Arizona led 2-0 in the 25th minute on goals by defensemen Matt Dumba and Sean Durzi. But New Jersey turned the score around in the middle third. Jesper Bratt (2+1) and Jack Hughes (0+3) figured in all the goals. The home team overcame Vejmelka for the first time from a two-to-one outnumbering, then used the power play twice.
In the 54th minute, Nick Schmaltz equalized, who also won in the shootout. Nick Bjugstad also scored for the Coyotes, while Vejmelka caught both Timo Meier and Bratt. “Their keeper did a great job on the runs when we were looking for a place to score. That’s how it goes sometimes,” Bratt praised Vejmelka.
Arizona coach André Tourigny was thrilled with the team’s performance. “The guys were ready from the start. They played with commitment and at a high pace. This is exactly how we have to play if we want to be successful. This disrupts the opponent’s game, he doesn’t have much time to come up with something. It takes a lot of effort, but this is the way,” he said. Forward Logan Cooley, a third-rounder in last year’s draft, also won the coach’s trust, and he assisted twice in his NHL debut.
Vaněček started a day earlier in Detroit, which is why the coaches sent Akira Schmid in goal, who covered 30 shots. His teammates Ondřej Palát and Tomáš Nosek came up empty-handed.
Pittsburgh built a key lead between the 25th and 32nd minutes, during which they scored three goals. Malkin opened the scoring and then Crosby used the power play twice. Reilly Smith set the final score in the 57th minute. Tristan Jarry needed 19 saves to keep a clean sheet, while at the end of the second period, even Alexander Ovechkin didn’t come to him on the run.
“It was Žen’s match. When he’s having his day, it’s like the puck is looking for him. The pass for the goal to Reilly was incredible. It all started with him coming back and winning the puck. He plays well backwards, he works. When he and Sid are on form, they are still elite players,” Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan praised the experienced duo.
For the first time in its almost fifty-year history, Washington did not score a goal in the opening game of the new season. “We were ready and we played well in the first period. In the second we didn’t score, while the opponent did. That decided it,” Ovechkin said after a game in which Pittsburgh outshot Washington 35-19. “We have to move on. We will look at the video, analyze it and next time we will be better,” said the Russian attacker.
Friday NHL results: New Jersey – Arizona 3:4 after Sam. raids (0:1, 3:1, 0:1 – 0:0) Goals: 29. and 39. Bratt, 33. Hamilton – 7. Dumba, 25. Durzi, 54. Schmaltz, decisive sam. raid Bjugstad. Shots on goal: 36:33. Karel VEJMELKA caught the entire match for Arizona, conceding three goals from 36 shots and had a success rate of 91.7 percent. Spectators: 16,514. Stars of the match: 1. Bratt, 2. J. Hughes (both New Jersey), 3. VEJMELKA (Arizona) Washington – Pittsburgh 0:4 (0:0, 0:3, 0:1) Goals: 26. and 32. Crosby, 25. Malkin, 57. R. Smith. Shots on goal: 19:35. Spectators: 18,573. Game stars: 1. Malkin, 2. Crosby, 3. Guentzel (all Pittsburgh)
