Watch: Senators’ Brady Tkachuk confronts Devils’ Nico Hischier for guiding puck into empty net after buzzer

By ARJUN B

Modified Apr 07, 2024 04:05 GMT

Tempers flared between the Ottawa Senators and New Jersey Devils on Saturday night after an empty net goal by Nico Hischier.

With the Devils leading 4-3 late in the third period, Hischier gathered the puck in the defensive zone and carried it untouched into the Senators' empty net just after time expired.

Senators forward Brady Tkachuk took exception to Hischier's decision to pad his stats with the meaningless empty netter.

Watch the video here:

As soon as the puck crossed the goal line, Brady Tkachuk rushed at Hischier to a fight. Officials tried to intervene and separate the two players before things escalated.

Despite being restrained, a furious Tkachuk broke free dropping the gloves and made a beeline for Devils defenseman Brendan Smith. The officials once again stepped in to prevent a fight from breaking out on the ice.

In the end, Brady Tkachuk was ushered off the ice and Hischier was surprisingly handed a minor penalty for the late shot on goal.

Similarly, in February, the Toronto Maple Leafs Morgan Rielly cross-checked Senators’ Ridley Greig after the rookie scored an empty netter goal.

Brady Tkachuk’s Senators lose 4-3 against the Devils

The New Jersey Devils win over the Senators snapped their three-game losing skid. Brendan Smith led the way for the Devils with a goal and two assists.

New Jersey jumped out to a 3-0 first-period lead, getting goals from Erik Haula, Ondrej Palat, and Smith. Haula opened the scoring just 3:50 into the game, beating Senator’s goalie Anton Forsberg's stick side.

Palat made it 2-0 by tipping in a Luke Hughes shot at 12:36. Smith extended the lead to 3-0 with a blistering slap shot from inside the blue line at 16:34 of the first. That goal chased Forsberg from the Ottawa net after giving up three goals on just nine shots.

The Senators got on the board early in the second when rookie Jake Sanderson blasted home a power play goal just 33 seconds in to cut the deficit to 3-1. But Nico Hischier responded for the Devils at 11:04 of the middle frame, beating replacement goalie Joonas Korpisalo to push the lead back to three.

In the third, Ottawa mounted a comeback attempt. Claude Giroux notched a power-play goal at 3:37 of the period to make it 4-2. The Senators had a golden opportunity to inch closer when Jack Hughes was awarded a penalty shot, but he missed the net on his attempt.

Brady Tkachuk pulled the Senators to within one with 5:43 remaining when he broke in alone and beat Devils goalie Jake Allen. But New Jersey did enough down the stretch to hang on for the 4-3 victory.

The Devils next face the Nashville Predators on Sunday night while the Senators face the Washington Capitals.