Plenty of 'Firsts' in Mercer's Debut | BLOG

There were a lot of firsts for rookie center Dawson Mercer in the
Devils home opening 4-3 overtime victory against Chicago at Prudential Center on Friday
: first NHL game, first game as a New Jersey Devil, first NHL point, and first time feeling The Rock rocking after goals and a win.

With four Devils goals in the contest, Mercer heard the fans rejoice and 'Woo!' several times. However, in the third period, he was a direct reason why the crowd got wild. The forward had the primary assist on his linemate's goal, Andreas Johnsson, and picked up his first NHL point in his debut.
"When I shot there and it hit the post and it disappeared on the back and then when I'd seen (Johnsson) put it in the back of the net, it was pretty great," Mercer said. "We all rushed over to (Johnsson) as soon as possible and the building just erupted again. That feeling was like nothing else."

Although it took Mercer the first period to get used to the commotion and excitement of playing in the NHL, the center was able to start to get into his groove and show glimpses of his game.
"The first period there was a lot going on: the fans, the emotion, just the pace of the game, it was obviously different than the preseason," he admitted. "It was a good opportunity and I was happy to see how it was.
"Then the second period I felt I just kept on getting better and getting more use of my game and that's what I'm looking forward to. Just building off that and make sure I just keep getting better."