Devils Hold Kings to 13 Shots — Pesce's Winner Reveals a Bigger Shift
GOATIFYThe number that should worry the Los Angeles Kings is not the three goals they conceded in Newark. It is the 13 shots they managed in 60 minutes. New Jersey's 3–1 victory on Saturday, October 24, was its third straight win and fifth in six games, but the scoreline almost understates how little sustained pressure Los Angeles generated. Jake Allen needed only 12 saves, while the Devils forced Anton Forsberg into 23 stops at the other end.
Brett Pesce broke a 1–1 tie midway through the third period, Anthony Mantha supplied the equalizer that steadied New Jersey, and Arseny Gritsyuk extended his goal-scoring streak to five games with an empty-net finish. There was late controversy when a would-be Kings equalizer was ruled out for a high stick, but New Jersey had already built its advantage through territorial control and repeat pressure. On the day the Devils introduced newly acquired Connor Hellebuyck, their most persuasive argument for the future came from the skaters in front of the incumbent goaltender.
Thirteen Shots Exposed the Kings' Biggest Problem
New Jersey did not need a spectacular goaltending rescue because it rarely allowed the Kings to get into a rhythm. The clubs combined for only nine shots in a cautious opening period, but the second was a different contest. The Devils outshot Los Angeles 14–3 in those 20 minutes, turning the game into a cycle of offensive-zone recoveries, contested exits and repeat chances. Across the full night the shot count was 26–13. That is a remarkable margin in a one-goal game that remained close until the final minutes.
It would be misleading to claim every Devils possession was dangerous. Forsberg had time to see some of the shots, and the Kings defended the middle well enough to keep the game scoreless deep into the second period. But pressure has a cumulative value. The more frequently Los Angeles was asked to clear the puck, the fewer clean possessions it had to create its own offense. New Jersey's forecheck did not have to produce a goal on every shift to alter the shape of the game.
That context makes Scott Laughton's opener particularly revealing. After serving a penalty, he stayed on the ice and converted a one-timer from the left side at 15:57 of the second period, fed by Adrian Kempe from below the goal line. The Kings had found a way to lead despite being heavily outshot. It was an efficient moment, not evidence that they had solved the Devils' defensive structure.
Allen's 12-save night was therefore less a referendum on individual brilliance than a measure of team support. A goaltender can still face difficult moments in a low-volume game, and Allen had to remain sharp when chances finally arrived. Yet limiting an NHL opponent to 13 shots gives any starter a much better margin for error. New Jersey's defensive improvement looks more sustainable when it is created before the puck reaches the crease.
Mantha's Equalizer Set Up Pesce's Patient Winner
The most dangerous part of Los Angeles' afternoon came before it took the lead. Forsberg made consecutive pad saves without his stick early in the second period, then Joel Armia prevented a puck from sliding across the line after it slipped behind the goaltender. Those sequences kept the Kings alive while New Jersey controlled the play. When Laughton scored a few minutes later, the visitors suddenly had the chance to steal a result from a game they had spent largely defending.
Mantha removed that possibility before the second intermission. With 1:17 remaining in the period, Jesper Boqvist worked behind the Kings net and sent the puck toward Mantha at the left circle. Mantha controlled it with his skate, moved through two defenders and snapped a shot past Forsberg. The equalizer at 18:43 mattered beyond the scoreboard: it meant New Jersey could enter the third period without chasing a deficit created by one of the Kings' few quality looks.
Pesce then supplied the moment that decided the contest. At 8:08 of the third, he received a pass from Luke Evangelista above the right circle. Rather than firing immediately into traffic, the defenseman waited, pulled the puck past sliding Kings forward Andre Lee and found the opening beneath Forsberg's pad. The goal was Pesce's first in 35 games, dating back to December 23 of the previous season. A player better known for defensive assignments had chosen the right time for a rare scoring contribution.
There is a tactical lesson in both New Jersey goals. Mantha's finish required patience and skill after Boqvist changed the angle of attack; Pesce's winner required a defender to recognize that the first shooting lane was not the best one. Neither was simply a lucky rebound from indiscriminate pressure. The Devils generated enough possession to give their players multiple chances to make a better decision, and two of those decisions became the goals that swung the game.
