New Jersey 4, Buffalo 1
When: 1:00 PM ET, Friday, October 4, 2024
Where: O2 Arena, Prague
Referees:
Ghislain Hebert, Chris Lee
Linesmen:
Michel Cormier, Brad Kovachik
Attendance:
16913
By Field Level Media
Jacob Markstrom made 30 saves to help the New Jersey Devils earn a 4-1 win against the Buffalo Sabres at the 2024 NHL Global Series in Prague, Czechia, on Friday.
Johnathan Kovacevic and Paul Cotter each had a goal and an assist for New Jersey.
Owen Power scored, and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 19 saves for Buffalo.
The two teams will face off again on Saturday.
Leading by two goals after 20 minutes, Nico Hischier extended the Devils' lead at 3:29 of the second period. Nathan Bastian collected the puck below the goal line and sent it out front to the New Jersey captain, who wired a wrist shot from the high slot that went glove side on Luukkonen.
The Sabres started to pick up their game midway through the frame and continued that pressure into the third.
They were finally rewarded at 10:07 of the final period. Defenseman Bowen Byram was in front to send a short pass to JJ Peterka. Peterka went behind the net before dishing to Power, who was alone at the bottom of the right circle to cut it to 3-1.
Cotter scored an empty-net goal at 17:28 for the 4-1 final.
Stefan Noesen gave the Devils a 1-0 lead in the first period. Kovacevic intercepted Buffalo defenseman Mattias Samuelsson's pass and fed Noesen streaking into the right circle to beat Luukkonen blocker side at 8:39.
Kovacevic made it 2-0 at 15:38. Jonas Siegenthaler took a feed from Dawson Mercer and quickly fed it to Kovacevic, who fired a point shot through traffic that deflected off a Sabres player and into the net.
Buffalo held a 4-2 advantage in shots on goal and had out-attempted the Devils 10-4 nearly six and a half minutes into the opening period. But the Sabres struggled to generate offense after that, going nearly nine minutes without a shot on goal.
The Sabres had their best chance of the period with three minutes remaining when Nicolas Aube-Kubel had a wide-open side of the net but was denied by Markstrom, who made a diving stop with his pads.
--Field Level Media
Top Game Performances
| New Jersey |
|
Buffalo |
|
Paul Cotter 2 |
Points |
Owen Power 1 |
|
Paul Cotter 1 |
Goals |
Owen Power 1 |
|
Nathan Bastian 2 |
Assists |
Bowen Byram 1 |
|
N/A |
Power Play Goals |
N/A |
|
N/A |
Short Handed Goals |
N/A |
|
Jacob Markstrom .968 |
Save Percentage |
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen .864 |
|
Jacob Markstrom 30 |
Saves |
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen 19 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Shots |
Goals |
Power Play |
Penalty Kill |
Penalty Mins |
Face Offs Won |
| New Jersey
|
23 |
4 |
0-2 |
4-4 |
8 |
25 |
| Buffalo
|
31 |
1 |
0-4 |
2-2 |
4 |
34 |
Upcoming Games
-
Buffalo will play their next game on the road against New Jersey. The Sabres have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.
-
New Jersey will play their next game at home against Buffalo. The Devils have a W/L % of .000 after a win and 1.000 after a loss.
For more information, contact us