Recap: Strong defensive effort propels Red Wings past Devils, 3-0

Buoyed by a strong defensive effort, the Detroit Red Wings stifled the New Jersey Devils, 3-0, on Sunday afternoon at the Prudential Center.

Red Wings goalie Alex Nedeljkovic made 17 saves against the Devils, becoming the first rookie netminder since Roger Crozier (1964-65) to post at least four shutouts in a single season for the franchise.
Oskar Sundqvist's first-period goal gave Detroit a 1-0 lead, one it did not concede. Tyler Bertuzzi and Michael Rasmussen each added an empty-netter in the finale frame to help the Wings (31-39-10) snap a two-game skid.
With the win, Detroit claimed the season series over New Jersey and will go for the sweep on Friday.
NEXT UP: The Red Wings will play their final Original Six matchup of the regular season on Tuesday night, facing the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m.

SCORING SUMMARY

Detroit 1, New Jersey 0 (15:48, 1st period)
After pressure from Rasmussen forced a Devils turnover, Sundqvist collected the puck in the right faceoff circle and found the back of the net for his eighth goal of the season. Bertuzzi recorded an assist on the play.

Detroit 2, New Jersey 0 (17:51, 3rd period)
Bertuzzi, assisted by Danny DeKeyser and Sundqvist, ripped a shot from just before New Jersey's blue line and scored on an empty net.

Detroit 3, New Jersey 0 (19:47, 3rd period)
After taking a pass from Adam Erne, Rasmussen scored an empty-netter for his 14th goal of the season, his second tally in as many games.

QUOTABLE

Nedeljkovic on Detroit's strong outing on Sunday
"Today was a big game for some guys to rebound and right the ship in a way, myself included. It's been like that the last few months and we gotta find a way to stop that from happening, and come out with more of these kind of performances like we did today."
Nedeljkovic on limiting the Devils to 17 shots
"We had some urgency. We had some jump in our game and some purpose. We were playing like we were playing for something. We were playing for some pride and guys came out wanting to work."
Jeff Blashill on the key characteristics of Sunday's game
"Both teams are missing a number of key players. It's a different kind of game if it would be if both teams were at full strength. There's gonna be some limited offensive firepower missing out of both teams."
Blashill on the finishing the season on a positive note
"I think what carries over is playing the right way more than anything else. If you play the right way, that's gonna carry over both as a team and as an individual."