Devils recover, defeat Blackhawks in OT in opener

NEWARK, N.J. -- Jack Hughes scored his second goal 57 seconds into overtime, and the New Jersey Devils recovered for a 4-3 win in their season opener against the Chicago Blackhawks at Prudential Center on Friday.

Hughes skated into the Blackhawks zone on a 2-on-1 and patiently waited for an opening before faking a shot against goalie Kevin Lankinen and scoring into an open net with his backhand from the slot.
"I had a lot of options going through my mind during the skate, and [Ryan Graves] drove the net, so I had the patience and kind of moved the goalie and had an empty net after that," Hughes said.
Following the goal, Hughes threw his stick into the stands before celebrating with his teammates.
"That was hilarious, I don't really know what happened there," he said. "Some of my buddies have been texting me about it."
Dougie Hamilton and Andreas Johnsson scored, and Jonathan Bernier made 24 saves for the Devils. Hamilton and Bernier each made his New Jersey debut.

Alex DeBrincat, Kirby Dach and Dominik Kubalik scored, and Patrick Kane and Tyler Johnson each had two assists for the Blackhawks, who were coming off a 4-2 loss at the Colorado Avalanche in their opener on Wednesday. Lankinen made 25 saves.
"I thought we had stretches in the game where we were really good, like some of the second period," Chicago coach Jeremy Colliton said. "I felt like we were close to taking over. I think ultimately, we just have to find a way to be more consistent shift to shift so we can build momentum."
Dach cut it to 3-2 at 16:07 of the third. The Blackhawks pulled Lankinen while on a power play for a 6-on-4 advantage, and Dach was able to get the rebound of Kane's initial shot and score from the right post.
Lankinen was then pulled again for an extra attacker, and following a scramble in the Devils zone, Kubalik tied it 3-3 on a shot from the right face-off circle with 26 seconds remaining.
"You want to win, so nice to come from behind … but [when] we lose those even in overtime, they don't feel good," Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews said. "We just have to make sure we're not giving up too much offense, too easy."
Hamilton, a defenseman who signed a seven-year, $63 million contract on July 28, scored from the high slot 17 seconds into the game to give the Devils a 1-0 lead.
"It was a great pass (by Pavel Zacha)," Hamilton said. "It wasn't my best shot, but a good screen, I think. I'm obviously happy it went in."
The goal was the fastest to start a season in New Jersey history. The previous record was set by Zach Parise, who scored 26 seconds into a 4-0 win at the Carolina Hurricanes on Oct. 10, 2006.
"It couldn't have been a better start for [Hamilton]," Devils coach Lindy Ruff said. "We know what he can bring, we know what he can add, and to get involved offensively right off the bat was great for our team."
DeBrincat scored 51 seconds into the second period with a one-timer from below the left circle on the power play to tie it 1-1, but Hughes gave the Devils a 2-1 lead on a spinning wrist shot from the left circle at 17:58 of the second.
"[Hughes] wants to build off of where he was last year and he wants to get better every day," Ruff said. "I think there's still a lot to learn and he's got tremendous talent. He wants to hit his next level."

Johnsson pushed the lead to 3-1 when he jammed in a loose puck in the crease at 6:34 of the third period. Dawson Mercer got the primary assist on the play in his NHL debut.
"It's been a while since we had crowds, but just to have them back and loud and excited, it was awesome," Hamilton said. "I didn't really know what to expect, and it was definitely way higher than what I expected. I hope we can keep that going."
NOTES: Blackhawks defenseman Seth Jones had an assist, two shots and two takeaways in a game-high 26:08 of ice time. ... Goalie Marc-Andre Fleury is expected to start for Chicago at the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday. Fleury played 13 seasons for the Penguins (2003-17) and won the Stanley Cup three times (2009, 2016, 2017). ... Bernier started a season opener for the first time since Oct. 7, 2015, when he made 26 saves for the Toronto Maple Leafs in a 3-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens. … Graves, a defenseman, had an assist in his first game for the Devils. Forwards Jimmy Vesey (one hit, one blocked shot) and Tomas Tatar (assist, two shots) also each made his New Jersey debut, as did defenseman Christian Jaros (one shot, three hits, one blocked shot).