Let’s try this again. Monday night, against the Columbus Blue Jackets, New Jersey Devils’ defenseman Brenden Dillon played in his 1,000th career NHL game. But the game and milestone were marred by several fights, an injury suffered by Dillon in the second period and a loss for New Jersey. 

Wednesday night, at Prudential Center, the Devils hosted the Dallas Stars and THIS TIME, Dillon was able to better enjoy his moment, at least, for a short time. Before the start of the game, the Garden Staters held an on-ice ceremony commemorating Dillon’s accomplishments, during which he was gifted a silver hockey stick, a bottle of champagne, a framed photo from his 1,000th game and more. The cherry on top would have been a Devils’ victory, but, alas, they fell to Dallas 3-0. Oh and how fitting that New Jersey and Dillon would celebrate his 1,000 games played milestone on this of all nights; after all, his first NHL contract (along with his NHL Debut) was with the Stars. 

“It’s unbelievable…Just the entire Devils’ organization,” said Dillon. “I’ve said it before, from day one (when) I signed here. Top to bottom, The Blitzer family, Fitzy (Tom Fitzgerald), right on down through everyone, has just been unbelievable with me personally and with how we’re treated on a day-to-day as a Devil. So, again, tonight too, the recognition, everything they did for me and my family, I’ll definitely never forget.”

Jacob Markstrom drew the start for New Jersey and made 25 saves on 28 shots faced. At the other end of the ice, Jake Oettinger started for Dallas and was a perfect 30-for-30, pitching his second shutout of the season. 

Going back to Dillon, it’s remarkable that he was available for the Devils in this contest after scarily hitting his unprotected head on the ice during a fracas with the Blue Jackets on Monday night. He left the ice with the help of teammates and only briefly returned near the end of the second period for a few shifts before being held out for “precautionary reasons” for the duration of the game. On Wednesday, against the Stars, Dillon saw 16:59 of ice time and was a minus one, but he did have a CF% of 71.05 to go along with an xGF (expected goals for) of 1.43, which was the highest mark on the team. 

Everyone around The NHL knows that Dillon is a consummate professional and extremely well respected. But his teammates see more than just that side of him. They also see the shyer side of the tough, dependable, veteran defenseman. 

“I don’t think he likes it,” Brett Pesce told Devils’ Team Digital Reporter Amanda Stein about the attention this milestone has brought on Dillon. “Every time he plays a game, I start complimenting him, just for fun. He gets really uncomfortable and awkward about it. So we’re working on it…just getting him to say, ‘Hey thanks, man,’ like a normal person.”

“It’s a grind, but I just love coming to the rink every day,” Dillon remarked. “I love everything about being a hockey player. I’m so lucky and fortunate to do what I do and just try to come in every day with a smile on my face.”

On the ice against Dallas, Dillon started the game with Luke Hughes as his D-partner. “He’s an unbelievable person and fits in unbelievably in our team,” Hughes told Stein. “Just his style of play, his physicality and what he brings to our D-core is huge.”

Unfortunately, Dillon and his teammates were unable to break through Dallas’ defense as the Stars blocked 24 of New Jersey’s attempts. Dallas kept the Devils to the perimeter throughout the evening and on the occasions that shots did get through, Oettinger was there to make the save. 

The Stars scored twice in the second half of the middle period, over a span of 6:02. Miro Heiskanen and Jason Robertson potted a goal apiece. Mikko Rantanen drove home the final nail in New Jersey’s coffin at 7:05 of the third period to send the Devils to their third straight loss on home ice and sixth loss in their last nine games overall. 

“I liked our first period,” explained Devils’ Head Coach Sheldon Keefe. “Didn’t make good on the chances that we had. They weren’t in abundance, but there’s some real good looks there that you gotta find a way to get control of the game. You gotta get one to go in for you. I didn’t mind our second period either. It wasn’t really until they scored…once they scored, I didn’t like how we were after that. We were essentially lifeless, I thought. So, yeah, we had our looks, didn’t make good on them. We made a couple mistakes in the second period and their best players made us pay for them as they did in the third again.”

Things won’t get any easier for the Garden Staters as they will face the Vegas Golden Knights at Prudential Center on Friday and then the Boston Bruins in Beantown on Saturday.