Devils Lose to Blue Jackets 5-1

Today marked the starting debut of Gilles Senn, as the Devils faced the Blue Jackets.

It did not start off well at all, with the Blue Jackets and Oliver Bjorkstrand scoring on their first shot of the game.

Through the first moments of the game, the Blue Jackets dominated possession and play. At the 14:40 mark, Jakub Lilja had an odd-man break, which he missed over net.

After a _____ penalty, with opportunities from Hischier and Hughes, the Blue Jackets had an opportunity when Eric Robinson was alone on a breakaway. However, the Jackets were able to continue possession, leading to another Oliver Bjorkstrand score.

Even with the 2-0 deficit, the Blue Jacket still put the gas on the pedal. However, a bright spot was in sight. Boone Jenner tripped Jesper Bratt, with Bratt also being called for embellishment. On the four-on-four, the Devils capitalized, with a Will Butcher wrist shot getting past Korpisalo for the first Devils goal.

The second period was more quiet, with good chances for both sides ending the lull. Riley Nash had one great chance, while Kyle Palmieri had his one timer saved by Korpisalo.

The Blue Jackets were the first to score. On a slight defensive breakdown, rookie defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov scored his 3rd career NHL goal, on a wrist shot blistered by Senn. In the immediate aftermath, Senn made a diving desperation save on Nick Foligno.

Then, with 1 minute left in the 2nd, John Hayden went full John Hayden, high sticking a Blue Jacket away from the puck.

In the 3rd, the referees called penalties galore on the Devils. Vatanen took a questionable roughing call, while Palmieri showed his discontent by incurring another penalty. The Blue Jackets, knowing that the win was within sight, played safely aggressive, putting chances on Senn while still maintaining defensive composure. With 3 minutes in the game, the Blue Jackets committed a tripping penalty, but Zack Werenski was able to score an empty net goal 5 seconds into the Devils power play. Gustav Nyquist scored another empty net goal, and the Devils lost 5-1 to the Columbus Blue Jackets.

The Game Stats: The NHL.com Game Summary | The NHL.com Event Summary | The NHL.com Play by Play Log | The NHL.com Shot Summary | The Natural Stat Trick Game Stats

The Opposition Opinion: Here you go to the sad Devils fans

Game Recap:

Who Played Well? Bratt, Hischier and Hughes all played aggressively, putting their body on the line. Defensively, Mirco Mueller wasn’t nearly as mistake-prone as he was earlier in the season, with Ken Daneyko praising his recent play. Will Butcher absolutely sniped the corner on the four-on-four, and overall was alright. Each of these players had Corsi’s of 50 or over, and played well according to the eye test.

Gilles Senn wasn’t bad. He made some impressive desperation saves,

Who Suffered? As expected, John Hayden was dreadful, with a Corsi of 20 (!). Unexpectedly, he was not the worst on the ice, with a Corsi of 17.68 (!). According to Corsi, many players were very bad, if not horrendous. Every player not mentioned in the well category, and Sami Vatanen, had Corsi’s under 40. Consistency has been an issue for the Devils, and this game clearly showed where they lack and where they can improve in terms of that.

Milestones: Congrats to Gilles Senn for his first career game. Although it was a loss, he played pretty well, stopping 35 of 38 shots.

My Thoughts: This will be a long season.

Your Thoughts: What’d you think of this game? Who played well? Who didn’t? What should the Devils do moving forward? Let me know in the comments below, and take care.