On Wednesday, October 22nd, the New Jersey Devils hosted the Minnesota Wild at the Prudential Center; meeting for the first time this season, the puck dropped at 7:00 p.m..
The New Jersey Devils have been on a heater, consecutively winning six games in a row as they beat the Minnesota Wild 4-1 at home.
The Devils took the ice with the following line changes: Dawson Mercer moved in for Cody Glass, playing third-line center as Glass was ruled out with an upper-body injury after getting hurt playing against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday, October 21st (not expected to be long-term). Stefan Noesen returned to the ice after being out due to an injury as well. Nico Daws was the Devils’ starting goalie for the first time so far this season.
The first period commenced in Newark as Nico Hischier won the faceoff against Joel Eriksson Ek. With nearly four minutes remaining in the first, at 3:39, Paul Cotter scored his first goal of the 2025-2026 NHL season, putting the Devils on the board 1-0. Connor Brown picked up his first assist, along with Dawson Mercer. Dawson Mercer has been a strong and dependable player since the start of this season, truly flourishing and demonstrating his strengths as a player, embodying his “Iron Man” nickname.
Heading into the second period, at 13:52, Brenden Dillon scored his second goal of the season: back-to-back scoring nights for Dillon, as he scored his first goal of the season against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night. With the help of Dawson Mercer and Simon Nemec, the Devils were up 2-0 against the Wild. Simon Nemec, victoriously known for his game-winning goal last season during the playoffs, is significantly continuing to play at the higher level, gaining more pro-experience each game.
As the final period commenced, the Devils led 2-0 against the Wild. Just shy of five minutes into the third, at 15:07 on the power-play, Arseny Gritsyuk lit the lamp, scoring his first-ever NHL career goal (resulting in 3-0 Devils). Timo Meier was credited with the assist. Gritsyuk took the shot, while falling, and hit the puck as his knee dropped, scoring one of the most memorable goals of his career. With the team and crowd buzzing, this was an unforgettable moment for the right winger. Arseny Gritsyuk is not only a strong scorer and passer, but he also has a grip defensively. He will continue to develop significantly with the Devils.
We got a Grits Goal. Telegram is going to be popping off tonight.#NJDevils | @Mikes_Amazing pic.twitter.com/HLHStsdMrB
— New Jersey Devils (@NJDevils) October 23, 2025
At 9:23, Minnesota Wild’s Matt Boldy picked up his fifth goal of the season, with assists from Joel Eriksson Ek and Zeev Buium. The Devils still led 3-1 at this time. To conclude the third period, with over a minute remaining (1:17), Jesper Bratt scored an empty-netter with the help of Jonas Siegenthaler. The New Jersey Devils beat the Minnesota Wild, 4-1.
A fantastic night for Nico Daws as he played his first game of the season, and he made 29 saves. An impressive performance from the young goalie, who has played tremendously throughout his time with the AHL Utica Comets. The New Jersey Devils have also successfully killed 21 straight penalties. The Minnesota Wild happened to be the league’s top power play, but the Devils killed three penalties against the Wild tonight. The Devils had a total of 35 shots on goal.
The three stars of the night for the New Jersey Devils included:
- Dawson Mercer
- Nico Daws
- Arseny Gritsyuk
The New Jersey Devils are now number one in the league standings and have a record of 6-1-0.
With a celebratory win at the Prudential Center, the New Jersey Devils will look to expand their winning streak to seven wins on Friday night against the San Jose Sharks. The puck will drop at 7:00 p.m. at the Prudential Center.
