Tyler Toffoli scored 2:35 into overtime to complete his second hat trick of the season, leading the New Jersey Devils to a 6-5 comeback victory over the Vegas Golden Knights on Monday night.
Curtis Lazar scored twice, and Nico Hischier also found the net for the Devils, who had lost three of their last four games. Simon Nemec and Nathan Bastian each contributed two assists, while Vitek Vanecek made 28 saves.
“I told Toff before sending him out in overtime, ‘go out and finish this thing.’ And he did,” said Devils coach Lindy Ruff, referring to Toffoli, who leads the team with 20 goals. “He’s a good listener.”
Jonathan Marchessault scored twice, and Nicolas Roy had a goal and two assists for the defending Stanley Cup champions. Pavel Dorofeyev and Chandler Stephenson also scored for the Golden Knights, with Logan Thompson making 32 saves.
“We basically played a beer league game out there tonight,” said Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy. “We thought it was preseason, I guess. We didn’t defend our structure or principles at all. The plays we made were disrespectful to the game … Poor execution and poor attention to detail.”
The Devils trailed 5-3 late in the second period before Toffoli scored with 16 seconds remaining, and Lazar netted his second of the night at 9:14 of the third to tie the game.
“You’ve got to give the guys credit. We dug in and found a way to win,” Ruff added. “Every guy in that room has to feel good about what happened in the third period and overtime.”
Toffoli secured the win midway through the extra period, completing his sixth career hat trick. The 31-year-old forward, playing his first season with the Devils, scored three times on Oct. 24 at Montreal. Luke Hughes assisted on the winning goal.
“We knew we needed to be desperate, and we found a way against the Stanley Cup champions,” Toffoli said. “We’re trying to build momentum heading into the break.”
The Devils have games at Carolina and Tampa Bay before the All-Star break.
With New Jersey leading 3-1 midway through the second period, Marchessault scored two goals in a span of 2:21 before Stephenson scored at 10:48 to put Vegas ahead. Roy made it 5-3 late in the middle period.
Dorofeyev scored with his seventh goal at 6:12 of the first period.
Hischier tied it off a pass from Timo Meier with 4:38 left in the first period. Jesper Bratt also assisted on Hischier’s 13th goal for his team-leading 31st assist.
Lazar put New Jersey ahead with his fifth goal 22 seconds before the period ended, and Toffoli extended the lead to 3-1 at 1:37 of the second.
Marchessault responded with goals at 7:39 and 10:00 of the second period, tying the game with his team-leading 22nd of the season. His goals were the fastest pair of his seven-year career with Vegas.
Stephenson then put Vegas ahead with his eighth goal 48 seconds later, and Roy scored his eighth with 52 seconds left in the period to push the lead to 5-3.
But the Devils rallied from the deficit to secure a significant win.
“We’re dangerous when we stick to our game plan,” Lazar said. “Everyone feels better after a win like that.”
The Devils continued to play without injured top forwards Jack Hughes — who missed his eighth straight game — and Ondrej Palat, out for his 10th consecutive game.
UP NEXT
- Golden Knights: Visit the New York Islanders on Tuesday night.
- Devils: Visit Carolina on Thursday night.
