The New Jersey Devils won in a thriller over the New York Islanders on Saturday night. But it didn’t come without controversy.
Jack Hughes’ overtime winner couldn’t have come at a better time. The Devils entered Saturday’s contest on a six-game losing streak against their division rivals. They hadn’t scored at UBS Arena in seemingly forever. And they were coming off two straight blown third-period leads — albeit redeeming themselves in overtime and in shootouts in both matchups.
Jack Hughes ensured they snapped the losing streak at 1:18 in overtime. Jack took a pass from his brother, Luke. He bolted up the ice and found himself on a breakaway.
Even if he faced the great Ilya Sorokin, it was no contest as Jack flicked a wrist shot over the legendary netminder’s shoulder for the win.
That said, Luke appeared to have tripped up Islanders’ star defenseman Matthew Schaefer in a battle for the puck that led to Jack’s game-winning shot. Still, there was no call, and the Devils finally found a way past the Islanders.
Islanders Question Non-Call Before Jack Hughes’ Winner
Per Ethan Sears of the New York Post, via Yahoo Sports, Islanders forward Simon Holmstrom disagreed with the no-call.
Holmstrom said, “I think it’s an obvious penalty. If you compare them to the other ones, I think it’s pretty obvious. It is what it is.”
Schaefer had possession of the puck when he skated toward the crease. He looked like he was on the verge of shooting the puck at Devils goaltender Jake Allen. Then Luke got his stick on the puck, causing Schaefer to fall.
That is where the Islanders were expecting a tripping call. Luke scooped up the puck while Schaefer slid into the boards. By the time Schaefer stood back up, Luke had already passed the puck to Jack, who had nobody but Sorokin in front of him.
Overall, it may have been a no-call. But it was so close that, if Luke were called for tripping, it may have generated controversy anyway.
Devils Overcome Two-Goal Deficit Despite Islanders’ Frustration
While Jack’s game-winning goal was the ultimate difference-maker, overtime never would have happened if New Jersey didn’t overcome a two-goal deficit to begin with. No matter how the Islanders look at it, it is on them as a team to have allowed the Devils to score two unanswered goals that forced overtime.
It is no different from how the Devils could take the blame earlier in the week for allowing opponents to climb back into two games during the third period. This time around, the roles were reversed in a rivalry the Islanders had outright dominated lately.
For the Devils, it is now about going over what went right in the third period and comparing it to what went wrong in the third period over their two games before Saturday.
As for the Islanders? They must look at what went wrong in the third that gave the Devils a chance to ultimately finish their comeback win.
Devils’ Jack Hughes OT Winner Sparks Controversy in Islanders Victory