5. Exorcising the Demons in Minnesota
Perhaps the most dramatic moment of a truly forgettable 2018-19 season for the Devils came in a road game against the Minnesota Wild on Feb. 15, just weeks after Hischier had stolen the show in Montreal.
On par with the norm in games during that season, the Devils were in a large hole, trailing the Wild 4-1 at 7:19 of the second period. Kinkaid was pulled in favor of Schneider, who was searching for his first victory since Dec. 27, 2017. From there, Will Butcher, Kyle Palmieri, and Ben Lovejoy combined for three-unanswered goals to tie the game at four.
Following a furious Devils comeback, the stage was set for overtime in Minnesota. At 3:19 of the extra period, Palmieri forced old friend, Zach Parise to pass the puck back to his goaltender, Devan Dubnyk to alleviate pressure. Dubnyk misplayed the puck behind the net and gave Palmieri a prime scoring opportunity on a wrap-around. The Wild goaltender was able to bail himself out once, but not on a second try as Hischier buried the loose change in front from Palmieri’s chance.
Hischier had once again converted for his third overtime winner of the season, but perhaps the story of the game belonged to Schneider. His winless streak of 21 appearances dating back to over a calendar year (excluding the 2018 playoffs) had been broken. He made 15 saves in relief of Kinkaid that night as the Devils mounted their comeback.