The New Jersey Devils and Washington Capitals squared off Saturday night in what was Washington’s 50th opening night in franchise history. The Capitals started the new season, similar to the Devils, with new faces and lots of excitement. Also similar to New Jersey, they dropped their home opener in what was the first Metropolitan Division matchup of the new season. Here, we identify some takeaways from the Devils' response victory in the nation's capital.
Depth Has Been Apparent To Start The Season
With Washington making their season debut against a division opponent in front of a packed house, the Devils had to know they were getting an invigorated group on the far side of the ice. Mindful of that, Sheldon Keefe announced a tweak in the lineup in preparation for the contest: an exchange between the third and fourth lines that would send the Ondrej Palat down for the newly acquired Paul Cotter. What a move it was.
After a lively start for the Capitals, the Devils answered the bell with some punches of their own. Early on, it was apparent the defensive pair of Simon Nemec and Seamus Casey would be a cause for concern yet again for the Devils. After Washington netted the opening goal, New Jersey responded with a goal from defenseman Seamus Casey, set up by forechecking pressure from the Hughes line. The Hughes line, although not off to the flashiest start to the new season, has created plenty of opportunities with their play and continued to do so last night. Casey’s two goals tied him for second on the team through four games, which is not bad for a player with only three shots on the year. The young defenseman has shown a lot of poise in his short career and continues to impress with his poise and demeanor.
Coach Keefe's lineup tweak was instrumental in the Devils victory and the Cotter-Haula-Noesen line was everything and then some for the Devils last night. After Casey's goal, the Cotter line factored into four of the next six goals in the game, either on the ice for goals against or goals for. The new-look third line had a combined point total of eight, and although they were on the ice for the final Capitals' goal against, they completely assumed command of the game. Every other line followed suit with consistent pressure in the offensive zone, with the Hischier line being rewarded late for their efforts as Dawson Mercer's empty net goal sealed a Devils victory. Equivalent to the Global Series performance, Tom Fitzgerald's new-look team displayed their depth to the approval of fans everywhere.