Gritsyuk's Five-Game Goal Streak Is Becoming a Real Weapon
Arseny Gritsyuk's goal at 18:55 of the third period went into an empty net, so it should not be confused with the play that broke the tie. But dismissing it as a bookkeeping goal would miss the larger development. The 25-year-old winger has now scored in five consecutive games, and his contribution against Los Angeles was not limited to the final touch. He also assisted on Pesce's winning goal.
Gritsyuk entered the matchup on a four-game scoring streak, having found the net five times in his previous six appearances. Saturday's finish took him to six goals on the young season. More importantly, the streak has arrived while New Jersey has been playing its best hockey of October. The Devils are 5–1 in their last six games, and the combination of Gritsyuk, Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt has given opponents another reason to fear the transition from defense to attack.
That line does not need to dominate every scoring play to matter. Hughes draws defensive attention with his skating and puck control; Bratt can change the tempo and create passing angles; Gritsyuk adds a direct finishing threat who can punish a coverage mistake. When a winger keeps converting chances over several games, opposing defenders can no longer treat him as the secondary option. That creates more room for his linemates and makes the group harder to defend without giving up space elsewhere.
There is also a useful distinction between a streak and a permanent change in scoring talent. Five games is a short sample, and no winger should be projected to maintain a goal-per-game pace indefinitely. The stronger signal is the range of contributions. Gritsyuk did not need the Kings to pull Forsberg to influence the result: he was already involved in the go-ahead sequence. For a Devils team that has often leaned on its established stars, that secondary layer of creation may prove more valuable than the streak itself.
The Disallowed Goal, the Hellebuyck Question and What Comes Next
The Kings did have one final chance to change the story. With 4:36 left in regulation, Trevor Moore appeared to deflect a puck into the net for a 2–2 tie. Officials ruled immediately that he had played it with a high stick, and the decision was upheld after review. Los Angeles was still within one goal, but that ruling removed its clearest late route back into the contest. Gritsyuk's empty-netter followed with 1:05 remaining.
It is fair to note the importance of the call without making it the explanation for the loss. The Kings had arrived in Newark after two consecutive road wins, a recovery from an 0–4–2 start. Artemi Panarin had supplied much of their recent attacking spark, and the team had shown it could steal games even when opponents created more chances. Against New Jersey, though, the underlying problem was the scarcity of shots and extended possession. A disallowed deflection can change the outcome of one game; it does not erase 60 minutes of trouble generating offense.
For New Jersey, the timing adds another layer. The Devils acquired three-time Vezina Trophy winner Connor Hellebuyck from Winnipeg on Friday, and he met the media before Saturday's game without dressing. Allen started and won behind a defense that made his assignment unusually manageable. The new arrival may reshape the depth chart, but this performance also underlined that elite goaltending and team defense are complementary rather than interchangeable. Hellebuyck will benefit from the same protection if the Devils can reproduce it.
The schedule will test whether this was a matchup-specific performance or part of a genuine shift. New Jersey travels to Dallas on Tuesday, while Los Angeles visits the Rangers on Monday. The Devils cannot assume every opponent will be held to 13 shots, and the Kings cannot rely on isolated scoring chances to overcome long stretches without pressure. Saturday provided an early-season warning to one team and a promising defensive benchmark to the other.
New Jersey's third straight win was not built on one highlight. Mantha rescued a period the Devils had controlled, Pesce showed composure on a rare scoring chance, Gritsyuk kept his hot streak alive, and the team restricted Los Angeles to just 13 shots. The Kings can point to a disallowed equalizer, but they will be more concerned by how seldom they threatened before it.
That shot total is worth watching in the coming week. A single opponent can have a bad afternoon, and a low-shot victory does not guarantee the Devils will suppress Dallas or Colorado in the same way. But the process behind the result matters: New Jersey repeatedly reclaimed the puck, denied second attacks and kept Los Angeles from building momentum even after conceding the opening goal. Those habits can survive games when a goalie is less sharp or the finishing is less clinical.
With Hellebuyck newly acquired, attention will naturally turn toward New Jersey's crease. The most encouraging development may be happening further up the ice. If the Devils can keep winning territory, denying clean exits and getting contributions beyond their biggest names, the goaltending upgrade will be joining a stronger team rather than being asked to fix a fragile one.
