With injuries seemingly consuming the NHL in the season’s first five weeks, the New Jersey Devils took their biggest hit over the weekend — and it was not even on the ice.
The Devils will be back in the Sunshine State for the second straight month when they meet the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday night for the second matchup between the Eastern Conference clubs.
But they will do it without their leader, Jack Hughes.
In a freak accident involving glass — the club has been tight-lipped on the details — Hughes suffered a serious laceration, forcing surgery that will sideline the sizzling 24-year-old center for roughly eight weeks, though he will be evaluated after six.
The Orlando, Fla.-born Hughes has 20 points (10 goals, 10 assists) in his first 17 games.
“I feel for Jack,” Devils coach Sheldon Keefe said of Hughes, who has had multiple shoulder injuries during his career. “He’s been playing so well and worked so hard last summer to get himself back. … We’ve, unfortunately, had to get used to these situations of guys dropping out of the lineup.
“I look back to when we lost (Brett) Pesce previously. It took us longer than I would’ve liked for us to recalibrate. We don’t have that time. … But with opportunities, people grow and individuals get better.”
Keefe said Cody Glass (upper body) is week-to-week and Zack MacEwen (injured reserve) is also out of the lineup.
Winger Connor Brown, who scored twice in New Jersey’s 5-3 win in Tampa last month, and offensive-minded defenseman Dougie Hamilton are expected to resume practice and are with the team on the three-game road swing.
Jesper Bratt leads the Devils with 12 assists, while Luke Hughes — Jack’s brother — also has 10 helpers. Luke scored a goal and added an assist in New Jersey’s 3-2 shootout win in Washington on Saturday.
The Lightning were shocked by the visiting Vancouver Canucks in a 6-2 loss on Sunday.
The Atlantic Division club overwhelmed their Pacific Division counterparts by holding a 13-1 shot advantage and a 27-6 edge in shots attempted through 20 minutes. Tampa Bay led 2-0 near the midpoint of the contest.
But everything fell apart in a span of 1:40 in the third as the Canucks hit the net three times, then they potted two more for good measure in a stunning victory in the Lightning’s back end of a back-to-back set.
Coach Jon Cooper’s team kept referring to playing a “60-minute” game, and the coach reiterated a complacency factor through an easy first 30 minutes.
“What did (Vancouver) do (down 2-0)?” asked Cooper afterward. “They just kept going and kept trying, understanding a game is 60 minutes, not 30. The other team is up two (goals) and feeling pretty good about themselves to the point where it’s like, what, the tortoise and the hare. That’s what it was.
“One team got comfortable, and in this league, the second that happens you’re done. We got comfortable, they stuck with it and the right team won the game.”
Brandon Hagel returned to action after missing what amounted to nearly two full games and recorded an assist, but the Lightning went 0 for 2 on the power play against a Vancouver penalty kill that had allowed 21 goals in 64 chances, the NHL’s worst unit.
Nikita Kucherov and Jake Guentzel each hit the net to increase the team’s lead in goals to eight apiece.
With a few forwards getting healthier, the club reassigned Jakob Pelletier and Boris Katchouk to its AHL affiliate in Syracuse.
