Markstrom makes 22 saves, Devils edge Kraken to end 4-game skid

SEATTLE -- Jacob Markstrom made 22 saves to help the New Jersey Devils end a four-game losing streak with a 3-2 win against the Seattle Kraken at Climate Pledge Arena on Monday.

Markstrom made two desperation saves in the third period to preserve the win, one with his glove on Eeli Tolvanen and one with his stick on Matty Beniers.

“You’re trying to stop it, and you’re hoping to stop it, so when it happens, it’s always a good feeling,” Markstrom said. “I feel like I had a few bounces that have gone in the net instead of staying out, so I think I was due.”

New Jersey forward Paul Cotter said: “I was speechless on a couple of [the saves]. He saved me a couple dashes. I mean, we’re nowhere near a win without him tonight.”

Dawson Mercer had a goal and an assist, and Cotter and Ondrej Palat scored for the Devils (25-15-3), who also ended a five-game road losing streak.

“I’d say there’s good chunks of the game I thought we were in full control, and not really giving up anything for long stretches of the game,” New Jersey coach Sheldon Keefe said. “Then we make a mistake, and it’s a pretty big mistake, so we’ve just got to keep piling up the positive plays and keep eliminating the negative ones.”

Adam Larsson and Shane Wright scored for the Kraken (17-21-3), who are 0-2-1 in their past three games. Philipp Grubauer made 26 saves.

“I think in the second half of the game, we were breaking pucks out a lot better,” Wright said. “We were executing our plays out of our own end and playing down there. But they got a lot of really good chances and a lot of chances to finish it off, and it just wasn’t our night tonight.”

Mercer made it 1-0 Devils at 7:56 of the first period, finding a Nico Hischier rebound at the side of the net and pulling it around Grubauer’s pad.

Larsson tied it 1-1 at 15:47, sending a wrist shot from the top of the left circle through traffic, off the right post and in behind Markstrom.

“We withstood [New Jersey’s early pressure],” Seattle coach Dan Bylsma said. “And then you get a chance to battle back your own way, which I think we did.”

Cotter scored at 19:35 of the second period to make it 2-1 Devils. He won a race to a loose puck and mishandled it, but it rolled through Grubauer’s five-hole and in.

“I tried to go backhand toe drag, but I kind of aborted mission after I was going a little faster than I thought,” Cotter said. “But, I mean, [that’s] the stuff that’s going to go in. So, I kind of had a drought there for a while, and now they’re going to come in bunches. Those are the types that I missed out on before that are coming now.”

Wright tied it again, 2-2, with a power-play goal at 1:24 of the third period, one-timing Kaapo Kakko’s saucer pass from the top of the crease past Markstrom’s glove.

“I’m just trying to find some open areas, and I’ve been getting a lot of good plays from other guys,” Wright said. “Just trying to find a soft spot. Obviously, a really good play from Kaapo there to find me in the middle.”

Palat scored just 37 seconds later at 2:01 to regain a 3-2 lead. Jack Hughes found him in the slot with a feed off a rush, and Palat snapped it over Grubauer’s left shoulder. The assist was the 200th in the NHL assist for Hughes in 349 games, making him the fastest in Devils history to reach the mark (Scott Gomez, 351 games).

“I’m glad we scored that,” Palat said. “We had chances the last couple games that didn’t go in for me or for our line, so I’m just glad we could help the team and hopefully get out of the little slump here.”