No Dougie Hamilton. That’s the big news of the day. Late Wednesday night – like very, very late – Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald went on the Krackin’ Canuckleheads podcast and dropped a metaphorical bomb. Defenseman Dougie Hamilton, who was already known to be out for an extended period, will now instead be out for the rest of the season. Fitzgerald said that even a playoff return is doubtful at this point. And isn’t that just a case of Déjà vu? Hamilton also missed the end of last season with an injury. This, on top of Jack Hughes, who suffered a season-ending shoulder injury last season and did so again this year. 

So, Thursday night, minus their Number One defenseman and their Number One center, the Devils hosted the high-flying, yet struggling, Edmonton Oilers. The result was a 3-2 victory for New Jersey, with many saying this is simply the Devils’ new normal. Jesper Bratt recorded three points for the second consecutive game. Brett Pesce scored a goal. Simon Nemec potted his first of the year AND Mrs. Fields won her dessert race AGAIN! (New Jersey is on a three-game winning streak and Mrs. Fields has won her last two races).

“It’s just been a good feeling in the group, that we feel like every single line is contributing in their way,” Jesper Bratt explained. “Everyone is really finding their game, finding their structure. That’s kind of what is the confidence boost for the whole team. It’s just not a few guys…It’s everyone in the lineup is really contributing right now.”

Since late December, the Devils’ offensive woes have been well documented. That issue was somewhat addressed at the Trade Deadline as New Jersey acquired bottom six forwards, Cody Glass and Daniel Sprong in an effort to generate more offense throughout the lineup. Well, with Glass in the lineup, New Jersey is 3-0. 

In their last game, the Devils beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 5-3, thanks in part to a three-goal first period outburst. Against the Oilers, they kept the good times going thanks to Jesper Bratt’s aforementioned three points, Pesce’s game-tying goal and Simon Nemec’s game-winner. And, of course, give Mrs. Fields an assist too. 

“We’re missing our number one defenseman and our number one player,” Jake Allen said. “And obviously (Jonas) Siegenthaler, who’s been an absolute horse for us this year. Guys are stepping up. It’s not always gonna be pretty. I think we have to understand that the offense that Jack and Dougie bring, it’s gotta come in a variety of different ways.”

As part of Bratt’s three point night against Edmonton, the Swedish winger is now just three assists away from tying Scott Stevens’ single-season franchise record for helpers. Stevens recorded 60 assists during the 1993-94 campaign and now, through 66 games, Bratt sits at 57. 

As you can see, this is clearly New Jersey’s new “normal.” The absences of Hamilton and Hughes are felt throughout the Devils’ game, just as they were last year. But, it’s a feeling they’ve unfortunately grown used to, even though they would rather never experience it. 

The first period followed a familiar theme. New Jersey held the opposition in check regarding shots on goal (they only allowed the Oilers eight, none by Connor McDavid). But, they also had trouble generating their own chances and went oh-for-two on the power-play. 

Onto the second period and the Devils were immediately tasked with killing off Edmonton’s lethal power-play when Tomas Tatar was called for interfering with Leon Draisaitl at the 1:06 mark. The Garden Staters did well to kill off the penalty and then, using that momentum, roughly 50 seconds after Tatar was freed from the box, Brett Pesce banged the loose puck past Stuart Skinner to give the Devils a 1-0 lead. 

Just over six minutes later, Connor McDavid fed Draisaitl in the left circle and the latter sniped his league-leading 47th goal past Jake Allen to tie the score 1-1. Another power-play opportunity presented itself to the Devils 12:09 into the middle period but they once again couldn’t get anything going with the man advantage. 

Then, it was on to the third period and the Oilers took it to the Devils. Edmonton’s offensive talent generated chance after chance and then Evan Bouchard scored at the 4:18 mark to give the Oilers a 2-1 lead. Roughly two-and-a-half minutes later, Bratt pulled the Devils even with a goal (it came just 32 seconds after Mrs. Fields won her race). And then, 1:35 later, Nemec fired a shot on net that whizzed past Skinner to give New Jersey a 3-2 lead. 

The Oilers pushed hard after that, but Sheldon Keefe’s squad buckled down and closed out their third straight win. 

Or, in the words of Head Coach Sheldon Keefe, “Mrs. Fields carries us through.”