Devils Fall Short in Buffalo, Lose 5-2 | GAME STORY

BUFFALO, N.Y. - Despite New Jersey taking a 2-0 lead after the first 20 minutes of play, Tage Thompson's four goals fueled Buffalo's comeback as the Sabres beat the Devils 5-2. J.J. Peterka also scored for Buffalo, while Max Willman and Jesper Bratt had one goal each for New Jersey. The loss snapped a two-game win streak for the Devils and New Jersey finishes their three-game road trip with two wins and one loss.

“We know that was a game we should have taken advantage,” Captain Nico Hischier said post-game. “I don’t think there’s any excuses there. If you look at the game, we just got to find the way to win against certain teams, and we haven’t done it all year, and that should not happen. Just another immature performance by us.”

“It’s disappointing,” interim head coach Travis Green shared. “There was a lot of the game that I liked. I thought our first period was about as good as you could want. Probably could have had a few more goals, we hit some posts tonight. We knew this team was going to push and they did. There’s parts of the second period that we didn’t like. Their top guy made some plays and then a couple little mistakes throughout the game cost us.”

Forward Max Willman opened the scoring when he deflected Luke Hughes' shot past Devon Levi to give the Devils a 1-0 lead three minutes into the game. The goal was Willman’s second straight game with a tally and his third of the season. Hughes and Chris Tierney picked up assists.

Jesper Bratt gave the Devils a 2-0 lead just past the halfway point of the first period. Nico Hischier was battling for the puck behind the goal and got it out. Bratt saw the loose puck net front and quickly capitalized. The goal was Bratt’s 73 point of the season which matches his career-high in points for the third straight season. Bratt’s linemates, Nico Hischier and Timo Meier, picked up assists on the goal.

“When you go up two-nothing after the first you obviously know that they’re going to have a push,” Jesper Bratt shared post-game. “And they did. We had some breakdowns in our game and some small mistakes that they capitalized on.”

28 seconds into the second period, forward Tage Thompson got the Sabres on the board. Jake Allen got a piece of his shot but it still made its way in. The goal cut the visitors lead to 2-1. The Sabres tied the game, 2-2, late in the second after Alex Tuch intercepted a pass attempt by Kevin Bahl and quickly got the puck to Thompson who went top shelf and scored.

Despite both teams having chances, the third period continued on tied at 2-2. With five minutes left in the third period, Jake Allen came up with a huge save as the Sabres were pressing hard and peppering New Jersey's netminder. Thirty seconds later, Tage Thompson scored his third of the night to give Buffalo its first lead of the game, 3-2. The hat trick was Thompson's first of the season and sixth career hat trick.

Despite some quality chances late in the game, the Devils were unable to get the game tying goal. The Sabres had two empty net goals in the final minute of regulation to seal the win, the first one by Peterka before Thompson's fourth of the night sealed the win, 5-2.

Jake Allen played his seventh game for the Devils and stopped 31 of the 34 shots he faced.

“We had a really good start, played well, didn’t give them a whole lot in the first,” Jake Allen shared post-game. “Second period, we had a few good looks to start but I think after the twelve minute mark they got some momentum and it carried into the third period. They played very well the second half of the game and we were right there. We had some opportunities and it’s just a game of inches and that’s what it was tonight. It’s a tough one to lose right now but guys battled hard, shouldn’t hang their heads about that, the effort was there. It was just a fine line.”

“It was a hard fought game,” Green shared. “It’s 2-2, they score with five minutes left to take the lead and we almost had a breakaway (goal) a few minutes before, with Bratt when the puck bounces over his stick. It’s one of those games where whatever team lost was going to be upset with the loss. You hate being on the wrong side of it. You got to learn from your mistakes.”

Here are some observations from the game:

•Meier's March Madness wrapped up as the forward added one assist in the final game of the month. Over March, Meier had 13 goals and seven assists for 20 points in 15 games played. There were only four games this month where the Swiss forward was held off the scoresheet. Meier’s last point of the month was an assist on Bratt’s second period goal.

•The Devils were unable to score on any of their three power play opportunities, including when they had a 5-on-3 advantage for 26 seconds late in the first. Overall, the team had two shots on goal while on the man-advantage, both of the shots came in the first period. New Jersey didn't take a penalty the entire game.

•The Sabres outshot the Devils 36-30 and got the majority of their shots in the third period where they had 17 shots compared to the Devils 7. For the Devils, the breakdowns in the second half of the game helped the Sabres build momentum and start their comeback after not giving up many opportunities in the first period.

“For the most part of the game we played pretty solid,” Bratt said. “We didn’t give up that many chances and there were obviously small plays in the game they capitalized on. Every team is going to have mistakes. We capitalized on two of their mistakes and they capitalized on some of ours. It’s a tight game. It was a hard fought game, and obviously this was a crucial win for us and we would have needed that.”

•A key message shared post-game was that the Devils need to learn from games like tonight to become more consistent and a stronger team.

“Somethings (haven't) change(d),” Hischier explained. “I think everyone has to look at themselves in the mirror. I think if you play against teams like that, the only way they’re going to beat you is if you beat yourself and that’s what we did here tonight again."

“We got a few days off,” Green stated. “I think especially after you lose a game like that (it's important) to regroup, refocus. And then all we can really do is worry about the next game.”

The Devils return home to host the Pittsburgh Penguins Tuesday before returning to Madison Square Garden for a Hudson River Rivalry game against the New York Rangers on Wednesday night.