Devils score eight against Golden Knights, take over first wild card

LAS VEGAS -- The New Jersey Devils moved into the first wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference with an 8-3 win against the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena on Wednesday.
New Jersey (36-26-8) won for the third time in four games (3-1-0) and leads the Columbus Blue Jackets by one point for the top wild card in the East.

Blake Coleman scored two goals, and Keith Kinkaid made 39 saves for the Devils, who trail the Philadelphia Flyers by one point for third place in the Metropolitan Division.
WATCH: [All Devils vs. Golden Knights highlights]
"I think it was nice to find the back of the net as much as we did tonight," coach John Hynes said. "I think in the last couple of weeks, we played some really good hockey but didn't get rewarded in the score sheet or the win column. It was a great environment to play in tonight."
The eight goals were a season high for the Devils (their previous high came in a 7-5 win at the Chicago Blackhawks on Nov. 12), who were coming off a 3-2 shootout win at the Nashville Predators on March 10 to begin a six-game road trip.
"I think the bigger the game, the more we show up," said Kinkaid, who is 8-2-0 with a 2.36 goals-against average and .928 save percentage in his past 10 games dating to Feb. 13. "Those were tough games, in tough buildings. We know what we need to do, and we've just got to stick with what works with us.
"We're aware of [the standings], but ultimately we control our own destiny. If we keep winning, we're going to make the playoffs."
The Golden Knights (45-20-5) went 4-1-0 on a five-game road trip but have now lost three in a row at home. They lead the Pacific Division by 10 points over the San Jose Sharks, who won 4-3 in overtime at the Edmonton Oilers, and trail the Predators by five points for first in the Western Conference.

"There were a couple games on the road trip where we weren't at our best either," said defenseman Colin Miller, who scored with 1:05 left in the second period to get Vegas within 4-2. "We were fortunate to come away from that road trip being 4-1. We just have to move on now."
Erik Haula scored two goals for the Golden Knights. Marc-Andre Fleury was pulled in the second period after allowing four goals on 11 shots. Maxime Lagace made 13 saves in relief.
"The goaltenders didn't lose this game," coach Gerard Gallant said. "The team did."
Coleman scored shorthanded at 6:23 of the first period to give the Devils a 1-0 lead. Nico Hischier scored at 8:10 to make it 2-0.
"I think if you look at the first period, they were the much better team," Hynes said. "We were probably lucky to get out of that first period up 2-0."

Travis Zajac (1:55) and Stefan Noesen (2:31) each scored in a 36-second span in the second period to make it 4-0.
Haula scored on the power play at 11:08 to make it 4-1.
New Jersey scored four straight goals in the third period. Coleman made it 5-2 at 2:04, Michael Grabner scored for a 6-2 lead at 7:02, Kyle Palmieri beat Lagace on the power play at 10:21 to make it 7-2, and Taylor Hall scored his eighth goal in 11 games to make it 8-2 at 14:31.
Haula scored his second of the night to make it 8-3 with 28 seconds left.
"The first period, I thought we were good," Haula said. "We were all over them, we had all four lines going. It was a tough night."

Goal of the game

Coleman's goal at 6:23 of the first period.

Save of the game

Kinkaid stopping Nate Schmidt at 11:40 of the first period.

Highlight of the game

Hischier's goal at 8:10 of the first period.

They said it

"There's a lot of emotion this time of year. It's understanding how to handle those situations and not lose yourself, but regather yourself and push yourself. I thought we handled it fairly well at times, but there are definitely some things in this game and the Nashville game we can continue to work on with our guys." -- Devils coach John Hynes
"That's the weirdest game I've ever been a part of in my career so far. I don't even know what to think about this game, to be honest with you." -- Golden Knights forward David Perron

Need to know

The Devils had not scored eight goals in a game since an 8-5 win against the New York Rangers on Dec. 12, 2008. ... Grabner had an assist on Zajac's goal for his first point in nine games since being acquired in a trade from the Rangers on Feb. 22. … Haula has 11 power-play goals this season, the most on the Golden Knights.

What's next

Devils: At the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday (4 p.m. ET; FS-W, MSG+, NHL.TV)
Golden Knights: Host the Minnesota Wild on Friday (10:30 p.m. ET; ATTSN-RM, FS-N, NHL.TV)