Author: Scott Fairchild

Hockey writer for TXHT covering the New Jersey Devils & Seattle Kraken

Game Recap: New Jersey Devils vs New York Rangers 10/17/19

New Jersey Devils (1-4-2 4pts) vs New York Rangers (2-2-0 4pts)

 

Game Recap:

Tonight’s first matchup on the season renews the Hudson River rivalry between the New Jersey Devils and the New York Rangers. Each team features the top two draft picks in this years draft in number one overall pick and American born center man Jack Hughes (Devils), & Finnish winger Kappo Kakko (Rangers). However each team is on a different path early on in the season. The Rangers are off to a solid start with a 2-1-0 record while the Devils still remain winless. Unfortunately for the Devils, they are still having challenges with getting off to good starts to their games. The Rangers would score first as defenseman Tony D’Angelo would jump into the play and put a loose puck in of the net behind Devils goaltender MacKenzie Blackwood. New Jersey would respond at the 12:58 mark tie up the game on a goal from Devils winger Blake Coleman. Coleman took a snap shot coming down the right wing side that went by Rangers goalie Alexandar Georgiev. The Hudson River rivals would end the first period deadlocked at 1-1.

The start to the second period went very well for the Devils as they cashed in on an early power play opportunity to take the lead as Rangers defenseman Brady Skjei would be called for interference. Devils winger Kyle Palmieri would score the teams first power play goal of the season after previously going 0-20 on the man advantage. New Jersey would strike again later on as they would get a goal from winger Miles Wood as he deflected the puck behind the Rangers goalie off his backside. Devils number one overall pick and rookie Jack Hughes would get his first point in the National Hockey League as he would assist on the play as the puck deflected off of his stick and onto Miles Wood for the goal. After two periods, the Devils would take a 3-1 lead going into the third period.

The New York Rangers would pull within one goal early in the third period as Jesper Fast would backhand a shot into the back of the net to pull the Rangers within one goal. The Devils moments later thought they would be back up by two goals however, the goal was waived off due to goalie interference. New Jersey would challenge the play and the referees would disagree and the call on the ice would stand. The Devils would be assessed a minor penalty for delay of game as their coaches challenge would be deemed incorrect. However, the Devils would wind up going back up by two goals over the Rangers as Nikita Gusev would pick up the puck off of a turnover and fire the puck into the back of the net to add onto the Devils lead. In the final minutes, the Devils would seal the deal and finally get their first victory on the season as PK Subban would notch his first goal as a Devil by firing the puck into the back of the empty net as the Rangers had an extra attacker on the ice. The New Jersey Devils would win by a final score of 5-2 over the New York Rangers.

 

Lineups:

New Jersey Devils

 

New York Rangers

 

First Period Highlights

 

Second Period Highlights

 

Third Period Highlights

 

Final Stats:     NJ-5     NYR-2

Shots:              38          31

Hits:                18          11

PP:                  1/7         0/6

Faceoffs:     43.9%    56.1%

 

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OPINION: New Jersey Devils Assistant GM Tom Fitzgerald joining the bench

Yesterday morning, New Jersey Devils general manager Ray Shero announced his assistant general manager Tom Fitzgerald, will be joining the Devils on the bench as an assistant coach. Clearly the Devils have been having a rough start to their season so far as they haven’t won a game at all. The way I see it from this announcement, Tom Fitzgerald is being added to the coaching staff as a way to get a feel for what is going on in the locker room and on the bench with the players as well as the coaching staff. Fitzgerald brings a lot experience to the table as he played 17 years in the National Hockey League and won a Stanley Cup in 2009 with the Pittsburgh Penguins as their director of player development. Ray Shero is hoping Fitzgerald’s experience and fresh perspective will help give the jumpstart that the Devils so desperately need. Also, it’s a clear signal from management that if things don’t turn around very quickly that John Hynes will be fired.

