BOSTON _ Mackenzie Blackwood stole the show on Saturday night in Boston but the skaters in front of him, mostly understudies from the American Hockey League at this point, didn't put on much of one.
Blackwood was stellar, stopping 29 of 30 shots in a 1-0 loss to the Boston Bruins at TD Garden. But the Bruins outshot the Devils 30-20, showing just how tough it was for the depleted New Jersey skaters to generate any offense.
The Devils are still without many top forwards, including Miles Wood, Pavel Zacha, Stefan Noesen and Taylor Hall, and were once again forced to use defenseman Egor Yakovlev as a winger. Yakovlev took it in stride, registering three shots on goal and coming up with good scoring chances in the first and second periods.
But they lost another forward with Nico Hischier leaving the game twice, once in the second period and for good in the third. Travis Zajac, New Jersey's only playmaker left, was double-shifted and left to shoulder the load. Sami Vatanen may have also been injured in the final few minutes of play when Brad Marchand cross-checked him from behind as he went back to prevent an empty-net goal. Vatanen has only played three games since returning from a concussion.
Zajac had one of the Devils' best chances to tie in the second period but Tuukka Rask turned him aside the keep the shutout intact. In the third with about 10 minutes left, it was Jesper Bratt who went coast-to-coast in what seemed like a split-second but was denied by Rask.
The Bruins, who are desperately trying to hold off the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Atlantic Division, extended their point streak to 16 games (12-0-4).
Marchand scored the only goal of the game, a power play goal 2:37 into play. Marchand was once a foe of the Devils as his flying elbow knocked out former New Jersey forward Marcus Johansson for much of last season, but now the two play together on the Bruins with Johansson having been traded to Boston for two draft picks at the trade deadline on Monday.
Marchand played in his 666th game against the Devils. The jokes wrote themselves.
The power play goal began as a fluky one but Jake DeBrusk was able to effectively settle the puck and get it to Patrice Bergeron, who slid a feed to Marchand and the latter banked it off the crossbar over Blackwood.
At the 7:16 mark, Marchand picked Damon Severson's pocket at the blue line and the defenseman hooked him in order to stop the breakaway. Marchand was awarded a penalty shot and Blackwood made a strong save on the wrister to keep the score at 1-0.
The Devils were in it until the very end thanks to Blackwood.
