Glass Scores in Devils Debut in Win Against Flyers. Cody Glass made an immediate impact in his New Jersey Devils debut, scoring in a 3-1 win against the Philadelphia Flyers at Wells Fargo Center on Sunday. Acquired just two days earlier in a trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Glass’ contribution came at a crucial time for the Devils, who are dealing with the loss of star center Jack Hughes to long-term injured reserve after shoulder surgery.
The victory was especially sweet for New Jersey, ending a three-game losing streak and keeping them firmly in the playoff race. Glass, reflecting on the importance of the win, said, “That’s huge. They’re missing players like Dougie [Hamilton] and Jack. I haven’t met them yet, but it’s a huge win. And obviously, we want to pile these wins up. It’s a tight playoff race, so it’s cool coming in, getting a win right away, and hopefully we just keep going from here.”
The Devils (34-25-6) also saw contributions from Erik Haula, who registered a goal and an assist, while Jake Allen stood strong in net, making 23 saves. Haula, who played alongside Glass and fellow trade acquisition Daniel Sprong, credited their positive energy and quick chemistry as key to the team’s success. “It was a good start yesterday during practice,” Haula said. “It felt natural. The guys didn’t have much sleep, but either way, they came in and it was a good day for us. It’s nice to get a start like that, fresh, positive energy.”
The Flyers (27-30-8) have now dropped four consecutive games, their longest losing streak of the season. Despite a solid performance, with defenseman Jamie Drysdale scoring and goaltender Ivan Fedotov making 20 saves, Philadelphia couldn’t find the spark needed to break their skid. Captain Sean Couturier reflected on the close nature of the game, noting, “We got a couple chances. It was a tight game out there. They got their bounces. We didn’t, really.”
Glass opened the scoring at 11:10 of the first period, capitalizing on a lucky bounce. Stefen Noesen’s pass from the right corner of the offensive zone hit the skates of Flyers defenseman Nick Seeler, sending the puck to Glass, who quickly beat Fedotov to the far side for his fifth goal of the season. “It felt good,” said Glass. “Helps having ‘Hauls’ on my line, and then Sprong is kind of going through the same thing as me. Hauls has done a great job of making me feel a little bit comfortable. It’s a lot of systems, a lot of stuff that I’ve been thinking about on the ice. So, once I get the thinking out of the game, hopefully I feel a little bit more comfortable out there.”
The Devils doubled their lead at 5:39 of the second period, thanks to Haula’s first goal in 29 games. A shot from Jonathan Kovacevic deflected off traffic, finding its way to Haula, who skated down the right side and beat Fedotov past his glove. Haula, visibly relieved after ending his scoring drought, said, “I don’t know if I’ve ever been on a schneid like that before. It was getting a little frustrating, for sure, but just a little spark of a couple new guys and some fresh, positive energy.”
The Flyers fought back in the third period, with Drysdale cutting the Devils’ lead to 2-1 at 15:14, marking the defenseman’s first goal of the season. A breakout pass from Travis Konecny allowed Drysdale to finish past Allen, but the Flyers couldn’t find the equalizer despite a late push.
Dawson Mercer sealed the game with an empty-net goal at 19:42, finishing New Jersey’s lone power play opportunity of the game to make it 3-1. The Flyers, who went 0-for-1 on the power play, have now failed to score on their last 12 chances over five games.
Notes:
- Glass is the third player to score in his Devils debut this season, joining Paul Cotter and Jonathan Kovacevic.
- Glass played 12:21 and was a plus-2 on the night.
- Sprong, also making his Devils debut, registered three shots on goal in 11:24 of ice time.
- Defenseman Dennis Cholowski played 13:27 in his first game for New Jersey after being acquired from the New York Islanders on Friday.
- Seeler led the Flyers with six hits and blocked three shots in 16:53 of ice time.
