Devils Earn Big Point but Fall in OT to Bolts | GAME STORY

TAMPA, Fla. - Opening a three-game road trip and in a critical game in the standings, the Devils earned a big point despite falling, 4-3 in overtime, to the Tampa Bay Lightning Thursday night at Amalie Arena.

The Lightning improved to 47 points while New Jersey is at 45 but with four games in hand.

"I think we played a pretty solid game all the way through," Jesper Bratt said. "It sucks not to get those two put but in our division (Metro) those one points are huge, too."

Despite a massive wave of injuries that has befallen the Devils, the team played a hard and inspiring game against the odds.

New Jersey managed to erase a 3-1 deficit and earn a point.

Dawson Mercer opened the scoring for the Devils. Tampa responded with two goals by Glendening and another by Brayden Point to take a 3-1 lead. New Jersey’s Jesper Bratt and Nathan Bastian tied it at 3-3.

Darren Raddysh won the game in overtime.

"If you look back we'll for sure like that game. It was not our usual roster," Bastian said. "We had a lot of guys that stepped up tonight. Unfortunately, we didn't get the extra point."

Here are some observations from the game:

• The Devils thought they took a 4-3 lead just a few minutes after tying the game. Michael McLeod found a loose puck amongst a crowd of bodies and jammed the puck in. However, Tampa Bay challenged that the play was offside. After a review, the play was called for offside and the goal was waved off.

"That was a tough break, a close call, you have to move on," head coach Lindy Ruff said. "I think they made the right call."

• Bastian scored a goal in his 200^th career NHL game. And what a goal it was. He tallied at 3:53 of the third period to tie the game at 3-3. On the play, the puck was just outside the Tampa blue line. Defender Nick Perbix was going to retrieve and saw Bastian coming at him. I think Perbix expected Bastian to finish a check on him, thus opening up a D-to-D passing land along the blue line. Instead, Bastian peeled off and cut into the passing lane, intercepted the puck and went in on a breakaway. It was a beautiful snipe.

"It was nice to get one," Bastian said. "They've been hard to come by this year for me. To be able to help the team out and see the other guys excited means a lot to me."

• The Devils opened the game’s scoring after catching the Lightning in a line change. Colin Miller started the play with a great outlet pass from his own zone. He hit Erik Haula, who crossed the blue line and dropped the puck to a speeding Dawson Mercer. From there, Mercer swerved around Point to the slot for a shot. Bolts goalie Andei Vasilevskiy made the initial save but was sprawled on his face. Mercer located his own rebound at the goal line below the far circle. From a tough angle, Mercer smartly threw the puck back toward the goal and banked it in off Vasilevskiy.

• The Devils surrendered a backbreaker late in the first period. With the game tied at 1-1 and New Jersey on a power play, Luke Hughes tried skating the puck out of his own zone. The puck drifted from his possession. When Hughes tried to adjust his skates, he fell to the ice. Glendening picked up the puck and scored a shorthanded goal from long range. The Devils had played a particularly strong first period. To allow a goal with 98 seconds left was a tough break.

• The Devils caught a break just 1:49 into the period. After a giveaway at their own crease, Brayden Point threw the puck on goal. Goalie Vitek Vanecek stretched out the pad and while facedown reached back with his glove to try and cover the puck. Steven Stamkos appeared to jam the puck in but since he pushed Vanecek’s leg into the net in the process, the goal was waved off due to goalie interference.

• Forward Shane Bowers played his second career NHL game. Considering an injury limited his NHL debut to under two minutes of ice time, this was really kind of his debut.