils, who have now won six of their last eight games. Vitek Vanecek made 32 saves, securing his sixth win in eight starts.
“We did not start well at all,” Lazar said. “We took it upon ourselves to say enough’s enough. We simplified our game. As the game went on, we generated more looks.”
Blackhawks’ Struggles
Taylor Hall and Ryan Donato scored for Chicago, which lost five of its last seven games. Arvid Soderblom made 36 saves in the effort.
Decisive Moments
Lazar tipped John Marino’s drive in the slot, with the puck eluding Soderblom to give the Devils a 3-2 lead at 4:35 of the third period.
“He’s my son’s favorite player,” Lazar said of Marino. “He’s going to be a happy camper.”
Donato brought the Blackhawks within one by scoring on his second rebound with 4:46 left. Vanecek made a crucial save on Philipp Kurashev with 1:12 remaining, and McLeod’s empty-netter in the final second secured the Devils’ victory.
“We started a little slow, but after that, we were all right,” Devils coach Lindy Ruff said. “We knew we would have to do the little things right.”
Game Highlights
Hall opened the scoring for Chicago 1:51 into the game, netting his second goal in two games after returning from injury. Hall scored by pounding home a rebound of Tyler Johnson’s shot.
Mercer tied the game with a power-play wrist shot past Soderblom’s glove side with 6:53 left in the first period, following a penalty on Chicago defenseman Connor Murphy. It was the Devils’ 18th power-play goal of the season in 11 games.
“We really stepped it up in the second and third period,” Mercer said. “And Vanecek really came up strong for us tonight.”
Willman called up from Utica of the AHL on Saturday, made it 2-1 on a breakaway after Chicago defenseman Kevin Korchinski lost the puck at the Devils’ blue line. Willman sped away and slid the puck between Soderblom’s legs with 5:19 left in the first period.
“Fatigue really showed in our game today, in decision making and overall sloppy play,” Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson said. “We got a little bit careless with the puck.”
Devils Overcome Injuries
The Devils managed to hold Chicago rookie Connor Bedard scoreless, stopping his goal-scoring streak at three games. New Jersey played without star centers Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier. Hughes was recovering from an upper-body injury sustained against St. Louis, and Hischier missed his fourth game after a hit from Buffalo’s Connor Clifton.
Upcoming Games
- Devils: At Colorado on Tuesday night.
- Blackhawks: At Tampa Bay on Thursday night.
