Damon Severson scored with 2:13 remaining in overtime as the New Jersey Devils erased a two-goal deficit and ended an eight-game home losing streak with a 4-3 victory over the New York Rangers Saturday afternoon in Newark, N.J.
New Jersey earned its first home win since a 3-0 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Dec. 6 thanks to Severson’s first career overtime goal.
After knocking Rangers’ defenseman Adam Fox off the puck in the defensive zone, Severson sped up the right wing on a 2-on-1 with Nico Hischier. Instead of passing to Hischier, Severson ripped a wrist shot from the right circle that sailed over goalie Igor Shesterkin’s glove.
Severson’s dramatic goal came after Jack Hughes accounted for the first three goals of the rally. Hughes started the comeback midway through the second, set up Jesper Bratt’s tally and then scored the tying goal with 9:28 left in regulation.
Jimmy Vesey and Julien Gauthier scored early in the first and second periods while Chris Kreider also scored for the Rangers, who blew their second two-goal lead this season against the Devils.
New Jersey’s Vitek Vanecek had 31 saves, including 12 after the second period.
Shesterkin made 39 saves, including 20 in the opening period.
The Rangers opened the scoring 94 seconds in when Vesey cut across the slot to the left faceoff circle, faked a shot and sent the puck over Vanecek’s left shoulder after getting by New Jersey defenseman Brendan Smith.
New York opened a 2-0 lead 3:28 into the second as Fox slid the puck through his legs in the slot to Gauthier, who pushed the puck by Vanecek while being hooked from behind by Dougie Hamilton.
After Hughes intercepted Barclay Goodrow’s errant pass and split New York defenders Braden Schneider and Ben Harpur for a goal with 10:36 remaining in the second, Kreider chipped in a rebound from the left doorstep past Vanecek with 6:45 left.
New Jersey made it a one-goal game with 11:32 remaining when Bratt hammered a one-timer from the right circle over Shesterkin’s right shoulder and clanged off the crossbar. Just more than two minutes later, Hughes blasted a shot from the left circle past Shesterkin’s stick.
–Field Level Media
