An inconsistent Devils team adds another loss to their record as the Tampa Bay Lightning stomped on New Jersey, 8-5, Tuesday night at Prudential Center in Newark.
The night started off well as Jack Hughes found the net first, giving the Devils a 1-0 lead. As usual lately, the lead did not last long as Tampa Bay’s Brayden Point batted the puck into the back of the net on the power play to tie up the game.
Timo Meier was able to convert and add another goal in the opening minute of the second period, giving the Devils the lead once again.
Almost halfway through the period, the ice completely tilted in favor of Tampa Bay. Five Lightning goals including a natural hat trick by Brandon Hagel ended any momentum the Devils once had. Some questionable calls by the refs definitely did not help the Devils play, but there is no excuse for five goals being scored on you in just above 10 minutes.
On a night where there are not many good things to say about the Devils, their fight is to be noted. The Devils came out in the third period and scored two goals early on to make the score 6-4. This gave the Devils a slight chance to get back into the game.
Ultimately, Tampa Bay got the best of the Devils as they added another power play goal and then a short handed goal from their own defensive zone that took a weird bounce off the glass.
Stefan Noesen was able to score one on the power play in the second half of the third period, but the Devils did not have enough in the tank to even tie the game.
Goaltender Jake Allen did not look like his calm self in net as he ended the game with a save percentage of .784%. The Devils goaltending throughout the past two games have looked shaky and just not good enough.
Despite the score being 8-5, the two teams were very close in total shots. The Devils had 35 while the Lightning had 37. Special teams were in favor of Tampa as their power play was 100% and their penalty kill was one for three.
The Devils looked tired and sluggish even though they were playing a team on the end of a back-to-back. They were beaten in battles, had defensive breakdowns and could not get a save when needed, a similar feeling to the 2022-23 New Jersey Devils.
In the past six periods of hockey, the Devils have allowed 14 goals but have also scored 10.
The excuse of a new head coach and a new system will soon wear off as the Devils are nine games into the season.
The Devils will look to reset and get back to their aggressive, fast paced style of play we saw in the opening games of the season on Thursday night against the Detroit Red Wings.
The Devils will be on the road, where they have been much more successful, with a record of 24-29-2 since the 2023-24 season. On home ice they are 19-21-6.
Will we see the Devils get back in the win column? Puck drop is at 7 p.m. ET Thursday night.
