Giovanni took a pass at his own blue line. The 12-year-old carried the puck up ice before sending the puck laterally across to his teammate … Jack Hughes.
Hughes reached the lower circle before sending the puck back to Giovanni, who sent the puck into the top far corner of the net for a goal. Giovanni, dressed in his green youth hockey jersey, skated to the neutral zone and dropped to one knee for a celly.
Minutes later, Hughes was chasing 15-year-old Natalie as she skated into the offensive zone. A quick hip swerve and Natalie created separation and floated a pass to teammate Paul Cotter. He returned the puck and Natalie scored five-hole on the goaltender.
The 20-minute full-ice 2-on-2 matchup of Hughes and Giovanni vs. Cotter and Natalie took place Friday after the Devils practice. Giovanni and Natalie – along with 19-year-old Darby – were guests of the Devils through their partnership with Make-A-Wish, Fanatics and the Devils Youth Foundation.
The trio of kids started the day with a welcome inside the Devils locker room. They each had their own fashioned locker stalls with personalized jerseys and gifts. They watched the team practice from the bench.
When practice ended and the team gathered for the post-practice stretch around the center ice circle, Giovanni and Natalie were called onto the ice to lead the stretch at the center dot in their full gear.
After the stretch, several players stayed on the ice and worked on their skills on one end of the ice. Giovanni and Natalie took over the other half of the ice with Jack and Luke Hughes, Brenden Dillon, Nico Hischier and Jacob Marstrom, as well as a few others. Giovanni scored on a few breakaways against Markstrom and worked on his one-timer with Jack. Natalie worked on her skating and passing skills with Luke.
Once all the players left the ice, Cotter skated over, and the 2-on-2 game began. After the game, Jack sat on the bench and had a long conversation with Darby. Jack was the last player to leave. Forty-five minutes after practice ended, Jack was still on the ice with the youths, taking pictures and sharing stories.
The trio of kids will be welcomed to Saturday’s afternoon game against Pittsburgh. During their experience, they’ll watch warmups from the bench, high-five the players coming down the tunnel, ride the Zamboni and many more exclusive game day experiences.
Natalie plays hockey for the Northern Lakes Lightning team in Minnesota. She is battling cancer. Giovanni was diagnosed with a gastrointestinal disorder and is a Devils fan that enjoys rollerblading and swimming. Darby lives with a heart condition. She finds joy in crocheting and reading.