From watching the games, Hynes seems to struggle with line management and game situational tactics. For example, Hynes is putting players in certain situations and at certain times of the game that don’t fit. Considering they’ve had a hard time with closing out games with a lead, he is not deploying his best defensive players that are best suited for those kinds of situations. Instead, he’s putting players out there that aren’t meant to be on the ice when the game is tight or close. Also, some of the line combinations I’ve been seeing haven’t been working or to be completely honest just don’t make very much sense. Some outsiders are pointing out that “you don’t forget how to coach” however, in this situation it appears like John Hynes has forgotten how to coach. The Devils power play in particular was supposed to improve greatly with the new additions yet it still ranks at the bottom of the league. They have yet to score on the power play. On the penalty kill the Devils are ranked dead last in the NHL with a 57.1 success rate which is obviously not very good at all. To me, this move seems like a Band-Aid type of move. I was never really much of a fan of the hiring of John Hynes and how his systems and coaching style works. It feels like the Devils are delaying the inevitable here. GM Ray Shero is hoping that one of his front office staff being around will help to fire up the players as well as the coaches and get them going on the right track. All I know is this, the Devils look like they’re going to get ready to move on from John Hynes very soon if things don’t turn around and quick. The Devils players and coaches need to start rolling off victories soon or this will become a lost season with Taylor Hall set to become a free agent. The Devils need to give Hall reasons to stay. If things don’t improve fast, there will be changes made.

Highlights from yesterday’s announcement:

 

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Game Recap- New Jersey Devils vs Florida Panthers 10/14/19

Game Recap

This afternoon on Columbus Day, the Devils welcome the Florida Panthers into town for an early matinee matchup. New Jersey is still searching for their first win on season. However, the Devils misfortunes still would remain the same. Florida would jump out to an early lead sixteen seconds into the first period as Jonathan Huberdeau would tally his first goal of the season. The Devils did manage to tie and retake the lead as they received goals from Taylor Hall and Jesper Bratt. New Jersey would take a 2-1 lead after the first period.

The Devils would strike twice early in the second period on goals from Will Butcher and Pavel Zacha giving the Dells a 4-1 lead. Noticeably missing on the bench in the second period for the Devils was first line center Nico Hischier. Hischier left the game due to an unknown injury and are currently waiting on further updates from the team. However, the Panthers would battle back and cut the lead to one goal as Brett Connolly would score twice. The Devils would take a 4-3 lead going into the final period.

Unfortunately for the Devils, the same tread of holding onto a lead would continue as they would give up three goals in the final period to give the Panthers a win by the final score of 6-4. Panthers goals would come from MacKenzie Weeger, Noel Accari, and Evgeni Dadonov on the Power Play.

 

Lineups:

New Jersey Devils

 

Florida Panthers

 

First Period Highlights

Second Period Highlights

 

Third Period Highlights

 

Final Stats    NJ-4         FLA-6

Shots:             21             34

Hits:               25             30

PP:                 0/3            1/5

Faceoffs:     51.9           48.1

 

Next Up:

New Jersey Devils vs New York Rangers 10/17/19 @ 7pm EST

Florida Panthers vs Colorado Avalanche 10/18/19 @ 7pm EST

 

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Game Recap: New Jersey Devils vs Boston Bruins

New Jersey Devils (0-3-2 2pts) vs Boston Bruins (4-1-0 9pts)

 

Game Recap

Tonight the New Jersey Devils go back on the road to take on the Boston Bruins. The Devils are still winless on the season and are hoping to turn their early misfortunes around and finally get in the win column. Unfortunately for the Devils, they’re still not getting the starts that they’re hoping for. Boston struck twice in the first as they got goals from Brad Marchand and Joakim Nordstrom. After the first period, the Bruins would take a 2-0 lead and start the second period with a power play on a late interference penalty called against the Devils.

The Devils started the second period on the Penalty Kill and were fortunate to kill the penalty off. However, it wasn’t enough as the Bruins towards the end of the period would cash in on the Power Play. Patrice Bergeron went to the front of the net and put the loose puck in the back of the net. Boston would take a 3-0 lead over New Jersey going into the third period.

Unfortunately for the Devils, they could still not get anything going offensively in the third period. The Bruins played shutdown hockey and kept the Devils from generating any sort of offense. Tukka Rask would make 31 saves as he and the Bruins would shutout the Devils by a final score of 3-0.

