New Jersey Devils vs Chicago Blackhawks Match Player Stats On Nov 05, 2023

Dawson Mercer, Max Willman, Curtis Lazar and Michael McLeod scored to back a 32-save effort from Vitek Vanecek and lift the visiting New Jersey Devils to a 4-2 win against the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday.

New Jersey outshot Chicago 40-34 en route to its fourth victory in the past five games. The Devils withstood late pressure from the Blackhawks, with McLeod tallying an empty-net goal in the final second.

Chicago goaltender Arvid Soderblom kept the hosts afloat, stopping 36 shots.

Chicago raced to a 1-0 lead just 1:51 into the game, as Taylor Hall pounced on the rebound of a Tyler Johnson shot and slipped it past Vanecek.

New Jersey answered with a power-play goal at 13:07, as Mercer beat Soderblom with a wrist shot to the top corner for his first goal of the season.

A Blackhawks turnover allowed the Devils to take the lead 1:34 later. Chicago's Kevin Korchinski failed to hold the puck at the blue line, and Willman swooped in and scored on a breakaway.

On Saturday, New Jersey promoted Willman from Utica of the American Hockey League as a roster replacement for center Jack Hughes.

Hughes missed Sunday's game after suffering an upper-body injury in the first period of Friday's road loss at St. Louis. Hughes, whose 20 points are tied with Vancouver's Elias Pettersson for most in the NHL, is considered week-to-week.

The Blackhawks missed a chance to tie the score with 1:15 remaining in the first period. Jason Dickinson backhanded a pass to Johnson just inside the left circle, but Vanecek recovered to make a diving, desperation save at the goal line to cover an open net.

Lazar cemented the outcome 4:35 into the third, deflecting a John Marino shot after the Devils created a chance in transition.

Ryan Donato pulled the Blackhawks within 3-2 with 4:46 remaining, converting a chance after Andreas Athanasiou and Dickinson forced a turnover behind the net.

--Field Level Media