New Jersey Devils: A Very Eventful Saturday Ends In Close Loss

It was a very interesting Saturday morning and afternoon for the New Jersey Devils. Well, it actually started on Friday night when Nico Hischier posted on his Instagram, insinuating that he might be back in the lineup for the first time this season. We came to find out that he was finally removed from the COVID-19 protocol list and was available to play. Then, we found out that he was in the lineup, but there was a twist. As of this game against the Buffalo Sabres and going forward, Nico Hischier is the 12th captain in team history.

There was also the actual game to be played and the Devils did not perform well for a majority of it. For the most part, it looked like the desperate Buffalo Sabres were the better team. The Devils’ special teams did them no favors and they found themselves in a 3-0 hole going into the third period. Hischier had his moments, but it is clear that it may take some time since he hasn’t played in a game for over a year.

Well, in the third period, New Jersey was a completely different team. They got the party started 40 seconds into the period when Kyle Palmieri scored a goal off a nice feed from Jack Hughes. After finally getting on the board against the Boston Bruins last game, Palmieri seems to have the hot hand now. He needs to keep this up because we know how important he is to the team.

Late in the game, Jack Eichel took a penalty to put the Devils on the power play. They pulled Mackenzie Blackwood for the extra attacker, called timeout, and created a play that allowed P.K. Subban to blast one in to get the Devils within one. They came close but they ended up coming up just short. It was a great effort to end the game. They were outplayed for two periods out of three and still only lost by one goal. This is a team that is high character and never gives up.

It was a tough way to end a very crazy Saturday, but this was a historic day. Hischier is going to be a great captain for a very long time. This is an important player and it is nice to see him rewarded for the way he has carried himself since being the first overall pick. They are right back at it again tomorrow when another big leader in Travis Zajac will skate in his 1000th career game. It is good that they now have some momentum to carry into this one in Washington.