Devils win for the Moms and beat the Capitals 3-2 | GAME STORY

“It was beautiful,” Tatar said of Hughes’ pass. “I stopped playing for a second, it was a great play by Hughes and a good shot by Haula. I wasn’t sure how (Lindgren) saved it, but I still saw it trickle in and then stop, so I just sprinted to get the (goal).”

Seven minutes into the second half, Dillon scored his first goal as a Devil to give New Jersey a 2-1 lead. Paul Cotter was the net forward who challenged Lindgren and put pressure on the Capitals goaltender. Dillon’s shot hit John Carlson’s stick, who easily redirected the shot and helped the Devils’ blue liner give New Jersey a 2-1 lead.

“It doesn’t matter how it gets in,” Dillon smiled. “At the end of the day, it’s nice to make a contribution. I don’t do it often, but it’s nice to be able to. We tried to put pucks on net, (the Capitals) do a great job blocking shots, we talked about that before the game. So I just tried to find a path, get them there, and Cotter did a great job on that front.”

There were waves of pressure from the Capitals throughout the second period; However, the Devils stayed structured and weathered the storm. Tensions rose nine minutes into the midfield as Johnathan Kovacevic and Brandon Duhaime dropped the gloves. Duhaime also fought Stefan Noesen in New Jersey’s last game against Washington on October 19.

Jesper Bratt converted a penalty late in the second period for New Jersey’s third power play of the game. After a clean faceoff win at the start of a power play, Dougie Hamilton’s shot went high past Lindgren to give the Devils a 3-1 lead. The power play tally was New Jersey’s second power play goal against the league’s fourth-best penalty killer.

In the first four minutes of the third period, the Capitals ran only their second power play of the game. Washington held the zone for over a minute to gain the man advantage and keep New Jersey from getting new penalty killers. After Johnathan Kovacevic was knocked down, John Carlson saw Connor McMichael open the ball and quickly passed. McMichael tipped in the pass, tying the game at 1.

After the Capitals’ power play goal, which cut the Devils’ lead to 3-2, Washington increased the pressure. In the final two minutes of regulation, Washington pulled out its goalie and increased the challenge. Allen went from post to post and made a glove save to save McMichael. Blocked shots and a strong performance from the Devils helped them hang on and get the win.

“There were a lot of great blocks from Mercer and Hischier,” Tatar said of the Devils’ performance late in the game. “Also a great save from everyone. It was a critical moment in the last minute, but we stood up and held on.”

“We knew Washington would get a boost coming from a two-point deficit in the third,” Allen said. “We found a way to get through it, especially in the last two, two and a half minutes. There are some big blocks from the guys and it won’t always be pretty, but you have to find ways to win. It’s hard to put together a full 60-minute performance in this league against really good teams that we’re tracking in the standings. Two big wins this week against division opponents.”