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Devils' Hall, Wedgewood among standouts in preseason debuts

September 27, 2016, 11:44 AM ET [41 Comments]
Todd Cordell
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The New Jersey Devils kicked off their preseason schedule on Monday night with a pair of split squad games against the Philadelphia Flyers and Montreal Canadiens.

On the back off some strong goaltending performances the Devils came out on top in both games. They topped a severely watered down Flyers team 2-0 while they also picked up a 3-2 win in Montreal despite being out played for much of the game.

Some notes on last night's action:

1) Goaltending was definitely the story for the Devils last night. Keith Kinkaid and Anders Lindback weren't tested much but did as well as possible stopping 21-21 shots they faced against the Flyers.

Meanwhile the Devils' two best goaltending prospects - Scott Wedgewood and Mackenzie Blackwood - shared the crease in Montreal and were absolutely stellar. Wedgewood stopped 26-27 (.963SV%) in 40 minutes of action and Blackwood locked it down in the 3rd period stopping 13-14 (.929SV%) en route to a 3-2 win over a pretty strong Montreal team that featured Alex Galchenyuk, Brendan Gallagher, David Desharnais and Jeff Petry, among others.

In terms of the battle for the backup position I'd think Wedgewood's performance has him out in front of Kinkaid, who stopped just six shots he faced over half the game in New Jersey.

2) Taylor Hall played his first game in a Devils' uniform last night and skated alongside Adam Henrique and Devante Smith-Pelly on the top unit. Hall certainly came as advertised as he used his blazing speed to blow through the neutral zone and gain the opposing line with possession with little resistance. Hall was all over the ice and almost every shift he and Henrique were setting each other up for Grade A chances. Hall didn't register a point but he had three shots on net and plays he made eventually led to both of Henrique's goals. DSP had a few good looks as well but was unable to convert on any of them. I'm willing to give him more than one game on the top unit but I continue to believe he's not the best fit to play with Hall and Henrique. He doesn't have a history of producing with any consistency and I worry that keeping up could be an issue.

3) I was impressed by Joseph Blandisi's performance in Montreal. He was very dynamic through the neutral zone and was one of the few players in the lineup who were able to consistently gain the opposing line with possession. On one shift Blandisi fought through a check and maintained control of the puck in the offensive zone. That led to two chances. On the very next shift he gained the line with possession again and registered an assist on Michael McLeod's goal. Blandisi also contributed four shots on goal, three hits and stepped in for McLeod when he was decked by Petry. He certainly made the most of his 12 minutes and change.

4) Yohann Auvitu certainly didn't look like a guy playing his first NHL (preseason) game. He was patient with the puck and looked comfortable quarterbacking the power play. When all was said and done he registered a pair of assists while logging more than 20 minutes of ice.

5) Nick Lappin was absolutely dominant against the Flyers. He scored both of the game's goals and New Jersey out attempted Philadelphia 13-1(!!) at 5 v 5 when he was on the ice. He's a bit of a long shot to make the team but he'll certainly put himself into the picture with performances like that.

6) Ben Lovejoy had a strong performance against the Flyers as well. The Devils won the shot attempt battle 17-5 with him on the ice at full-strength and he made a play in the paint that saved a goal. He logged a team-high of ~25 minutes; including almost six on the penalty kill.

Up next for the Devils is a game against the Flyers on Wednesday night. The game will be aired on MSG+.

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