The New Jersey Devils needed less time to blow this one open than it takes to boil water. Evan Rodrigues beat the buzzer with 29.6 seconds left in the first period, and by the time the second period was five minutes old, New Jersey had scored four goals and chased New York's fill-in goaltender from the net on the way to a 7-1 rout of the Rangers on Thursday night at Prudential Center, the first meeting this season between the cross-river rivals.

The barrage started with a gift: Rangers captain J.T. Miller whiffed on a passing attempt late in the first, and the puck landed on Rodrigues' stick in prime scoring territory. Eighteen seconds into the second period, a Vladislav Gavrikov giveaway turned into the first of two goals for Luke Hughes. Then rookie-turned-fill-in goalie Dylan Garand botched a puck-handling play that let Devils captain Nico Hischier walk in for a tap-in. New York coach Mike Sullivan burned a timeout to stop the bleeding; it didn't work, as Arseny Gritsyuk buried a juicy rebound on the very next shift to send Garand to the bench after four goals on just 13 shots.

Backup Spencer Martin fared little better in relief, surrendering goals to Hughes again, Stefan Noesen and Cody Glass. At the other end, New Jersey's Nico Daws was flawless until Pavel Dorofeyev beat him with a power-play deflection in the third, finishing with 18 saves on 19 shots. Hughes' two-goal night was the first multi-goal game of his NHL career, while Timo Meier, Brett Pesce, Amadeus Lombardi, Dawson Mercer and Dougie Hamilton each tacked on two assists. New Jersey outshot New York 31-19 in a lopsided line that the Associated Press' game story called a complete role reversal from the Rangers' recent form.

A crease in crisis

The rout landed on a Rangers team already reeling in net. Franchise goaltender Igor Shesterkin, the 2022 Vezina Trophy winner, was lost for the season after jamming his right knee into the post and collapsing into his own net during an October 9 loss in Washington. Backup Joonas Korpisalo is also on injured reserve with a lower-body injury, which is how Garand — recalled off waivers from AHL Hartford and a surprise 2-0 with a shutout in his first two relief starts — ended up starting a marquee rivalry game at all. He didn't survive the first period.

"IT'S AWFUL, YOU KNOW? HE'S A PILLAR OF THIS TEAM. IT STINKS," Miller said of Shesterkin's injury when it was announced, a sentiment that only looked more prophetic as his patchwork goaltending unraveled against New Jersey.

New York had dropped just two of its first eight games before Thursday; this was its third loss in nine. The Devils, meanwhile, have now won two straight and sent an early message in a rivalry that will play out six more times this season. New York heads to Columbus on Saturday still searching for answers in net, while New Jersey visits Washington the same night. Per the league's official box score, it was the most goals the Rangers have allowed in regulation this season.

For a Rangers team that entered the year with Stanley Cup aspirations, the math is getting uncomfortable fast: a Vezina-winning goalie done for the year, his primary backup hurt, and now a depth-chart call-up exposed on national ice by the team's closest geographic rival.