The New Jersey Devils headed into Washington D.C. on Friday already knowing it would take a miracle to find their way into the Stanley Cup Playoffs; Moneypuck gave them just a 1-in-200 chance. Essentially, they’d have to win all of their remaining 13 games and get some standings help.
Despite a valiant effort late, they fell 2-1 in regulation, moving their playoff odds to 0.16% — 1-in-625 odds.
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Jake Allen Was Spectacular
The Devils got off to a pretty abysmal start; at the end of the first period, Washington had a 10-1 scoring chance advantage, including a 5-0 edge in high danger chances. Jake Allen stood on his head, only allowing one single goal.
The second period saw more of the same, but Allen continued to keep them in it with a multitude of Grade-A, 10-bell highlight reel saves. The third period was no different.
When all was said and done, Allen stopped 26 of 27 (.963%) — +1.99 goals saved above expected, yet had nothing to show for it.
Jake Allen wouldn’t be denied here! 🚫 pic.twitter.com/btYvDbkD5M
— NHL (@NHL) March 21, 2026
Between the Olympic break and an extended run of starts for Jacob Markstrom, this was only Allen’s third appearance in the last 42 days. Understandably, he showed a little rust with some shaky moments in his recent start vs. Los Angeles, but he showed tonight why he’s remained one of the best backup netminders in the league.
With this stellar performance, his season save percentage rises to .908%. This is in a league where the average is all the way down to .896%…not too shabby.
Too Little, Too Late
Coming into the night, since Feb. 28, the Devils’ 4.04 goals per 60 minutes (GF/60) were the second-best mark in the entire league. (via Natural Stat Trick)
It would have been easy to say it was due to some long overdue finishing luck, but no: it was actually just general improved play.
During that span, they actually didn’t finish any better than league average; their 4.05 expected goals per 60 minutes (xGF/60) was the very best mark in the National Hockey League (NHL) during that span.
Tonight, they had an extremely slow start; their 1.48 expected goals over the first two frames was a larger than 45% drop-off from what they’ve been generating over that near month-long stretch post-Olympics. While they came alive with an eye-popping 17 scoring chances in the third, including eight of the high-danger variety (2.43 xGF), it was too little, too late.
Credit to Logan Thompson of the Capitals for standing on his head in the crease, but if the Devils got their offense going earlier, they could have overcame that.
Moving Forward
The Devils — now 35-32-2 — will return to action on Tuesday as they head south to face the Dallas Stars (8:00 PM EDT).
