Devils Drop Game in Vegas to Knights | GAME STORY

LAS VEGAS, NV - The Devils played a tight game against the defending Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights. New Jersey even took a 1-0 lead in the third period.

However, the game slipped away on a couple of unlucky bounces and Vegas skated away with a 3-1 victory at T-Mobile Arena Sunday afternoon.

"It was a hard fought hockey game. We knew it was going to be a tough game," interim head coach Travis Green said. "I liked the effort of our group tonight."

Captain Nico Hischier opened the scoring 38 seconds into the third period. But 2:19 minutes later a wide shot went off the arm of William Carrier and into the net to tie the game at 1-1. Then Jack Eichel’s shot changed direction after hitting a stick and the Knights took a 2-1 lead with under nine minutes left in regulation.

"At the end of the day, it was unlucky," captain Nico Hischier said. "It didn't go our way today."

"We were right there until the end," said goaltender Jake Allen. "That a great hockey game. It was a 2-1 game. It was entertaining. We played hard. They're a good hockey team. We were right there at the end. Maybe one bounce goes our way and it's a totally different game."

William Karlsson added an empty-netter to finish off the scoring.

The Devils finished their three-game road trip with a 1-2-0 record. The Devils return home for a three-game homestand starting Tuesday against Pittsburgh. 

"We'll go back to the drawing board on Tuesday. Put our work boots on and see what we can do," Allen said. "We need some momentum."

Here are some observations from the game:

• Allen couldn’t have asked for a better start to his Jersey tenure. In his debut Thursday night, Allen stopped 35 of 37 shots in a 6-2 win at Dallas. He followed that up with another strong showing Sunday afternoon against Vegas.

Allen made 34 saves on 36 shots. Oddly enough, Allen surrendered two goals on the first three shots he faced as a Devil. Since then, he’s stopped 68 of 70 shots.

"He had a great game," Green said. "He's been good for us in both starts."

The veteran goalie’s best save come when he had to move to his right and punched away a one-timer by Jack Eichel with the blocker. He also denied William Karlsson twice – yes, twice – on shorthanded breakaways.

• Vegas is a big team that takes up a lot of space in the defensive zone. The Devils weren’t having much success getting inside. Instead, the club opted for a shoot and crash mentality. The Devils tried to use their speed to gain separation. Whenever the Knights converged on them, the Devils would just shoot and then look to get bodies for rebounds. That’s what happened when Mercer scored his goal (that was disallowed). And it’s how Hischier score the game’s opening goal (that stood).

Jesper Bratt tried to get around the Vegas defender but ran out of space at the dot. He then just ripped it at the net. The puck sneaked through Thompson and in the ensuing scramble, Hischier was able to tally.

• The Devils got a boost to their lineup with the return of defenseman John Marino. He missed the previous two games with an upper-body injury. And the team leaned on him heavily in his return. He finished with a game high in ice time with 24:24 minutes.

• The Devils have struggled at the start of games all season. They’ve allowed the first goal in a game a league-high 49 times. A better start was a point of emphasis coming into the game against the Vegas. And it appeared that they got the start they wanted, taking a 1-0 lead just 1:44 minutes after the opening puck drop.

Timo Meier carried the puck into the zone and ripped a shot on goal. The rebound popped out to Dawson Mercer, who knocked it over the goal line. The puck, however, went off Mercer’s skate and initially the goal was waved off for being kicked in. Following a review, the goal was awarded to Mercer. But then the Golden Knights challenged for goaltender interference on Meier as he collided with goalie Logan Thompson after his shot. Following a second review, the goal was disallowed due to the goalie interference.

• Despite not getting that goal in the first period, the Devils did get out of the first period, and second period for that matter, with the game scoreless. It was a drastic improvement over Saturday's game when the Devils trailed 2-0 early.

"I liked our first 15 minutes of the game," Green said. "That was a step in the right direction from (Saturday's) game."