Hughes brothers deliver overtime winner as New Jersey Devils open season with 3-2 OT victory over Philadelphia Flyers at Prudential Center

By Vancouver Television Sports Desk

NEWARK, N.J. — Jack Hughes scored with 1:37 remaining in overtime to lift the New Jersey Devils to a 3-2 season-opening win against the Philadelphia Flyers at the Prudential Center on Thursday. The game’s decisive play began when Jesper Bratt carried the puck into the right circle and then slid a pass to Hughes in the slot for the winner. It marked an early finishing moment in overtime and capped a back-and-forth matchup in which New Jersey also received goals from Luke Hughes and Dougie Hamilton, while Jack Hughes ultimately provided the winning strike.

Luke Hughes tied the game for the Devils at 2-2 with 9:44 left in the third period. His equalizer came on a snap shot from the high slot, sending the contest to overtime after Philadelphia had taken a late lead earlier in the final frame. Dougie Hamilton had earlier answered a Flyers lead to keep New Jersey within reach. Hamilton made it 1-1 at 17:58 of the second period with a snap shot from the point that beat Flyers goaltender Joseph Woll inside the left post. The setup in front included Anthony Mantha, who provided a screen after Hamilton knocked the puck down inside the blue line during a clearing attempt by Flyers defenseman Cam York.

Philadelphia went ahead first in the opening period when Rasmus Ristolainen scored at 11:12. His goal came from a redirection from the slot. The Flyers then worked through a sequence that included a delayed penalty against New Jersey, with Travis Sanheim taking the initial shot from the point while Woll remained in a 6-on-5 situation. The Flyers later regained the lead in the third period. Sanheim scored for Philadelphia at 5:33 on a slap shot from the top of the left circle to make it 2-1. New Jersey answered only later, with Luke Hughes’ late third-period goal forcing extra time.

New Jersey concluded regulation with power-play struggles that continued through overtime. The Devils finished 0-for-4 on the power play during the game. On the other end of special teams, New Jersey did not allow their scoring momentum to depend on man-advantage opportunities. Luke Hughes’ tying goal and the eventual overtime winner came despite the team’s unsuccessful power play showing.

The Flyers received substantial goaltending work from Woll, who made 41 saves in his Flyers debut. Woll, 28, was acquired in a trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs on June 16, and his start against the Devils featured a full workload over 60-plus minutes. New Jersey’s goaltender Jake Allen recorded 23 saves in the win and improved New Jersey to 1-0-0 in the early portion of the season.

The Devils’ scoring also reflected key contributions across the lineup. Hamilton’s tying goal at 17:58 of the second period stood as one of the club’s two goals in that span, while Luke Hughes’ third-period equalizer ultimately set the stage for Jack Hughes’ overtime finish. Luke Evangelista earned an assist on the tying sequence that preceded the overtime period. Evangelista, who was acquired in a trade with the Nashville Predators on Sept. 1, later signed a five-year, $36.25 million contract extension on Sept. 15, bringing additional context to his role in the season opener.

For Philadelphia, the result extended a difficult stretch at the start of the schedule. The Flyers entered Thursday following a 7-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday, and this contest against New Jersey left them with a 0-1-1 record after the overtime defeat.

With the season now underway, the Devils will carry an overtime road-to-home mentality built on timely finishing. The game hinged on the Hughes brothers’ impact across both regulation and overtime, and it ended with New Jersey converting with 1:37 remaining in the extra period. Philadelphia, meanwhile, will look to build off Woll’s debut performance after receiving goals from Ristolainen and Sanheim, even as New Jersey answered each lead and completed the comeback in the final minutes.

The matchup also underscored the Devils’ ability to create scoring chances in multiple ways. New Jersey’s goals were spread across the second and third periods, and the overtime winner came from controlled zone movement finished with a slot pass from Bratt to Jack Hughes. In the standings, New Jersey’s season-opening points total starts with the full two points from the overtime win, while Philadelphia is left to respond after taking an early lead but not securing a result before the game reached overtime.