Jesper Bratt recorded his second career hat trick. Stefan Noesen added two goals, and the New Jersey Devils cruised to a 6-2 win over the Florida Panthers on Thursday night, completing a two-game sweep of the Stanley Cup champions.
Jack Hughes contributed a goal and two assists for the Devils, who also topped the Panthers 4-1 on Tuesday. Jake Allen made 25 saves as New Jersey capitalized on three power-play goals and added a short-handed empty-netter. The Devils are now 7-2-0 in their last nine games.
Sam Reinhart leads the NHL with 13 goals this season, and Jesper Boqvist scored for the Panthers. Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 23 shots as Florida dropped consecutive games for the first time since Oct. 10 and 12.
Takeaways
Devils: New Jersey set a milestone as the first team this season to score twice in the final 12 seconds of periods, with power-play goals by Bratt (2 seconds left in the first) and Noesen (11 seconds left in the second). Their special teams continue to dominate, with two games featuring three power-play goals already this season, compared to just five such games over the previous six seasons combined.
Panthers: Florida welcomed Sam Bennett back after he missed Tuesday’s game with a minor upper-body injury. Bennett assisted on Boqvist’s goal, but the Panthers struggled to keep pace with the Devils’ potent power play and disciplined execution.
Key Moment
Florida entered the third period trailing 4-2 with a power-play opportunity, but their hopes were dashed when Carter Verhaeghe was called for tripping just 22 seconds into the period. The call was one of several that left the Panthers visibly frustrated throughout the night.
Key Stat
New Jersey’s power play has been lethal this season, with two three-goal games already. The team only achieved that feat five times in the past six seasons combined.
Up Next
- Devils: Travel to Tampa Bay on Saturday, looking to sweep all three Florida games this season. The Devils haven’t gone undefeated in the Sunshine State (excluding COVID-impacted seasons) since a 4-0-0 mark against Florida and Tampa Bay in 2000-01.
- Panthers: Host NHL-leading Winnipeg on Saturday as they aim to snap their two-game skid.
