Devils Fall Short to Stars, 4-2

Published: Sunday, February 23, 2025

by Patrick Corsello

NEWARK, N.J. - After a two-week break due to a thrilling Four Nations Face-Off tournament, the New Jersey Devils (31-21-6) were back and played Saturday night against the Dallas Stars (36-18-2). Unfortunately for NJD, they would fall by a score of 4-2.  

It was certainly in question whether either team would be rusty coming out of the long break. For the Devils, that didn’t seem to be a problem, as the team looked fast and loose to start the game. The home team controlled the ice through the first few minutes.  

But despite the Devils controlling the play, it was the Stars who would strike first. Evgenii Dadonov didn’t give up on the play and put it past Jake Allen to give the Stars a 1-0 lead with much time to play in the period.  

It began to unravel for the Devils, as Brendan Dillon would go to the box for unsportsmanlike conduct just under the 15:00 mark of the period. That would prove costly for the Devils, as almost immediately Thomas Harley scored on the power play to give Dallas a 2-0 lead in period one.  

Harley scored but then went to the box for tripping with under 10 minutes remaining in the period. This was a chance for the Devils to cut the lead in half with plenty of time to go. Yet the Devils were unable to connect on the power play and the game stayed 2-0 Stars.  

The ice evened out through the rest of the period, but it was the Stars who were up by a pair heading into period two. As the second period got underway, the Devils needed to come out hot. They struggled to do that as Dallas was able to keep the pressure on.  

With 12:21 remaining, blood was drawn, as Nico Hischier received a double minor for high sticking. The Devils desperately needed to kill this penalty already being down by two.   As per usual “kill” chants rang from the crowd hoping to ignite this New Jersey defense. The Devils were able to kill off the double minor and finally were showing some signs of life in this one.  

5:30 was left on the clock in the second, and Dallas’s Cody Ceci went to the box for holding. The Devils went on the power play, once again hoping to cut this lead in half. But no harm was done, as Casey DeSmith stood tall, and the Stars were able to kill the penalty.  

Defensive hockey was the story of the second, as neither team was able to score despite a couple of grade-A chances for NJD. The period ended with the Stars still leading 2-0.  

Though the lead was not insurmountable, the Devils needed to score at least two goals in 20 minutes if they wanted to get back into this one. A 200-foot game was necessary if the Devils wanted to have a chance.   

The Devils had an opportunity to get on the board with 10:42 to play as Ilya Lybushkin went to the box for holding. This time, they capitalized, as fresh off the Four Nations tournament Jack Hughes clapped a one-timer into the back of the net.  

Yet almost immediately after, Dallas answered back, this time it was Matt Duchene ripping one past Allen. A flurry of goals then immediately commenced; Jack Hughes scored his second of the game, and this game was getting interesting with eight minutes remaining in the third.  

Hischier was hit with a high stick in the final minute of the third, and with Allen pulled, it resulted in the Devils’ last chance to tie this game. They put up a good fight but were unable to complete the comeback, and Wyatt Johnston scored an empty net goal to make the score 4-2 Stars.  

The Devils next game comes in Nashville on Sunday in the second half of a back-to-back, where they look to get back to their winning ways. Puck drop will be at 6:00 p.m. EST from Bridgestone Arena. 

Pat Corsello is an Assistant Music Director and can be reached at patrick.corsello@student.shu.edu. 

 

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