New Jersey Devils' new faces making waves in win over the Washington Capitals

​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. 

Devils Are Scoring In More Ways Than One

No one doubts the Devils' ability to score goals. Their speed and puck-handling abilities benefit them tremendously in transition, where most of their offense has stemmed from over the last few years. However, so far this season, the Devils have been scoring from multiple areas of the ice, finding offense in transition as well as off the forecheck in the offensive and neutral zones. Last night was a clear example of their ability to score and create offense in more ways than one. 

​The first Devils goal stemmed from a dump-and-chase zone entry from the Hughes line. A Jesper Bratt pass to the point led to New Jersey breaking the seal with Casey's goal. This is important because the Hughes line is not known for its forechecking pressure, yet those players showed their capability below the dots. The second New Jersey goal came from a Capitals turnover in the neutral zone. The Cotter-Haula-Noesen line would take advantage, using their speed and puck movement to score on a tic-tac-toe play. 

The next goal came from the same line, with the Devils again finding themselves below the dots on a hard forecheck. Noesen grabbed a loose puck, feeding a cutting Tatar in front, who whacked at the puck, sending his own rebound into the back of the net. Cotter’s second goal of the game started with him pressuring Rasmus Sandin, leading to a turnover to Haula, who fed the puck to the stick of Stefan Noesen, coming in on a two on one leading to the Cotter goal. The Devils would take the lead and not relinquish it for the rest of the contest. 

It’s clear New Jersey’s depth has been a strength to start the season, but what's even more evident are the different ways they find offense and put the puck in the back of the net. Saturday night's game was another clear example of this.