Good morning Devils fans. The Devils took a resounding lead in the first last night and kept it, a rarity this season, to defeat the Minnesota Wild 5-3. Scoring was kicked off in the first by the gritty 4th line. Nathan Bastian led an effort to fight through Wild players along the board to shovel one for himself before being partially brought down. Resilient, he grabbed it around the back of the net and laced a pass to Alexander Holtz, his 3rd of the season. The defense and netminder Vitek Vanacek weathered returned aggression from the Wild offense. Devils would double their first period lead off of an upfront finishing goal from Mike Mcleod, set up by a strong entry and consistent passing by Jesper Bratt and Ondrej Palat, respectively. Vanacek and the defense held their own to finish out the period 2-0.
The 2nd saw more Devils action in the offensive zone. An early penalty on Marco Rossi led to a power play goal by Timo Meier, lobbed over by Jack Hughes. Kirill Kaprizov would go on to grab a power play of his own, following a Dougie Hamilton hooking call. Despite losing the chance for a shutout, Vanacek continued strong form and pressured Minnesota, including a skate kickaway on Ryan Hartman. A near tip-in almost earned the Devils a 4th goal but was stopped, wrapping up the period 3-1.
The final period of play can be defined as a back and forth affair, both on the score sheet and a shift-by-shift basis on the ice. While the defense to wrap the game up looked crisper than previous outings, Minnesota was able to grab a sloppy goal near the crease for Rossi. Another strong Devils power play led to a response, with a Luke Hughes-Tyler Toffoli back and forth pass led to a Bratt slap shot up close to grab the top shelf. While Jake Middleton would go on to cut the lead down once more, Hamilton would add on another goal on the man advantage, finishing up the game 5-3 for the Black and Red.
The defense may not have been perfect but it seemed to improve tonight, particularly on the transition and chance shut down. Vitek made some solid stops, especially up close, to boost him up to 5-2 record so far in the season. Now, I understand that Minnesota is struggling to get an above .500 record this season. This is a similar tale with tonight’s matchup vs. the Blues. However, you have to like the direction this group is taken compared to the first few games.
2. You Gotta Like the Stats So Far
This team may have issues, but there are some serious silver linings. Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt are currently 1st and 3rd in the NHL in points. Vitek Vanacek is in the top 5 for goalie wins. The Devils power play has a 10 point percentage lead on the next competitor and the 2nd best goals per game. This team still needs to clean it up with goals allowed per game, general defensive chops, and I would like to see the penalty kill improve as well. But I do believe we are moving in a positive direction.
3. A Beneficial Road Trip
The Devils take on the Blues, Blackhawks, and Avalanche before returning home to Newark to face the Caps 11/10. Besides the Avalanche, the Devils should hopefully be able to handle the struggling teams in St. Louis and Chicago. The Devils may struggle a bit tonight after playing the Wild game last night. However, if they come out strong like they did in Minnesota, expect a worthwhile result.
The Devils (6-2-1) continue their road trip as they take on St. Louis (3-4-1).
St. Louis Lines: https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/teams/st-louis-blues/line-combinations
Don’t expect too many changes to the Devils lines from last night, as far as I can see so far.
Puck drops 8 PM.
What are your thoughts? Predictions for tonight? What snags could we hit on the road.
New Jersey Devils Blogger • 
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