Schwei's Devils Notes: Appleby Impressive In Debut, Hall Strikes Quickly In OT

By John Schweibacher
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After winning two games in a row, the New Jersey Devils have lost two straight and are just 2-5-3 over their last 10 games.

On Monday night in Newark, the Devils were shut out for the fourth time this season, a 3-0 loss to the Red Wings.

Petr Mrazek made 37 saves in the victory, his second career shutout against New Jersey and the fourth by the Red Wings all-time vs. the Scouts/Rockies/Devils franchise. The others were:

• Jan. 4, 2016: Detroit 1 at New Jersey 0 (Petr Mrazek, 22 saves)
• Jan. 25, 1992: Detroit 7 at New Jersey 0 (Tim Chevaldae, 21 saves)
• Nov. 30, 1974: Detroit 1 at Kansas City 0 (Jim Rutherford, 14 saves)

David Booth had one of the three Red Wings goals in their win and has now scored four goals overall this season, with three coming against the Devils.

Booth, who scored twice in a 4-3 New Jersey victory in Detroit on Nov. 25, is the only player who has more than two goals against the Devils so far this season.

On Saturday in Philadelphia, the Devils lost to the Flyers, 3-1.

Keith Kinkaid left the game during the first period with a lower body injury that occurred on the third Flyers goal and did not return.

Ken Appleby, who was recalled from Binghamton (AHL) on an emergency basis due to Cory Schneider's illness, stopped all 24 shots he faced the rest of the game. It was the first NHL action of his career.

Appleby joined three other goalies who made their NHL debuts with New Jersey and did not allow a goal:

• Chris Terreri, Oct. 18, 1986 at Pit (relieved Karl Friesen in third period): six shots, six saves in 9 minutes, 38 seconds.
• Corey Schwab, Nov. 18, 1995 vs. Buf (relieved Martin Brodeur in third period): six shots, six saves in 16 minutes, 49 seconds.
• Jeff Frazee: March 9, 2013 vs. Car (relieved Johan Hedberg in third period): three shots, three saves in 18 minutes, 36 seconds.

Appleby also became the second Devils goaltender in club history to make his NHL debut for New Jersey against the Flyers.

Alain Chevrier got the start in goal for the Devils on Oct. 10, 1985 on opening night at the Spectrum in Philadelphia.

The 24-year-old rookie allowed five goals on 38 shots in his debut that night but still got the victory, as the Devils rallied to beat the defending Stanley Cup finalists, 6-5, thanks to Paul Gagne's third-period hat trick and Greg Adams' club-record five assists.

On Thursday night at the Prudential Center, the Devils beat the Capitals, 4-3, in overtime.

New Jersey now has 12 regular season overtime wins all-time against Washington since the NHL added the sudden-death period beginning in the 1983-84 season.

Here are the teams the Devils have the most regular season overtime victories against in club history:

• Washington, 12
• Philadelphia, 11
• Boston, 9
• Rangers, 8
• Islanders, 8
• Pittsburgh, 8

Taylor Hall's goal at the 34-second mark of overtime gave New Jersey the win over Washington.

MORE: Lichtenstein: All Hail Taylor Hall, The Metro Area's Midseason MVP

It was Hall's first overtime goal this season and the eighth OT goal of his NHL career.

The Elias Sports Bureau noted that Hall has made a habit of scoring quickly in overtime, with four of his eight OT goals coming in the first minute of the extra period.

Hall's game-winner was the 10th fastest regular season overtime goal by a Devils player in club history. Here's a look at the top 10:

• :13, Aaron Broten, Nov. 25, 1987, NJD 8 at Edm 7
• :19, Patrik Elias, Dec. 29, 1999, Bos 4 at NJD 5
• :21, Steve Thomas, March 9, 1996, NJD 4 at Pit 3
• :25, Patrik Elias, Dec. 23, 2007, NJD 1 at Cgy 0
• :28, Patrik Elias, March 6, 2001, Ott 2 at NJD 3
• :29, Zach Parise, April 1, 2008, NJD 2 at NYI 1
• :29, Andy Greene, Nov. 11, 2016, NJD 2 at Buf 1
• :29, Taylor Hall, Oct. 22, 2016, Min 1 at NJD 2
• :31, Zach Parise, Dec. 6, 2008, NJD 2 at Mtl 1
• :34, Taylor Hall, Jan. 18, 2018, Was 3 at NJD 4

Plus/Minus:

Plus: Taylor Made. Taylor Hall matched a career high with a seven-game points streak (five goals, seven assists, 12 points) with an assist in the loss at Philadelphia on Saturday.

Minus: Injury Bug. Hall missed Monday night's game with a hand injury that will also sideline him Tuesday night at Boston, while Brian Gibbons (broken thumb) and Keith Kinkaid (groin) both went on injured reserve after leaving during the loss to the Flyers.