The New Jersey Devils are heading into a three-game road trip with a clear goal: get back to the style that has carried them all season.
That message sharpened after their wild 5-4 overtime win over the St. Louis Blues, a game in which they let a 4-1 lead slip away in the third period before recovering late. Luke Hughes put it plainly afterward: “Just get back to our game and keep playing a good brand of hockey,”
Head coach Sheldon Keefe sounded just as direct. “That has been the furthest thing from our mind when we've been playing here of late. So that's the lesson,” he said.
For Keefe, the road trip is about discipline and structure, especially when the Devils are protecting a late lead. It’s a chance to win in the way they’ve been winning for most of the season, while avoiding the kind of overconfidence that nearly burned them against St. Louis.
The first stop brings a different kind of test, and it starts in goal. The Devils’ own Hellebuyck has given the team and the fanbase a jolt with a 4-0 record, but the numbers show he’s still settling in. He has a .891 save percentage and a 2.44 goals-against average on 92 shots, with 0.1 goals saved above average.
That’s not unusual considering he missed training camp and is still adjusting to a new team. The Blues gave him his toughest workload so far, firing 32 shots at him, and the next challenge could be even trickier if the New York Islanders get a sharp start from Ilya Sorokin.
Sorokin was a Vezina Trophy finalist in 2022-23 and 2025-26, and he’s the kind of goalie who can take over a game. That sets up a possible low-scoring battle, one that would ask Hellebuyck to win a duel against an elite netminder on the other side.
From there, the Devils head into a much different kind of matchup against the Toronto Maple Leafs, who are rolling offensively again after a disappointing 2025-26 season. Toronto is averaging 3.65 goals per game, the fifth-most in the NHL, with Auston Matthews and William Nylander leading the charge. Easton Cowan and Gavin McKenna have added youth and flair to the mix.
That kind of firepower is nothing new for New Jersey. The Devils have already handled the Colorado Avalanche twice and the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday, and in both cases they not only stood up to the offense but outdueled it.
Toronto, though, also brings defensive issues of its own, allowing 3.24 goals per game. That could turn the game into a track meet, and the Devils have the skill to go goal for goal if needed.
Then comes Winnipeg on Nov. 10, and that game carries a different kind of tension entirely. Hellebuyck will make his much-anticipated return, and the crowd is expected to make its feelings known from the moment he steps on the ice.
The atmosphere should be loud, hostile, and relentless. Fans will likely boo him during warmups, and if the Jets score, the building is expected to explode. Unlike a skater, a goalie can’t simply disappear into the flow of the game, which makes the reaction around Hellebuyck even more striking.
The Devils will have to handle that noise as much as the hockey. Winnipeg will feed off the crowd, and even in a rough season, this is a game the Jets will not want to lose. It’s not the playoffs, but the way both teams handle that pressure will say plenty about how they respond when the temperature rises.
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St. Louis stormed back to tie the game in regulation, leaving the Devils with two very different takeaways from the same result: two points in the standings and plenty to clean up after letting a three-goal advantage slip away. Bratts finish gave New Jersey the escape it needed, but the way it got there is the part fans will be talking about. [Read more 🡒]
Dougie Hamilton Just Changed A Growing Devils Debate
The Devils overtime win came with a familiar offensive finish, but it was Dougie Hamiltons work at the other end that helped set the table. After New Jersey survived a late challenge, Hamilton made a crucial defensive stop on a 2-on-1 breakaway before jumping into the rush and assisting Jesper Bratt on the game-winner, a sequence that fit neatly into the broader conversation around how Hamilton has been defending this season.
For a player long known first for his puck-moving and scoring touch, those kinds of moments matter just as much to the Devils bigger picture. Hamiltons improved defensive contributions have become part of the discussion around his place on the roster, and the latest game only added fuel to the debate about whether his value is changing in ways that go beyond the box score. [Read more 🡒]