In Newark, Tomas Tatar scored with 51 seconds gone in the first period to give the New Jersey Devils a 1-0 lead.
New Jersey rode that early strike to a 3-1 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday night.
Jesper Bratt and Jack Hughes also scored for New Jersey.
Mackenzie Blackwood made 31 saves in the win.
“Jack makes a different when he’s on the ice,” Bratt said. “I think everyone really sees now how big a part of our organization he is. He creates scoring chances every time he’s on the ice. He’s got that mindset that I like to play with … to create stuff every time.”
New Jersey improved to 14-16-5.
Max Domi was the lone striker for the Blue Jackets.
“We had a good start; we played very simple,” Columbus head coach Brad Larsen said. “We checked well, made the right plays at the right times and didn’t force things. Then it got away from us. It’s just not good enough.”
The Blue Jackets dropped to 15-16-1.
“There’s a ton of try, [but] at some point, you have to play with some poise,” Larsen said. “Teams are going to push back. We need our guys to understand and make the next play. This is ‘Hockey 101,’ and we have to get better. We are going to chip at one situation at a time here.”
Joonas Korpisalo made 25 saves in the Columbus loss.
“It’s tough. You want to win a game for a guy like that,” Domi said.
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