This is how the New Jersey Devils beat you: They wait, they pounce at the right moment, and they steal a point.
Such was the case with the Devils' 2-1 victory over the Flyers on Tuesday night at Wells Fargo Center.
Much of the night, the Flyers were able to beat New Jersey’s tenacious forecheck, get the puck up the ice and create some offense without scoring on goalie Marty Brodeur.
Alas, there was that one extended shift in the third period in which the Devils simply penned Braydon Coburn and Mark Streit into their own end coming off a penalty kill and wore them down.
The result was Jaromir Jagr taking Marek Zidlicky’s pass from behind the net at the right post and somehow backhanding the puck inside the smallest of spaces at the right post to break a 1-1 tie at 7:42.
It was all the Devils needed in a crucial Metropolitan Division game that New Jersey simply had to win given its 11th seeding in the Eastern Conference to keep its playoff hopes alive.
The loss snapped a four-game point streak for the Flyers (3-0-1).
The game ended with a controversial no goal from either Scott Hartnell or Wayne Simmonds. That's two games in a row in which the Flyers lost a goal.
Jagr now has 57 points -- best on the Devils -- and 21 goals. The ex-Flyer right wing had his hand in both Devils goals.
The Flyers had six power plays in this game to score some goals and with the exception of their very first one, they were dreadful with the man advantage.
Jagr’s impact
You felt it immediately. The 42-year-old winger had a nify give-and-go pass at the net for linemate Travis Zajac that saw the latter patiently fake and make Steve Mason commit before wristing a shot under the crossbar for the only goal in the first period at 7:06. Did we mention several Flyers were out of position on that goal? Jagr now has 702 career goals and 57 points this season.
No. 1
Jagr is the NHL’s all-time active leading scorer with 1,745 points.
Power play
The Flyers' first power play of the game saw an outstanding setup and three very good shots on Brodeur but no goal. Too bad, because the Devils scored a few minutes later to take a 1-0 lead.
The next three Flyer power plays were simply brutal. There were turnovers, no setup and no zone time, as the Devils got their sticks on everything. Their fifth one saw them second-guess themselves with extra passes because the Devils weren’t giving them shooting lanes. Kimmo Timonen and Wayne Simmonds had a very good chance to score on their last attempt.
Overall, the Flyers were 0 for 6 in the game.
Penalty kill
The Flyers were strong on the PK as they were 3 for 3 in the game, holding the Devils to one or no shots in each of them.
Milestone
Hartnell picked up his fourth milestone on the season. He played his 900th career game on Dec. 7 at Dallas and collected his 500th career point on Dec. 23 against Minnesota. He got his 300th point as a Flyer on Jan. 14 at Buffalo. Now this particular game marked Hartnell’s 500th as a Flyer.
Grossmann’s first
Grossmann's first goal in 75 games tied it 1-1 just 47 seconds into the second period. He had a wicked shot from the left circle that struck Michael Ryder’s stick and beat Brodeur. It was just his second goal as a Flyer.
Downie demoted
Steve Downie had another checkered game, getting bounced off Sean Couturier’s line in the second period to the fourth line with Michael Raffl getting moved up.
Faceoffs
Through two periods, the Flyers had won 66 percent of the draws. Matt Read had taken four draws and won all four of them. That’s the most draws he’s taken all season in a game.
Scratches
Ray Emery (groin) and Zac Rinaldo (upper body) were injured. Defensemen Erik Gustafsson and Hal Gill along with forward Jay Rosehill and call-up goalie Yann Danis were all healthy.
Loose pucks
The Flyers have a scheduled off-day on Wednesday. ... After Sunday’s game in Pittsburgh, the Flyers will play seven times over the final 15 days of the month. … The Flyers had gone 12 straight games scoring at least one goal in the third period. Not this one.