 

Lineups

New Jersey Devils

Boston Bruins

 

First Period Highlights

 

Second Period Highlights

 

Third Period Highlights

 

Finals Stats      NJ-0       BOS-3

Shots:                31             32

Hits:                  11             23

PP:                   0/4            1/3

Faceoffs:        46%          54%

 

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Game Recap: New Jersey Devils vs Edmonton Oilers 10/10/19

New Jersey Devils (0-3-2 2pts) vs Edmonton Oilers (4-0-0 8pts)

 

Game Recap:

The New Jersey Devils are still searching for their first win of the season as they take on the Edmonton Oilers tonight. Kyle Palmieri would give the Devils an early lead. Palmieri skated into the offensive zone on a 2 on 1 and lifted his shot into the back of the net. However, the lead would not last long as Leon Draisatl of the Oilers scored his second goal of the season. After the first period, the score would be tied 1-1.

In the second period, New Jersey would regain the lead as Nikita Gusev would fire the puck from the right circle behind Oilers goalie Miko Kostkinen. James Neal would add his league leading 7th goal of the season to tie the game up for the Oilers 2-2 at the 19:32 mark.

Devils defenseman Damon Severson would give his team the lead back at the 15:35 on a beautiful feed from winger Taylor Hall. The Devils could not keep the lead unfortunately. Connor McDavid would score the game tying goal on the power play with the Oilers goalie pulled to give the Oilers an extra attacker. McDavid’s goal had to be reviewed as the referees had blown the whistle as they lost sight of the puck. It was determined, the puck was going in motion before the referees blew the whistle and it was a good goal. This game would go into overtime.

The Oilers and Devils would remain scoreless after overtime which would mean the game would be decided in the shoot out. The shootout would be scoreless until Leon Draisatl scored the game winner for the Oilers as the sixth and final shooter. Edmonton would win the game 4-3 in a shootout.

 

Lineups

New Jersey Devils

Edmonton Oilers

 

First Period Highlights

 

Second Period Highlights

 

Third Period Highlights

Overtime/Shootout Highlights

 

Final Stats     NJ-3        EDM-4

Shots:             31              22

Hits:               31              26

PP:                 0/2             2/3

Face-offs:    52.8%       47.2%

 

Next Up:

New Jersey Devils @ Boston Bruins 10/12/19 @ 7pm EST

Edmonton Oilers @ New York Rangers 10/12/19 @ 1pm EST

 

 

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Game Recap: New Jersey Devils v.s Philadelphia Flyers 10/9/19

New Jersey Devils (0-2-1 1pts) vs Philadelphia Flyers (2-0-0 4pts)

 

Game Recap:

After two tough losses to start the young NHL season, The New Jersey Devils look to get their first win of the season against the Philadelphia Flyers on the road. Tonight former Flyers winger & current Devil Wayne Simmonds returned to visit “the city of brotherly love” for the first time since he was traded at the trade deadline to the Nashville Predators. The first period left a lot to be desired in the scoring department, however, both Cory Schneider and Carter Hart each made some very impressive saves respectively for their teams. At the end of the first period, the Devils and Flyers would remain scoreless.

In the second period, the Flyers would get on the scoreboard first as defenseman Ivan Provorov would blast a shot pas Devils goaltender Cory Schneider to give his team the lead. New Jersey would have a chance later in the period to tie the game on a five on three power-play but they were unable to convert on the man advantage. The end of the period saw the Flyers maintain their 1-0 lead over the Devils.

The third period saw the Flyers score twice within the very first minute as they got goals from Kevin Hayes on the power play (his first as a Flyer) and Sean Couturier. Travis Konecny added another goal for the Flyers to give Philadelphia a 4-0 advantage and give his team the victory over the Devils.

