|
 In the New Jersey Devils' case, the plan is to lay the foundation
for an eventual return to the franchise's accustomed spot in the NHL
hierarchy.
Though neither franchise's objective was achieved Friday night at
Prudential Center, it was revealed that the Devils have much to do
before they can view themselves on equal footing with the Jets.
Mark Scheifele and right winger Blake Wheeler scored in a span of
2:43 early in the second period to lead the Jets to a 3-1 win over
the Devils.
Wheeler (goal and an assist) and center Mathieu Perreault (two
assists) finished with two points each, goaltender Michael
Hutchinson made 20 saves, and left winger Andrew Ladd also scored
for the Jets, who have opened with consecutive road wins.
"You want to start putting some wins together and have some fun,"
Ladd said of a two-game win streak in which Winnipeg outscored
Boston and New Jersey by an aggregate 9-3. "Our first game, I don't
think we liked our full effort.
"I thought we did a lot better job of finding that effort tonight."
Goaltender Cory Schneider made 27 saves and left winger Jiri Tlusty
scored the Devils' only goal.
"We just didn't execute tonight," Devils center Adam Henrique said.
"We want to play high-tempo, fast-paced game and it seemed like we
were a little step behind, a little bit off here or there."
The Jets took a 1-0 lead 1:13 into the second period when Scheifele
whipped a shot from the left faceoff circle past Schneider, and
Wheeler doubled the lead with a wrist shot of his own from the left
faceoff circle 2:43 later.
"All it takes is five minutes and the game gets away from you a
little bit," Schneider said. "We did a nice job not letting (the
game get) too far away."
Tlusty halved the deficit with a power play goal at 12:53 of the
period. Tlusty engaged left winger Mike Cammalleri in a game of
catch on the left side of the ice before curling toward the net and
stuffing a shot past Hutchinson.
But any momentum the Devils might have generated after Tlusty's goal
was snuffed out by Ladd's power play score.
"We re-established a lead when we needed to after they tightened,"
Winnipeg coach Paul Maurice said. "It's so important and I thought
we settled the game pretty well after that."
Entering its 41st season, New Jersey is a franchise in the nascent
stages of an across-the-board rebuild. Gone is Lou Lamoriello, who
had spent 28 seasons serving at varying times as president, general
manager and coach.
Lamoriello resigned as team president on July 23 to take Toronto's
vacant GM job. Replacing Lamoriello as Devils GM is Ray Shero, who
used the offseason to overhaul the franchise's hockey operations
department. Among his myriad hires was John Hynes, who became the
17th head coach in franchise history on June 2.
[to top of second column] |
Devils owner Josh Harris met with reporters two hours before the
game to offer his state of the union address. Harris spoke for nine
minutes, mostly about the franchise's business gains during the
offseason.
Harris said the Devils are "fifth in the NHL in tickets sold,"
although he would not disclose the exact amount. "Ticket sales are
actually increasing." Harris also said the Devils "have about a 90
percent" season ticket renewal rate.
Harris also spoke about the on-ice product and was empathic about
his vision for its future success.
"We're in a hurry," Harris said. "I'm not a patient person, I've
never been a patient person. I hate to lose, so when we lose I don't
have a good time. I want to win, but I'm not willing to sacrifice
our ultimate goal which is to be an elite team."
NOTES: New Jersey named D Andy Greene the 11th captain in franchise
history prior to the game. LW Mike Cammalleri, C Patrik Elias, RW
Adam Henrique and C Travis Zajac were named alternate captains. ...
Winnipeg D Grant Clitsome missed the game with an upper-body injury.
... The Jets scratched D Adam Pardy, D Paul Postma and RW Anthony
Peluso. ... New Jersey scratched RW Brian O'Neill, LW Stefan Matteau
and D Eric Gelinas. ... Among the listed scouts in attendance was
John Tortorella, who previously coached the Tampa Bay Lightning, New
York Rangers and Vancouver Canucks. Tortorella was listed under USA
Hockey, who he will coach in next September's World Cup of Hockey
tournament. ... Both Winnipeg and New Jersey were 1-for-4 on the
power play. ... The Jets out-attempted New Jersey, 44-32. ... Hynes
would not tip his hand when asked if Schneider will start Saturday
in Washington against the Capitals. ... The Jets will stay in the
New York area this weekend as they have games Monday and Tuesday
against the Islanders and Rangers. "Games are only going to get
tougher as we go to New York," LW Ladd said. "So stay with it and
keep getting better."
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
