Bratt has 4 points, Devils cruise past Senators for 3rd straight win

OTTAWA – Jesper Bratt had a goal and three assists, and Nico Daws made 25 saves in his season debut for the New Jersey Devils, a 6-2 win against the Ottawa Senators at Canadian Tire Centre on Friday.

“That was a lot of fun,” Daws said. “Obviously, I was pretty nervous for the first period and getting the first couple of shots, but after that I kind of settled into it and settled into the pace of the game. I’m happy to get the win.”

Daws missed six months after having hip surgery in June. He was recalled Wednesday after a three-game conditioning stint with Utica of the American Hockey League.

“A great first game,” New Jersey coach Lindy Ruff said of Daws' performance. “He probably made three or four game-changing saves that, you know, momentum could’ve went either way.”

Jack Hughes and Luke Hughes each had a goal and two assists, and Tyler Toffoli and Dawson Mercer scored for the Devils (19-13-2), who have won three straight after losing three in a row.

“Everybody played fantastic,” Daws said. “It was a full 60-minute effort from everybody, which was huge. Obviously, I can’t take all the credit for the game; they did basically everything, they made my job really easy tonight.”

Drake Batherson and Jacob Bernard-Docker scored for the Senators (13-18-0), who had won two straight. Joonas Korpisalo made 24 saves.

“I don’t think that we were very effective,” Ottawa interim coach Jacques Martin said. “We didn’t play to our game. When I look at the game, we had a lot of frustrations tonight. To me, we took a step back. It reminded me a little bit about when I took over (on Dec. 18).”

New Jersey was 2-for-4 on the power play; Ottawa was 0-for-4.

“The penalty-killing did a fantastic job tonight,” Ruff said. “And part of it was we got a couple of big saves that allowed us to keep them off the board.”

Batherson gave Ottawa a 1-0 lead at 9:47 of the first period when he took a centering pass from Brady Tkachuk and slipped the puck under the outstretched glove of Daws in tight. It was Batherson’s fourth goal in four games.

Jack Hughes tied it 1-1 at 13:10 on the power play with a wrist shot from the left face-off dot that went under Korpisalo’s left arm.

“They obviously got a few goals on the power play tonight,” Batherson said. “That’s a really good top six over there. You give them time and space and they’re going to score. That’s what happened there.”

Bratt gave the Devils a 2-1 lead at 19:52, also scoring on the power play with a wrist shot into the top right corner from the right slot.

“This was a huge game for us,” Bratt said. “We really needed these two points. It was a full team effort and obviously Nico played great in net and helped us out getting this win.”

Mercer extended it to 3-1 at 7:17 of the second period after cutting in front and chipping the puck over Korpisalo’s glove.

“You’re disappointed because I felt the team was going in the right direction,” Martin said. “We were making some progress. Tonight was a step back.”

Toffoli pushed it to 4-1 at 14:47, one-timing a pass from Bratt in the middle of the slot.

“We met before the game and talked about some of our offensive-zone play, and I thought they responded,” Ruff said of the Toffoli-Jack Hughes-Bratt line.

Brendan Smith made it 5-1 at 3:59 after taking a stretch pass from Nico Hischier and finishing on the forehand on a breakaway seconds after exiting the penalty box. It was Smith’s first goal since April 24, 2022.

“I just kind of blacked out,” Smith said. “But it’s great when it ends up in the back of the net. It’s been a long time coming. Normally, your first [with a new team] doesn’t come in the second year, but for me, I’m excited about it. It’s a great moment for me.”

Bernard-Docker cut it to 5-2 at 13:25 when his point shot bounced in off Smith’s chest.

“It is a letdown,” Martin said. “But that’s part of being a professional, I think. I think this team has a lot of learning to do, not only on the ice. I think, to me, on the mental side of the game.”

Luke Hughes one-timed a pass from Alexander Holtz at 17:28 for the 6-2 final and his first three-point game in the NHL (36 games).

“I think we strayed away from our identity and didn’t play our game tonight,” Tkachuk said. “Just frustrating.”

NOTES: Jack and Luke Hughes became the first siblings to each get three or more points in a game since Henrik Sedin (three assists) and Daniel Sedin (three assists) did so for the Vancouver Canucks on Dec. 15, 2017. … Bratt reached 200 assists (423 games) on New Jersey’s first goal; among players to make their NHL debut with the franchise, only Scott Gomez (351), Kirk Muller (355) and Brian Rafalski (421) required fewer games to also reach the mark.