Devils Come Up Short to Mammoth | GAME STORY

NEWARK, N.J. - The Devils knew before the puck dropped that special teams could very well decide their matchup with the Utah Mammoth.

Unfortunately for New Jersey, that proved true.

The Devils handed a 5-3 loss from the Mammoth.

But it wasn’t the only difference in a game where the Devils continually found ways to stay within striking distance, only to come up just short.

New Jersey had its opportunities throughout the night, including four chances on the power play, but Utah was able to make more of its own. The Mammoth went 2-for-4 with the man advantage, while the Devils finished 1-for-5.

"We knew coming in that their PP is lethal," Jake Allen, who faced 31 shots against, said. "They showed us tonight, obviously, for myself, not a good job, but they're the best power play in the league right now. And a lot of chemistry, and they made us pay. And then, obviously, we were just chasing after that a little bit."

Luke Evangelista scored twice and Jesper Boqvist added his first goal of the season for the Devils.

"We knew what their game plan was," Evangelista said. "Obviously, they're a great rush team. They play with a ton of skill, a ton of speed, especially through the neutral zone, and obviously their power play is pretty lethal. They get one early there on the power play, kind of stings a little bit. We knew their game plan. They just executed it better, it was unfortunate we didn't get the result we wanted tonight."

Clayton Keller and Nick Schmaltz converted on Utah’s power play, while MacKenzie Weegar,  Schmaltz and Vincent Trochek scored at even strength.

The Devils also spent too much of the night playing from behind. Each time New Jersey found a way to close the gap, Utah forced them back into chase mode.

"At times we executed our structure well, and at times we didn't," Evangelista added. "I think, obviously we wanted to get pucks in behind, start that ozone hound mentality, forecheck, and just play down there, put pressure on our D. I thought at times we did, and at times we kind of got a little bit loose with the puck. [thud] But when we did, I mean, it resulted in goals, ozone time, chances, all that stuff. So, the recipe's there."

Here are some observations from the game:

• After 10 straight goalless power plays to start the season, newcomer Luke Evangelista broke through on a 5-on-3 opportunity in the first period. Evangelista tied the game, 1-1, with his first goal of the season. 

Jesper Bratt picked up the secondary assist on Evangelista's goal for his 520th career point to tie him with Kirk Muller for the fourth all-time in franchise history. 

The assist was also the 348th of Bratt’s career with the Devils, tying him with Travis Zajac for fifth all-time in franchise history.

• Entering the third period down 4-2, head coach Sheldon Keefe did a bit of line juggling, elevating Arseny Gritsyuk to play with Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt, while Anthony Mantha moved down to play with Evan Rodrigues and Dawson Mercer. 

"I thought those two lines both weren't giving us a whole lot," Keefe said. "I thought the other two were doing a pretty good job, so just kind of trying to shake that up and see what it looked like."

• Defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler left the game early in the third period with an apparent injury and did not return. Sheldon Keefe said Siegenthaler will need to be further evaluated before they can determine the severity of the injury, though he was clearly not well enough to return to game action against the Mammoth. 

• Mackenzie Weegar's second period goal was the Mammoth's second of the night, it marked the first time in Utah's history that they've scored more than a single goal against New Jersey. 

• Jesper Boqvist made his season debut. Boqvist had last played a game for the Devils on April 13, 2023, then making stops with Boston and Florida before returning to New Jersey this past off season. 

• Keefe defended Jake Allen after the loss, making sure that despite looking at five goals against, the scoreline was not reflective only of goaltending. When Keefe was asked about his goaltenders performance, he made very clear that the five-spot was a group effort and not to be laid solely at Allen's feet. 

"Jake battled. He battled hard," Keefe said. "That's not an easy team to play against, and I don't know that we could have given him any worse of a start to a game than to face the league's best power play as your first shot or first sequence of the game. But he battled despite the challenges that we presented him."

The next start for Jake Allen is a major milestone. Allen played his 499th NHL game on Tuesday night, putting him one away from No. 500, a benchmark for goaltenders often viewed as the equivalent of 1,000 games for a skater. Given the demands of the position and how difficult it is to establish that kind of longevity in net, reaching 500 is reserved for a relatively small group of NHL goaltenders. 

Only 84 goaltenders in NHL history have played 500-or more games.