February 28, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; New Jersey Devils left winger Jesper Bratt (63) takes a shot during Game 1 against the St. Louis Blues at Enterprise Center. Mandatory Credit: Joe Puetz-Imagn Image New Jersey Devils coach Sheldon Keefe wasn’t letting the uncertainty of the NHL’s trade deadline change his team’s workout plans for Friday morning.
“In many ways, it’s business as usual,” Keefe said. “It’s a crazy day with a lot going on, whether you feel like you’re a part of it or not. So just keep that in mind. Go out and get a good workout, skate a good skate. We’re not going to stay there for long because we’re getting ready for another back-to-back. We just keep going.”
After an uneventful trade deadline, the Devils are scheduled to return to the ice Saturday afternoon in Newark, New Jersey, as they continue their seven-game homestand against their archrival, the New York Rangers.
Jesper Bratt recorded an assist for the third straight game and scored the decisive goal in the shootout Wednesday to give New Jersey a 4-3 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs.
“There were a lot of games this year where I thought my overall game was really good,” Bratt said after the Devils extended their winning streak to three. “Getting the puck in the net is just the last few percent (points).”
Bratt leads the team in assists (32) and is tied for first with Nico Hischier with 45 points after the captain scored twice against Toronto.
Timo Meyer has three goals in his last five games for New Jersey.
New York also knocked off Toronto in the final game, a 6-2 decision Thursday.
Will Cuylle scored twice in the contest for the Rangers, who reside in the Eastern Conference’s cellar and are 2-0-1 in their last three games following an abysmal 2-11-2 performance.
“Obviously this year hasn’t gone the way we wanted, but we still have a lot of games left and a lot of fans have supported us,” Cuylle said. “So we need to get as many wins as possible in the last 20 games and play for the jersey with pride.”
Mika Zibanejad had a goal and two assists along with Alexis Lafreniere on Thursday. The former currently leads every player on the New York team in goals (25), assists (31) and points (56).
The Rangers did not part ways with Vincent Trocheck at the NHL trade deadline, and team president and general manager Chris Drury reportedly told other teams that New York was not sending forward packing in a trade.
The Devils also grabbed defensemen Dougie Hamilton and Simon Nemec at the trade deadline.
“I didn’t put Dougie Hamilton’s name out there,” New Jersey general manager Tom Fitzgerald said, according to The Athletic.
Devils defenseman Brett Pesci sat out Tuesday’s game against the Maple Leafs due to a lower-body injury he suffered. He will also be a spectator for games against the Rangers on Saturday and the Detroit Red Wings on Sunday.
“He didn’t skate today and he won’t be available this weekend,” Keefe said.
–Field level media