 

Lines:

New Jersey Devils

Philadelphia Flyers

 

1st Period Highlights

 

2nd Period Highlights

 

3rd Period Highlights

 

Final Stats    NJ-0      PHI-4

Shots              25           34

Hits                24           19

PP:                 0/5          2/4

Faceoffs:     41.4        58.6

 

Next Up:

New Jersey Devils vs Edmonton Oilers 10/10/19 @ 7pm EST

Philadelphia Flyers @ Vancouver Canucks 10/12/10 @ 10pm EST

 

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Game Recap: New Jersey Devils @ Buffalo Sabres 10/5/19

New Jersey Devils (0-1-1) vs Buffalo Sabres (2-0-0)

Game Recap:

The New Jersey Devils are back in action tonight and are looking to rebound against the Buffalo Sabres on the road. The Devils suffered a crushing loss to the Winnipeg Jets in their home opener in overtime the night before. Unfortunately for the Devils, they did not get off to the right start that they were hoping for in the first period. Buffalo would score twice on the power play from Victor Olofsson and their captain Jack Eichel. At the end of the first period, the Sabres would take a 2-0 lead.

In the second period, the Devils were able to get their first goal of the game on a beautiful passing sequence from Taylor Hall and Nico Hischier to Kyle Palmieri, who buried the puck in the back of the net. However, the Sabres would maintain their dominance over the Devils as they scored three more times. Goals by the Sabres came from Kyle Okposo, Jeff Skinner, and Victor Olofson (his 2nd of the game). After two periods, the Sabres would take a commanding lead of 5-1 going into the final period.

New Jersey would score one final goal in the third period as Travis Zajac scored his first goal of the season. However, it wouldn’t matter as Sam Reinhart would tack on his first two goals of the season to seal the victory for the Sabres. Buffalo would go on to win by a final score of 7-2.

 

Lineups:

New Jersey Devils

 

 

 

 

 

 

Buffalo Sabres

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1st Period Highlights:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2nd Period Highlights:

 

3rd Period Highlights:

 

Final Stats:    NJ-2        BUF-7

Shots:             20            36

Hits:               11             14

PP:                  0/2           3/4

Faceoffs:      51.0          49.0

 

Next Up:

New Jersey Devils @ Philadelphia Flyers 10/9/19 @ 7pm EST

Buffalo Sabres @ Columbus Blue Jackets 10/7/19 7pm EST

Game Recap: New Jersey Devils v.s Winnipeg Jets 10/4/19 (NJD Home Opener)

Game Recap:

Tonight the New Jersey Devils opened up their season at home against the Winnipeg Jets. The first two periods saw the Devils come out and take a commanding 4-0 lead over the Jets. Goal scorers featured Nikita Gusev (who scored his 1st NHL goal), Sami Vatanen, and Blake Coleman who scored twice. Coleman’s second goal of the season is an early goal of the year candidate as he was down on the ice and lifted the puck with one hand on the stick and into the back of the net for a sensational highlight reel goal.

In the second period, the Winnipeg Jets would score their first goal at the 19:49 mark as Dmitry Kulikov would blast a shot from the point past Devils goaltender Cory Schneider. The Devils would lead 4-1 after the second period.

However, things started to turn around and change in the third. Devils goaltender Cory Schneider would leave the game due to injury and backup MacKenzie Blackwood would enter the game. The Jets were able to fight their way back in the third to tie the game on goals from Jack Roslovic, Matthieu Perrault, and newly acquired Neal Pionk. At the end of three periods, the scored would be tied 4-4 going into overtime.

The first two minutes of overtime was extremely exciting as both teams would exchange several two on one chances to put the game away for either side. However, the game would be decided in a shoot out where the Jets got the game winning shootout goal by their captain Blake Wheeler. The Jets would go onto win the game with the final score being 5-4.

