Brown's Late Goal Lifts Devils Over Isles | GAME STORY

NEWARK, N.J. - Connor Brown broke a 1-1 tie just before the halfway mark of the third period, to score the game-winning goal between the New Jersey Devils and New York Islanders.

The Devils, with a lineup where most players are slated to play in the AHL this coming season, picked up a 2-1 victory at Prudential Center. 

Brown poled the puck loose from Islanders defenseman Marshall Warren at the blue line, chipping the puck up the ice and with a burst of speed went one-on-one with Vitek Vanecek in the New York net. Brown's wrist shot beat the former Devils goalie, and that was enough to bank a first preseason win for the Devils in their opening game.

Ryan Schmelzer, captain of the Utica Comets, scored in the second period for the Devils, tying the game at 1-1. 

Cole Eiserman opened the scoing of the game with a second period power play goal for the Islanders.

Here are some observations from the game:

• Preseason games, especially the early ones, aren't always that pretty. The Devils were forced to defend against four Islanders power plays in the first period alone. New Jersey took six penalties in the first period, two of which were off-set by Islanders penalties. 

• David Rittich most certainly has a fire in him. Late in the first period, as Rittich was trying to cover a loose puck, Islanders forward Gleb Veremyev came barreling into the crease and took a stab at the puck under Rittich, that sent both the netminder and puck into the net. Veremyev, jets out of the crease in celebration but is closely followed behind by Rittich, who tried to get at Veremyev before the officials could get in the way. The play resulted in no-goal as well as off-setting minors for Rittich and Isaiah George, who found himself in the middle of a scrum.

• Connor Brown, Cody Glass and Brenden Dillon were the three NHL regulars from last season who suited up against the Islanders. This season new rules have been implemented through the new Collective Bargaining Agreement whereby players who have played 100-or-more NHL games a limited to just two preseason games. New Jersey will play four over the course of the next week. 

Head coach Sheldon Keefe has mentioned he expects games 2 and 4 to be near-full NHL rosters, with the fourth game likely being the full opening night group. 

• Dillon has been paired up with Declan Chisholm since the beginning of camp, as well as in this first preseason game. There's an opening on defense heading into the season with the uncertainty around Johnathan Kovacevic's availability. Kovacevic is currently considered day-to-day, but has yet to practice with the two main groups at training camp.

Chisholm is playing on his off-side, but the two have managed to compliment one another well. The 26-year-old Chisholm has experience on his off-side, spending parts of last season on the right side with Minnesota.

Dillon and Chisholm are also familiar with one another when their career's overlapped in Winnipeg with the Jets.  

• The two goaltenders who started the game are ex-players of the other team. Rittich played 30 games for the Islanders last season, while Vanecek playwd two seasons with the Devils between 2022 and 2024.