Win - MTL NJD Game Story

MONTREAL, PQ - The New Jersey Devils skated out to an early 2-0 lead and led 3-1 but utlimately it took overtime to get the full two points from the Montreal Canadiens on a winning goal in the final minute by Jack Hughes.

Jesper Bratt and Dougie Hamilton led the way for the visitors with two points apiece. Captain Nico Hischier left early in the third period after taking a couple cross-checks late in the second.

Jack Hughes buries the GWG as the Devils earn the extra point, winning 4-3 over the Canadiens.

A turnover late in overtime was the difference as Timo Meier picked up a loose puck and pushed it ahead to Jack. His shot glove side on the breakaway beat Montreal rookie goaltender Jakub Dobes.

“We defended three-on-two really well. Good body positioning by Timo and good play to me,” said Hughes.

Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe was very happy with his team's resiliency.

“Guys found a way. One of these nights where it’s not going to be perfect and you try to patch it all together," he said. "Losing Nico at a critical time in the game, Jack playing at less than 100%. Two really important guys for us. Love that we stayed with it even though you give up the lead and it has to go to overtime, love that we didn’t lose the point. I loved how we pushed and we probably deserved the second point in regulation.”

Keefe noted how Jack didn't take a single face-off all game, likely related to his finger needing stitches during last Wednesday's win over Boston.

“You’re relying on lots of wingers to take draws and we do have guys who can do a good job there. Dawson stepped up in the third period and overtime for that matter. Not having Jack (able to take face-offs) all game was probably the biggest challenge."

Almost 16 minutes into the game, the Devils opened the scoring. Jesper Bratt picked up the puck along the side boards then circled and drove down the slot. He dished the puck over to the captain Nico Hischier who put it in past Dobes.

POST-GAME VIDEO
Devils Post-Game Interviews: Allen | J. Hughes | Tatar

Less than two minutes later, Bratt hit the scoresheet again, this time as the goal scorer. He picked up the puck behind the Montreal net, looped out in front and backhanded it past Dobes from the top of the left circle.

After one period, shots on goal were 12-6 for the Devils.

The Canadiens cut New Jersey’s lead in half almost four minutes into the middle frame. Cole Caufield centered the puck to Nick Suzuki who one-timed a blast in.

Tomas Tatar was rewarded with his hard work as the Devils regained their two-goal edge. Tatar redirected a point shot from Dougie Hamilton then jumped on his own rebound, pushing the puck over the line to make it a 3-1 game.

“Huge goal for us, just a tremendous effort all the way around and for Tatar to get rewarded is great," stated Keefe. "They’re advancing the puck and have scored us some important goals. On a night like tonight, I need to lean on them. I’m very happy and they’ve earned my trust.”

Tatar was happy with the effort of his line overall and on that play.

“Our line got rewarded. We had a sound game and were strong on the puck, doing all the right things.”

Montreal narrowed the gap again late in the second. Suzuki dropped the puck to Caufield and Caufield took a wrist shot from the high slot, firing it past Allen.

The Habs outshot the Devils 16-15 in the second and after 40 minutes, it was 28-21 for the Devils.

Montreal came out strong to start the third period and it resulted in the tying goal 3:34 in. Alexandre Carrier one-timed a blast from the blueline past a screened Allen to tie it up at 3-3.

After the Canadiens goal, the Devils started to tilt the ice back in their favor. The put a lot of pucks towards the goal with Montreal blocking a handful and Dobes having to come up big multiple times.

At the end of regulation, shots on goal were 41-29 for the Devils.

Allen ended up with 29 saves on 32 shots in his return to the last city he played.

“It was important for me to come back here," Allen began. "It was fun to come back but to get the win is the most important part. Guys played minutes they weren’t used to playing but that’s the nature of the league.”

It was a huge win for a goaltender who will carry the bulk of the load for the next four-to-six weeks as the team waits for Jacob Markstrom to get healthy.

“Taking a phrase out of (Canadiens coach) Marty St. Louis’ book, the League doesn’t care," said Allen. "It’s next man up. Marky’s been our best player all year and he’s probably going to be when he comes back. We’re just trying to hold the fort until he’s back.”

Jack said the team wanted to get these two points for the veteran goaltender.

“We wanted to have a good showing here for him. He’s been playing really good as of late and I don’t think we’ve been getting the results for him. It was in Montreal, too, really happy for him and that’s a good win for the group.”

Head coach Sheldon Keefe's victory speech in Montreal after a 4-3 overtime win

Here are some observations from the game:

• Before the sequence that led to Montreal's second goal, Nick Suzuki cross-checked Nico Hischier in the lower abdomen. Hischier was in noticeable pain on the bench and came back for one more shift in the second and one in the third before departing.

“He wasn’t able to finish the game," said Keefe. "I expect him to be day-to-day but we’ll see where he’s at tomorrow and how things settle down.”

• The game was the first non-win in the career of Canadiens goaltender Jakub Dobes. Previously, he had played five games and allowed only 8 goals for a goals-against average of 1.55 and a .941 save percentage. He allowed four tonight.

• The overtime winner was Jack's eighth as a Devil, tying him with Scott Niedermayer for second in franchise history. He has a ways to go to catch Patrik Elias who leads with 16.

• The two-point effort by Jesper Bratt was just his second since the Christmas break. The other game was a two-assist performance against Tampa Bay at home on January 11.

• Dougie Hamilton had two points, both assists. It was the second straight game that he netted more than one point. Prior to Wednesday’s game against Boston, the last time he had more than one point was on December 2 against the Rangers. The last time Hamilton had more than one point in consecutive games was February 9, 2023 vs. Seattle (two goals) and February 6, 2023 vs. Vancouver (three assists).

• The game was number 400 in the career of Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe. He has 239 wins, 114 losses and 46 losses in extra time.

• The two goals in the first period were welcomed by the Devils. They only have 35 goals in the first period this season (compared to 62 in the second and 57 in the third) ranking in the bottom three in the NHL heading into tonight's game.

WHAT'S NEXT
The Devils continue their two-game road trip with a game in Philadelphia on Monday. You can watch on MSGSN or listen on the Devils Hockey Network. Puck drop is 7:08 p.m. ET.