Pucks and Pitchforks
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Nico Hischier Lone Bright Spot for New Jersey Devils

By Vincent Parise

NEWARK, NJ - JANUARY 31: Nico Hischier #13 of the New Jersey Devils is congratulated as he returns to the bench after scoring a goal during the first period against the New York Rangers at the Prudential Center on January 31, 2019 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Andy Marlin/NHLI via Getty Images)
NEWARK, NJ - JANUARY 31: Nico Hischier #13 of the New Jersey Devils is congratulated as he returns to the bench after scoring a goal during the first period against the New York Rangers at the Prudential Center on January 31, 2019 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Andy Marlin/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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Like many games this season for the New Jersey Devils, Nico Hischier stood out as a beam of light during the team’s loss to the New York Rangers.

The New Jersey Devils found a new way to make their fans absolutely disgusted with how a game went. They lost a close one to their bitter rivals in the New York Rangers. In the first game of the Hudson River Rivalry this season, they let a 2-0 lead slip away from them and let the Rangers come back and beat them.

There is not much nice to say about it or the way this season has gone in general. With that said, Nico Hischier had himself a pretty good game and continues to get much better. The thing that makes this even more fun is the fact that his point production has remained the same even without Taylor Hall in the lineup due to injury.

In this game, Hischier opened the scoring with a power play goal to give the New Jersey Devils a 1-0 lead. Later in the game, Hischier made a very nice play to Marcus Johansson who found Egor Yakovlev to tie the game at three. We know how the game went after that, but the point is that Hischier is getting better every single game.

He might not have the gaudy numbers of fellow former first-overall picks like Connor McDavid or Auston Matthews, but he does score points and his defensive game is on point most of the time. He plays hockey with a very quiet mind and it shows while he is playing.

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At 20 years old, it is clear that things could still be much better and the sky is the limit for this guy. His goal was his 14th of the season which is on pace for 23 goals meaning he would eclipse the 20 goal plateau in each of his first two seasons, despite being a teenager in the NHL for almost all of it.

Hischier and the New Jersey Devils will continue to grow as time goes on, even if it looks bleak right now. The Devils are back in action on Saturday afternoon when they head to Montreal to take on the Canadiens. The Habs will be without Carey Price, who will serve his one game suspension for not going to the all star game.

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