Schwei's Devils Notes: Blanked At Home, A Rare Regulation Win On The Road
By John Schweibacher
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The New Jersey Devils will head to western Canada later this week after going 0-2-1 on their three-game homestand.
The Devils were shut out at home for the first time this season, 3-0 by the Panthers on Monday night. Roberto Luongo stopped all 28 shots he faced for his fourth career shutout against New Jersey.
The shutout was the sixth all-time by Florida against the Devils and the first by the Panthers in New Jersey in the regular season:
• 1/9/17: Fla 3 at NJD 0, Roberto Luongo, 28 saves
• 2/17/09: NJD 0 at Fla 3, Tomas Vokoun, 36 saves
• 10/11/07: NJD 0 at Fla 4, Tomas Vokoun, 29 saves
• 1/27/06: NJD 0 at Fla 4, Roberto Luongo, 22 saves
• 3/17/96: NJD 0 at Fla 3, John Vanbiesbrouck, 33 saves
• 4/20/95: NJD 0 at Fla 1, Mark Fitzpatrick, 17 saves
On Saturday night, the Devils were beaten by the Oilers, 2-1, at the Prudential Center on Mark Letestu's goal with 1:01 remaining in overtime. It was the first time in almost exactly 26 years that Edmonton beat New Jersey in sudden death.
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The Devils are now 6-4-7 all-time in games decided in overtime against Edmonton. Here are the four OT losses to the Oilers in club history:
• 1/7/17: Oilers 2 at Devils 1, Mark Letestu
• 1/12/91: Oilers 5 at Devils 4, Steve Smith
• 11/9/88: Oilers 3 at Devils 2, Glenn Anderson
• 1/24/86: Devils 6 at Oilers 7, Wayne Gretzky
The Devils lost to the Maple Leafs, 4-2, Friday night at the Rock. New Jersey fell behind 4-0 in the first period and scored twice late in the third to avoid the shutout.
Prior to the game, the club honored its late former owner, John J. McMullen, who brought NHL hockey to New Jersey in 1982, as the first inductee in the Devils' Ring of Honor.
The Devils' first-ever game against the Leafs was on Oct. 9, 1982, at Maple Leaf Gardens. New Jersey trailed 4-1 after the first period and 5-1 early in the second, but rallied for a 5-5 tie.
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On Friday night, Andy Greene's streak of consecutive games played came to an end at 350. The Devils' captain, who had not missed a game since March 4, 2012, fell 51 games short of matching Travis Zajac's club record:
• Travis Zajac, 401 (11/26/06 to 4/10/11)
• Ken Daneyko, 388 (11/4/89 to 3/29/94)
• Andy Greene, 350 (3/4/12 to 1//3/17)
• Sergei Brylin, 328 (10/8/03 to 4/6/08)
Since the start of the 2012-13 season, Greene had played more regular season games (333) entering Friday night's game than all but two NHL defensemen: Keith Yandle (336) and Brian Campbell (334).
Last Tuesday, the Devils beat the Hurricanes, 3-1, in Raleigh, North Carolina. It was just the second regulation road win for New Jersey this season. The only other such win was also against Carolina, 4-1 on Nov. 6.
The Devils have just 15 road wins in regulation dating back to the start of last season. Three have come against Carolina, and two have been in Buffalo.
Cory Schneider, who made 29 saves on 30 shots vs. the Canes, had not won a road game in regulation since beating the Jets 3-1 on Jan. 26, 2016, in Winnipeg.
Michael Cammalleri ended his career-worst 14-game goalless streak with the game-winning score for the Devils in the victory over the Hurricanes.
Cammalleri, who now has 101 career points for New Jersey, also exceeded the century mark in points with Los Angeles (205), Montreal (119) and Calgary (178).
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the only other current NHL player who has recorded at least 100 points for as many as four different teams is Jaromir Jagr (1,079 with Penguins, 201 with Capitals, 319 with Rangers and 109 with Panthers).
Plus/Minus:
Plus: The Devils outshot the Maple Leafs 14-0 in the third period of the loss Friday night, tying a franchise record set Oct. 29, 2002, in the period of a 2-1 loss vs. Carolina and Oct. 10, 1998, in the first period of a 2-1 loss at Chicago.
Minus: Half Empty. New Jersey reached the 41-game mark of the NHL season with 40 points, the fourth time in the last six, 82-game seasons the Devils are below NHL .500 at the midway point of the schedule.
