New Jersey Devils: This Season’s 10 Truly Bizarre Moments
9. Blake Coleman’s one-handed goal:
The first 39-plus minutes of the Devils opening night contest against the Winnipeg Jets couldn’t have gone any better. The Devils jumped out to a commanding 4-0 lead highlighted by a ridiculous goal from Blake Coleman. Coleman took a long-distance flip pass from P.K. Subban and flicked the puck with one hand past Winnipeg goalie Laurent Brossoit as he was falling. It was immediately dubbed “goal of the year” because of its sheer ridiculousness. Little did we know it would be the high point of the entire season.
8. Speaking of opening night…
The Devils jumped all over the Winnipeg Jets grabbing an early and conceivably commanding 4-0 lead on opening night at the Prudential Center. It wasn’t until the waning seconds of the second period that we caught our first real glimpse of things to come.
The Jets scored late in the second followed by three more in the third period and eventually won 5-4 in the shootout. Making matters worse, starting goalie Cory Schneider, who looked like he regained his form during the preseason, left with an injury.
The opening night meltdown sent a raucous crowd home stunned and woozy from what they had just witnessed. The loss also spoiled the debuts of Jack Hughes, Nikita Gusev, and Subban. It would also mark the first of many blown leads throughout the year.
7. And speaking of Schneider:
Cory Schneider played so well at the end of the 2018-19 season and into this preseason that many believed the old Cory was back. If the Devils had any hope of making the playoffs they would need to rely heavily upon good goaltending. Cool thought. However, early into the opener, Schneider hurt himself while making a sprawling move. The injury unofficially ended Schneider and his teammates’ season. By November, the Devils’ had gone completely off the rails and plenty of fingers were pointing squarely at number 35.
Additionally, it was clear that New Jersey’s future between the pipes centered around the development of Mackenzie Blackwood and not the 34-year-old netminder. Schneider was put on waivers for an AHL demotion. Schneider cleared waivers and was immediately sent down to Binghamton for playing time. New Jersey’s $6-million man was nothing more than an Upstate New York farmhand. He and his team rebounded before the pause, but the long term damage was already done.
6. The Louis Domingue era:
In an attempt to look proactive, then-GM Ray Shero made a bold move and acquired Domingue from the Tampa Bay Lightning for goaltending help – if that’s what you want to call it. Domingue was coming off of an outstanding year with Tampa in which he won 21 of his 26 starts with a stellar 2.88 goals against. It was a nice idea by Shero, but the Devils are not the Lightning.
Domingue played in 16 games for New Jersey earning a 3-8-2 record with a beefy 3.79 goals against and equally unimpressive .882 save percentage. Domingue’s short tenure will mostly be remembered for allowing five goals in a 7-1 loss to the Buffalo Sabres, including a bizarre one that he popped over his head and into the net with his blocker. Oh, and his pads… I liked his pads. The Domingue era ended almost as quickly as it began when he was shipped to Vancouver at the trade deadline.