Devils Fall in Home Opener to Maple Leafs, 4-2

Published: Friday, October 11, 2024

by Patrick Corsello

NEWARK, N.J - Nightmares for Sheldon Keefe against his former team, as new Toronto head coach Craig Berube and the Maple Leafs came to the Rock and took down the Devils 4-2. 

It was the New Jersey Devils home opener on Thursday night, as they took on the Toronto Maple Leafs before a massive crowd of red, with some blue sprinkles dispersed. The Maple Leafs were looking for their first victory of the season after a 1-0 loss against the Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday night. They looked to hand the Devils their first loss of the season, after NJ’s successful 2-0 road trip to Czechia against the Buffalo Sabres. 

It was a little bit of a back-and-forth in the first period, as both teams generated pressure in the offensive zone but couldn’t find the back of the net. That was until Max Pacioretty scored for Toronto right before the 10-minute mark of the period. This was Pacioretty’s first of the season, and his first as a Leaf since making the roster off a Professional Tryout Offer over the preseason.

It was quickly unraveling for the Devils; just a few minutes after the Pacioretty goal, Bobby McMann made it a 2-0 lead for Toronto. The domination continued from the Maple Leafs, as Steven Lorentz scored off a backhand shot extending Toronto’s lead to three. This was the second goal of the period by the Leafs fourth line. The Devils scored late in the period as Jesper Bratt scored his first of the season, connecting on the power play after an interference penalty on former Toronto captain John Tavares.

A storyline heading into this one was Dennis Hildeby getting his first career start in net for Toronto, courtesy of the back-to-back games. He looked solid in period one, stopping 10 of the Devils’ 11 shots on goal. 

The Devils faithful shouted their patented “kill” chant early in period two, as Brenden Dillon took a tripping penalty. After great defensive play by NJ, they were able to kill the penalty and get back to five-on-five play.  

The Devils looked to translate their great defensive play to the offensive side of the ice, still being down two goals. After success on their first power play, they attempted to capitalize on another, as Maple Leafs’ Conor Timmins was sent to the box for interference with less than 10 minutes to play in the second period.  
Unfortunately for NJ, they were unable to connect and stayed down 3-1, despite a brief five-on-three when Leafs’ Sam Benoit also went to the box for tripping. 

It was all Toronto offensively through the two periods, as John Tavares added to the Maple Leafs’ tally, making it 4-1 with about four minutes remaining in period two. But Timo Meier was able to add some spark, as he scored with seconds remaining in the second period to cut the Devils deficit to two. Still, down 4-2 against a quick Maple Leafs team, it was going to be an uphill battle heading into the third for the Devils.  

Unfortunately, the Devils failed to convert any goals in the third period, losing their home opener 4-2. While the Devils had more shots on goal than Toronto (24-22), they could not find their rhythm to pull off a late comeback. 

This is the first loss of the season for NJ, and they will look to bounce back Saturday on the road against the Washington Capitals, with puck drop at 7 p.m. 

Patrick Corsello can be reached at patrick.corsello@student.shu.edu.

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