Former Devils Goaltender Akira Schmid Blanks New Jersey in Return to The Rock

Published: Saturday, December 6, 2025

by Julian Landin

NEWARK, N.J. - The New Jersey Devils (16-11-1) dropped their fourth game in a row after a tough Friday night fight at Prudential, falling 3-0 to the Vegas Golden Knights (13-6-8).  

With the loss, the Devils have lost seven of their last ten, and fell to sixth place in the Metropolitan after starting this four game homestand in first.  For the Golden Knights, it is their third in a row, as they now sit in second place of the Pacific Division. With another victory, the Golden Knights are 10-2-3 all-time against New Jersey.

New Jersey has been shut out 3-0 in back-to-back games, as they lost to the Dallas Stars Wednesday night, making it the first time they have been shut out in consecutive home games since 2008. 

Halfway into the first period, Devils captain Nico Hischier appeared to score a goal that was called back after a Vegas challenge found Timo Meier to be offside. Six minutes later, Vegas appeared to score but it was overruled due to a high stick.

The Devils had many other scoring opportunities they could not connect with, while Vegas played an efficient game, commanding the puck.

The Devils applied pressure in the second period, but Akira Schmid and the Vegas defense were able to weather it. Schmid denied a rush from Hischier and Meier, making 11 total saves across the period.

Shea Theodore scored a goal for the Knights in the closing minute of the first period, while Tomas Hertl and Ivan Barbashev had the second and third goals respectively in the final frame.

Devils goaltender Jacob Markstrom finished with 22 saves, remarking that it was his sole responsibility for letting in the three pucks that got behind him, and that he has to be better moving forward. 

Former Devil Akira Schmid was in goal for the Golden Knights in his first game against his former team, and he put up a great performance,  as he stopped all 24 shots on goal he faced. 

Schmid’s on-ice recognition was met with mixed cheers and boos from the crowd. Schmid noted having more initial nerves for this game compared to others, but eventually shook them off. Schmid played 43 games over three seasons (14-18-3) for the Devils before being traded alongside Alexander Holtz in 2024 for forward Paul Cotter and a third-round draft pick.

Devils Head Coach Sheldon Keefe spoke after the game, noting frustration on the bench, and that the Knights came into the third period of the game with more “jump” than the Devils did.

The Devils are looking to bounce back and break their four-game losing streak, facing the Boston Bruins on the road on Saturday, with puck drop set for 7 p.m. 

Julian Landin can be reached at julian.landin@student.shu.edu.

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