Pucks and Pitchforks
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New Jersey Devils Learn To Win Ugly Against Minnesota Wild

By Nick Villano

ST. PAUL, MN - NOVEMBER 20: Minnesota Wild goalie Devan Dubnyk (40) skates off the ice after losing in overtime during the regular season game between the New Jersey Devils and the Minnesota Wild on November 20, 2017 at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Devils defeated the Wild 4-3 in overtime. (Photo by David Berding/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
ST. PAUL, MN - NOVEMBER 20: Minnesota Wild goalie Devan Dubnyk (40) skates off the ice after losing in overtime during the regular season game between the New Jersey Devils and the Minnesota Wild on November 20, 2017 at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Devils defeated the Wild 4-3 in overtime. (Photo by David Berding/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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The New Jersey Devils somehow pulled out a win against the Minnesota Wild. This shows they can win games ugly.

The New Jersey Devils came out of Monday night with two points, despite the fact that the team didn’t play up to snuff. The team scored a few lucky goals, while bouncing back from a late goal to win in overtime.

If the Devils are going to stay in contention, they are going to win some games this way. Every night, the Devils can’t be an offensive machine with Cory Schneider holding down the fort. Even the best teams in the league have to win this way on certain nights. The Pittsburgh Penguins don’t have game winning goals from Sidney Crosby on a nightly basis. Some nights they need Greg McKegg to score goals.

Todd Correll showed exactly how bad it was, with 5-on-5 stats after the game.

In case you aren’t familiar with these stats, having everyone but two players in red is very bad.

There were some positives to pull from this game. After being dropped to the fourth line, Adam Henrique was phenomenal. He scored a goal and got two assists, including a perfect pass across the ice on the overtime game winner.

John Moore showed his game-winning heroics once again. He now has the most overtime goals among defensemen since overtime was changed to a 3-on-3 format.

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Taylor Hall also showed some of his best qualities. He was exceptional during one possession in overtime when he kept the puck away the entire Wild team, giving the Devils a chance to change without losing possession.

Will Butcher also scored his first goal that actually came off his stick. He had an absolute snipe to put the Devils up 3-1. Butcher has been rolling over the past few games on the offensive end.

The Devils remain at the top of the Metropolitan Division. They will continue to stay there if they continue to win. Some games will go easily, and some games will be a fight like on Monday night. Head coach John Hynes has them fighting. This kind of fight will keep them in contention all season long.

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