NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Defenseman Dougie Hamilton broke a tie 33 seconds into the third period, Mackenzie Blackwood made 18 saves and the New Jersey Devils beat the Anaheim Ducks 4-2 on Tuesday night.
Jesper Bratt set up Hamilton with a cross-crease pass to Hamilton parked to the right of goaltender Anthony Stolarz.
Blackwood denied Ducks scoring leader Troy Terry from in front on the power play midway through the third as New Jersey held on for its first victory of the season after two losses.
Dawson Mercer added an insurance goal with 7:11 left.
Anaheim forward Jakob Silfverberg scored twice in the first period for a 2-0 lead, but Devils forwards Ondrej Palat and Nico Hischier each notched their first goals of the season to tie it in the second.
Silfverberg, the 32-year-old Swedish forward in his 10th season with the Ducks, opened the scoring with his first goal this season at 7:57, snapping the puck past Blackwood after Isac Lundestrom won the faceoff to the goaltender’s right. Silfverberg scored again with 6:52 left.
Stolarz, who was born in nearby Edison, stopped Devils forward Nathan Bastain on a breakaway as time expired in the first to keep Anahem ahead by two. He made 37 saves overall.
The Ducks — after winning their opener at home against Seattle — were coming off two losses to start a five-game trip, 7-1 to the Islanders on Saturday and 6-4 to the Rangers on Monday.
New Jersey fans voiced a smattering of boos after Silfverberg’s second goal, but the home team managed to reverse the momentum in the second period, getting 20 shots and scoring twice.
Palat scored his with his first goal as a Devil at 4:17 with assists defenseman Ryan Graves and center Jack Hughes, their first points of the season. The 31-year-old Palat had played his entire 10-year NHL career with the Lightning before signing a five-year, $30 million contract with the Devils in July.
Hischier, the Devils captain, scored his first goal of the season with 5:12 left in the second.
MILESTONES: Devils coach Lindy Ruff — in his third season behind New Jersey’s bench — notched career win No. 783 to move into fifth place ahead of Al Arbour at 782. The 62-year-old Ruff coached the Buffalo Sabres for 15 seasons and Dallas Stars for four years.
NOTES: The Devils scratched defenseman Kevin Bahl and forwards Jesper Boqvist and Fabian Zetterlund …. The Ducks scratched defensemen Nathan Beaulieu and Colton White plus forward Pavol Regenda … The Devils and Ducks split their two meetings last season … They will meet again on Jan. 13 in Anaheim.
UP NEXT:
Devils: At New York Islanders on Thursday night.
Ducks: At Boston on Thursday night.
___
More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
This post was originally published on this site
