Banged-up Penguins sleepwalk through loss to Devils

Historically, getting shots against the New Jersey Devils has been something of an accomplishment.

Typically a defensively stout outfit, the Devils don’t usually allow the opposition to put many pucks on net.

So the Penguins — with an injury-depleted lineup — being able to generate a season-high 42 shots Thursday at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. was something of a triumph.

Of course, the only triumphs that count in the standings are based on how many of those shots end up in the net.

Alas, the Penguins were limited to a pair of pucks finding twine as they fell to the Devils, 3-2, in a contest that was not nearly as competitive, or entertaining, as the score — or shot totals — would suggest.

Devils goaltender Scott Wedgewood, who made a surprise start after scheduled starter Mackenzie Blackwood was scratched due to an undisclosed ailment following warmups, made 40 saves. But it would be a stretch to say he was tested a great deal, even by the Penguins’ admission.

“When we had the (offensive) zone time, we had good chances,” Penguins forward Jake Guentzel said via video conference. “Maybe we just need to get to the front of the net a little bit more. Maybe (Wedgewood) saw a little too many of those pucks. We’ll take the number of shots, but I think we’ve just got to make sure we’re making it tougher on him next time.”

In contrast, the Devils generated their offense by putting bodies in front of goaltender Tristan Jarry, who made 32 saves on 35 shots. Their second and third goals came with a player in a red-and-black jersey parked above the blue paint.

“We need to get in front of (Wedgewood) a little more and get to rebounds,” defenseman Marcus Pettersson said. “I think that’s where they won the game essentially. They were harder to play against at their net than we were. We tried to shoot a lot and generate that way. We know they play a tight defensive game. Maybe get some second chances. That’s why we shoot the puck. We’ve got to get to those.”

The Devils took a 1-0 lead 10:02 into regulation. From the left half wall of the offensive zone, Devils forward Jack Hughes deked around Penguins forward Evan Rodrigues then danced around minimal resistance by Penguins defenseman John Marino in the left circle. From a bad angle on the goal line, Hughes lifted a wrister that clunked off the right side of Jarry’s mask and bounced into the cage for his seventh goal.

A power-play goal by Devils defenseman P.K. Subban at 8:42 of the second made it a 2-0 lead. With Devils forward Miles Wood entrenched above the crease on a screen, Subban cranked a one-timer from center point through Jarry’s five hole for his third goal.

Less than two minutes later, the Devils made it 3-0 at the 10:18 mark. Settling a puck at the Penguins’ right point, Devils defenseman Damon Severson chucked a wrister at the cage that forward Travis Zajac, also above the crease, tipped past Jarry’s blocker on the far side for his third goal.

The Penguins finally got on the scoreboard late in the second at the 19:47 mark with a power-play score. From the center point of the offensive zone, Penguins defenseman Kris Letang stroked a slapper that was tipped by forward Jake Guentzel, directly in front of the crease, past Wedgewood’s glove.

A wrister by Bryan Rust from the left circle of the offensive zone beat Wedgewood’s glove on the far side for his 10th goal and made it a one-goal game late in regulation at the 19:55 mark of the third.

But it was too little, too late by that point for a Penguins team that was missing the services of injured forwards Evgeni Malkin and Teddy Blueger.

“Obviously, when you’re trying to manufacture some offense, you’ve got to shoot the puck and put the puck on the net and try to create those next-play opportunities,” coach Mike Sullivan said. “I thought we put a lot of pucks in play tonight. We had a lot of opportunity for those next-play chances at the net front or off the rebounds or whatever it may be. We had some high-quality looks. We didn’t finish on as many of them tonight. Hopefully, we will moving forward.”