For the first time in the franchise's history, the New Jersey Devils added an alternate kit to the rotation.
These new uniforms, unofficially dubbed the "Jersey jerseys", are off to a hot start. Philadelphia came to town losing games as if they were coaches, featuring back-to-back nights allowing seven goals on home ice following the firing of Alain Vigneault and Michel Therrien.
This became a get-right game for the Devils, and they took advantage.
Sandwiched around a four game losing streak are two convincing wins against these Philadelphia Flyers, with Mackenzie Blackwood pitching the 3-0 shutout tonight.
"I thought that was probably our best game, defensively," stated head coach Lindy Ruff. It's tough to find evidence to the contrary; the Flyers struggled with the Devils forecheck through the entirety of the game and found minimal room in the neutral zone to establish. "We put the puck in a lot of good places, we had people back, protected the middle of the ice, and played a solid game."
Jesper Bratt continued his hot stretch of play, scoring the first goal of the night and adding a secondary assist on goal #2. His eventual game-winner was a short-side snipe on Carter Hart.
Dawson Mercer scored his first powerplay goal of the season six minutes after Bratt opened the scoring, deflecting a Ty Smith shot through Hart. It always feels good to have the extra hours pay off:
Mercer working overtime at todays optional on tips from the slot … #work pic.twitter.com/Wr2bS2ni3l
— Mike Morreale (@mikemorrealeNHL) November 24, 2021
To round out the scoresheet, Michael McLeod earned his first of the season when the Devils managed an odd-man-rush on the empty net. Jack Hughes probably could've taken it himself, but passed off to McLeod for the finish.
Despite the results and fresh new uniforms, not a very pretty game to watch.
Legitimate offensive opportunities seemed few and far between, and Philadelphia's ice-cold forwards offered no help. The first period was largely uneventful until James van Riemsdyk delivered a dangerous cross-check to McLeod that led to the game's first powerplay.
There was marginally more room to operate in the second period after the scoreless first. It only took a few minutes for the Devils to break through, and they never looked back.
Later in the game, there was a bizarre sequence where a puck was tipped into Hart's equipment. A couple of seconds passed before the puck popped out behind him and came to a complete stop on the Flyer goal line before being scooped out.
If you're looking for a much simpler summary of tonight's festivities:
Good night and terrible hockey pic.twitter.com/e3DEXsRjti
— F-F-Flyyyperboleeee (@Flyperbole) December 9, 2021
Blackwood made 25 saves in the shutout. What did sneak through the New Jersey defense was all but swallowed whole.
Up Next For Devils
The Devils move to 25 points on the season with a record of 10-9-5. Nashville is on deck for Friday night.
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