Devils rising star breaks silence after unexpected heroics in historic OT victory over Hurricanes

In a twist of fate that seemed lifted from a movie script, the youngest player in the New Jersey Devils’ lineup delivered the most important goal in the longest game ever played at Prudential Center. This stellar performance has breathed new life into the Devils, who now trail 2-1 in the best-of-seven series and will aim to even things up in Game 4, once again at home, on Sunday.

Simon Nemec, a 21-year-old defenseman appearing in just his second career Stanley Cup Playoff game, rose to the occasion at the perfect moment. After beating two Carolina Hurricanes players in the right circle face-off, the young prodigy unleashed a precise wrist shot that clinched a dramatic 3-2 victory for the Devils at 2:36 of the second overtime in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round series.

Nemec’s raw excitement after scoring the game-winner was evident. “I was so happy. I was … I don’t know what I can say,“ Nemec stated, still fueled by adrenaline, according to NHL.com. “It was just an amazing feeling, especially this tough season for me. But a really big win for us and an important win.”

Nemec shines in the midst of adversity

This breakthrough moment served as redemption for Nemec, who had struggled with consistency during the regular season, recording just four points (two goals, two assists) and a -10 rating across 27 games.

However, the postseason has revealed a new side to his game. “I mean, when you put a young guy in the lineup, you expect so much energy from him,” Nemec said. “I just tried hard to kill the plays, make some plays, and just play my game with more effort and more energy.”

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Devils’ head coach Sheldon Keefe offered high praise for the young defenseman. “I haven’t watched the goal back, but I just thought it was a great play by him to jump in and attack, get a hard shot off,“ Keefe said of Nemec. “In my head, I sort of thought, man, wouldn’t this be something if Siegenthaler ends this thing, but if I was really thinking, I would have said, ‘Wouldn’t this be something if the young guy, Nemec, stepped up so big for us here.’”

Keefe continued, highlighting the team’s resilience: “I’m just so impressed with our team tonight… the defense in particular,” he said. “It’s so fitting that Nemec gets the winner for us. Just our whole team, the way that we dug in here tonight and stayed with it. I learned a lot about our team. That’s a hard hockey game out there and our backs are essentially against the wall. Our guys just dug in and found a way.”

Nemec etches his name into history

At 21 years and 69 days old, Simon Nemec entered the history books by becoming the second-youngest defenseman in NHL history to score an overtime goal in the playoffs, behind only Andrei Zyuzin. Moreover, he became the youngest player in Devils/Colorado Rockies/Kansas City Scouts franchise history to achieve this feat, surpassing Adam Henrique.