On Saturday morning, the New Jersey Devils took on the Buffalo Sabres in the second game of the 2024 NHL Global Series in Czechia, Prague, at the O2 Arena. New Jersey came into the game with momentum and pride after Friday’s win, hoping to sweep the Sabres to give themselves four points to start the season and give them a head start. They did that, having an exciting and energetic game ending in a 3-1 Devils victory.
This game was special for the Devils as Slovakian defenseman Simon Nemec was close to home for the game. His grandparents attended this game as they could not travel to New Jersey to see him play there. Saturday would also be another special game for Ondrej Palat, but he was unfortunately out due to personal reasons for the birth of his second child. However, Devils’ alumni Patrik Elias was again in attendance as a spectator. He joined the current team in the locker room and gave a speech that lit a fire in the players. Elias also did the ceremonial puck drop.
New Jersey started the first period by playing at a fast pace as the offense immediately began taking shots on Devon Levi, who was in net for the Sabres. New Jersey’s defense would also be more effective in the offensive zone as they were more on edge and physical. Even with the physicality and impressive offense, the Devils still seemed to have some scary turnovers that would lead to some scoring chances for Buffalo, but Jake Allen Kept them out.
Halfway into the first period, Devils’ defenseman Brendan Dillon laid a hard hit on Sabres forward JJ Peterka, causing a brawl between Dillon and Alex Tuch. Peterka was sent to the locker, and he would not return to the game.
The Devils continued to pepper shots at Levi and cut the number of turnovers to slowly become the more dominant team of the period. But at the end of the period, both teams left the ice with no goals, sending them into the second period with the stakes still high to cut the seal and grab the game’s first goal.
Going into the second period, the Devils hoped to find their footing completely. New Jersey would start the second period continuing to dominate the Sabres, and they would also tighten up their defense to get onto the board first. Devils’ head coach Sheldon Keefe put Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt in front of Devon Levi to play on a 2-on-1. However, poor rebound control on the Devils’ end allowed the Sabres to capitalize. Tage Thompson was able to sneak one in past Jake Allen, assisted by Jordan Greenway and Alex Tuch, to put the Sabres up 1-0.
This would be a quick disappointment for New Jersey before they acquired a power play. Seamus Casey cashed in with a beautiful setup and scored his first NHL goal with Erik Haula and Stefan Noesen to tie the game at 1-1. This goal would seemingly boost the Devils for the rest of the period as New Jersey put pressure on the Sabres. Nevertheless, Devon Levi kept the score at 1-1 until the end of the period.
Coming out onto the ice for the third period, New Jersey had high expectations for themselves to continue applying pressure on the Sabres and to end the game with a winning score for them. The energy the Devils held during the second period transferred perfectly into the third as New Jersey wasted no time in continuing to give themselves a way to score. Six minutes into the period, Jack Hughes passed the puck to Jesper Bratt, who would then give Timo Meier an open shot, which he took advantage of to give the Devils the lead, 2-1, with 14 minutes left in regulation.
Buffalo would then seem to lose some of their surge, and the Devils would take note of this as they continued their pace. Then, with only seven minutes left in the period, Jack Hughes would make an impressive pass to newcomer Paul Cotter, who put the Devils up 3-1.
The Devils showed everyone throughout these two games that they are ready to compete again with new goaltending, new forward depth, and some physicality this season. New Jersey will play their official home opener back in Jersey on Thursday, where they will face Sheldon Keefe’s old team, the Toronto Maple Leafs.