 

Lineups:

New Jersey Devils

 

Winnipeg Jets

 

1st Period Highlights

 

2nd Period Highlights

 

3rd Period Highlights

 

Overtime/Shootout

 

Final Stats:    NJ-4            WPG-5

Shots:             39                30

Hits:               21                13

PP:                 0/2               0/2

Face offs:     50.9             49.1

 

Next Up:

NJ Devils @ BUF Sabres 10/5/19 7pm EST

WPG Jets @ NY Islanders 10/6/19 7pm EST

 

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Game Preview: New Jersey Devils v.s Winnipeg Jets 8/4/19 (Devils Home Opener)

Welcome back hockey fans to another amazing season in the NHL! Tonight we have the New Jersey Devils hosting their home & season opener against the Winnipeg Jets. The Devils are looking to show off their brand new acquisitions that were acquired in the off-season to help boost their lineup and compete for a spot in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Offseason. acquisitions feature P.K Subban, Nikita Gusev & in particular the number one overall pick in this years NHL Entry Draft in Jack Hughes. Tonight, Hughes is making his NHL debut & is looking to show off the amazing potential talents and skills he has and show why he is an up and coming superstar in the National Hockey League. Also, the Devils are also getting a huge addition back into their lineup with Taylor Hall back to being healthy as he missed the second half of last season with a knee injury. The Devils are hoping he returns to his form of two years ago when he helped lead the Devils to the playoffs and posting a 93 point season which resulted in him winning the Hart Trophy (league MVP). If all falls into place, the Devils have the potential to be a playoff team. We shall see!

Winnipeg is a different story compared to the Devils. The Winnipeg Jets are coming off another post season exit and had a very interesting and dramatic off-season. There was a lot of drama during the off-season about re-signing their top two restricted free agent in Kyle Connor and Patrik Laine. Both restricted free agents re-signed with the Jets this past week. Kyle Connor re-signed with the Jets on a 7 year $50 million dollar contract. Patrik Laine agreed to re-sign on a 2 year 13.5 million dollar deal. Now without the contract situation being a distraction, the Jets are hoping to keep building off their postseason appearances and go deeper into the Stanley Cup playoffs. They also had some big losses in particular on the defensive side. Winnipeg on paper seems like they’ll take a step back but then again, anything can happen!

Game Prediction:

NJ- 4

WPG- 2

Devils:

Taylor Hall (2 goals) Jack Hughes (1g 1a), Nikita Gusev (2 assists, Blake Coleman ( 1 goal)

Cory Schneider (27 Saves)

Jets:

Mark Scheifle ( 1g 1a) Bryan Little (1 goal)

Connor Hellebyck (32 Saves)

2019-2020 New Jersey Devils Training Camp Preview

Hello ladies & gents, my name is Scott Fairchild and I will be providing hockey coverage for TXHT as I follow the New Jersey Devils this season! Last season I did game recaps for another favorite team of mine (Washington Capitals) & playoff coverage following the Colorado Avalanche. Here’s a little bit of background info on me. I am a native New Jerseyan (Butler) & grew up as a big Devils fan growing up in North Jersey. I have countless memories of the three Stanley Cup championships that were won (1995,2000, & 2003). I was fortunate getting to watch great players such as Marty Brodeur, Scott Niedermeyer, Patrik Elias, ,Ken Daneyko, & my all time favorite Devil Scott Stevens. Those Stanley Cups were a long time ago and it’s time to build another contender in the present. Anyway, I will be taking a look at the Devils as training camp has just begun. First, let’s take a look at what transpired during off-season

 

Offseason Moves

Well, to say the Devils had a good offseason would be a HUGE understatement. They had the BEST offseason out of any team in the National Hockey League in my opinion. The Devils really made big moves to help improve their team and putting them on a path to being Stanley Cup contenders.

 

Let’s start with the 2019 NHL Entry Draft:

Draft Moves

First, they had the number one overall pick and selected arguably the best player in the draft in Jack Hughes. He has the potential to be an elite number one center that has the abilities to change the game both offensively and defensively. Hughes potentially could win the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s top rookie as long as the coaching staff put him in a position to succeed & build chemistry with teammates. While Hughes is the headlining move at the draft, the Devils had 12 overall draft picks as they moved back in the draft order at times to gain more prospects. The Devils did a great job here in restocking their farm system.

 

Trades/Free Agency

After the draft, the New Jersey Devils did not stand pat and were highly aggressive in their pursuit to vastly improve the team. On day 2 of the NHL draft, the Devils traded prospects Steven Santini/Jeremy Davies & draft picks for former Norris Trophy winner & elite defenseman PK Subban. The Devils are hoping he shores up the defense and will help to improve the Devils offense, especially on the power play which struggled mightily. Also via trade, the Devils acquired a very intriguing Nikita Gusev from the Vegas Golden Knights. Gusev is considered to be one of the best players who has not played in an NHL game yet. He was a big scoring star in the KHL and the Devils are hoping he can provide the same offensive flair he showed while playing over in Russia. The Devils also acquired forward John Hayden from the Chicago Blackhawks. They are hoping through more playing time he will capitalize on the potential they think he has and what the Hawks used to think he had.

In Free Agency, the Devils went out and acquired veteran winger Wayne Simmonds. Simmonds is being counted on to provide a veteran presence and a net front presence while providing a scoring touch for the Devils.

 

Training Camp Battles

As fun as it is talking about Jack Hughes, there are some other intriguing story lines in training Camp that are just as intriguing as he is. We all know Hughes is going to make it onto the roster but let’s take a look at some other potential training camp battles. Two Devils rookies have a big chance to make it this year and crack this years opening night roster. One of them being defenseman Ty Smith. Smith was the Devils 17th overall pick in the 2018 draft out of the Western Hockey League. He almost made the opening night roster last year before being returned back to the WHL for some more development. He is considered to be the best defensive prospect the Devils have had in a long time. He had 69 points in 57 games which definitely opens up your eyes to the potential this kid has as a two-way defenseman that can certainly provide offense. Another potential Scott Niedermeyer? Maybe, who knows? Smith went onto win CHL Defenseman of the Year award. It’ll be interesting to see if you can crack the lineup this year.

On the forward side, Devils 2017 2nd round pick from Sweden Jesper Boqvist has a great chance to nab a spot in training camp in the bottom six forward groups. Boqvist has shown while playing in Sweden why the scouts liked him as he played for Byrnas IF in the SHL. On tape, he shown that he has explosive offensive abilities and potentially can play anywhere in the lineup. His ability to crack the lineup is going to depend on where the Devils envision him and getting the best out of this young forward.

 

Taylor Hall

Another intriguing training camp highlight is going to be the return of superstar left winger Taylor Hall. Hall is coming off a left knee injury which kept him from playing the second half of last season as the Devils went downhill along with Taylor Hall (amongst other injuries). However, Hall is healthy and is hoping to return to his Hart Trophy form of two season ago when he produced 93 points which helped propelled the Devils into the Stanley Cup playoffs. Taylor Hall is a valuable asset to this team and they’re counting on him to produce offense which they were sorely lacking without him in the lineup towards the end of last year. However, Hall is entering the final year of his contract and the Devils are hopeful they will be able to convince him to stick around especially with the offseason moves they made to show him how serious they are about winning and taking the steps necessary to win a Stanley Cup.

 

Potential Opening Night Lineup:

Forwards:

LW- Taylor Hall C-Nico Hischier RW- Kyle Palmieri

LW- Nikita Gusev C- Jack Hughes RW- Jesper Bratt

LW- Blake Coleman. C- Travis Zajac. RW- Wayne Simmonds

LW- Miles Wood. C- Pavel Zacha. RW- Jesper Boqvist

 

Defense:

Will Butcher- P.K. Subban

Andy Greene- Damon Severson

Ty Smith- Sami Vatanen/Connor Carrick

 

Goaltenders:

Cory Schneider

MacKenzie Blackwood

 

Overall Outlook

  • All I know is this, the New Jersey Devils have a very bright future ahead of them as they brought in very good additions through trades/Free Agency and restocking their minor-league system through the draft. It also helps by having the number one overall draft pick and selecting a generational talent such as Jack Hughes as well! There’s a lot to be excited for being a fan of Jerseys team! It would not surprise me if the Devils qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs. However, they are not ready yet to win the Stanley Cup. Concerns such as goaltending & keeping players on the roster healthy are the only things that are holding this team back! With what has transpired this off-season certainly does give hope that the New Jersey Devils could win another cup in the very near future!