Well, there is good news and bad news for the New Jersey Devils. The good news is that the terrible four-game series against the New York Rangers is over. If you asked me to describe that series, the words disappointing, embarrassing, and pathetic come to mind. At least I have the New York Yankees to fall back on. Oh wait, they’re not doing great either.
The bad news is that tomorrow night the Devils are back in action against another high flying team in the Pittsburgh Penguins. Just like the Devil’s four games against the Rangers’, their last meeting against the flightless birds from steel city was a loss. New Jersey hopes to get their first win in six games on Tuesday night.
Players To Watch:
Jake Guentzel:
In the Devil’s last game against Pittsburgh, Guenztel had a hat trick. The left-winger also has 12 points in his last team games. Tuesday should be a fun night for him.
Nolan Foote:
One of the few positives — if you can even call it that — to come out of the past four games was seeing Foote make his NHL-debut. He even picked up an assist in Sunday’s loss. Even if he doesn’t finish the season in New Jersey, he’ll give us something to be interested in.
P.K. Subban:
Subban has been one of the Devils with the most ice time per game, often leading the team on most nights. On Sunday, he was once again the Devils leader with 27:51 of ice time. Well, he’s been earning that playing time. Subban has three points in the past two games.
Keys To Victory:
Not At Home and Not Against The Rangers:
The Devils lost four straight against their Hudson River rivals and now they finally have a different opponent. The Devils also have struggled at their home rink in the Prudential Center. They are on the road against a different team, maybe that will work in their favor. Look, I know that is setting the bar low, but I’m trying to look for things here.
Bad Penalty Kill:
Remember how great it was when the Devils finally weren’t dead last in the NHL in penalty kill percentage a few weeks ago? Well, guess what, now they’re back at the bottom in 31st place. The Penguins sit in the bottom third at 22nd. Even if it’s the bottom half, they still feel so much better than New Jersey when they’re shorthanded.
Both Teams are Down:
Devils lost four in a row against the New York Rangers, as well as six in a row total. Pittsburgh is still in the race for the Eastern Conference playoffs yet dropped their last game to the Buffalo Sabres. Both teams feel like they’re going into this one without the best of luck. Then again, one loss against Buffalo doesn’t seem as bad as what we Devils’ fans had to watch the past week.
Game Prediction:
I want to be optimistic, and they can’t lose them all (well, can they? Don’t take that as a challenge, New Jersey). I’ll say New Jersey finally get’s a victory by the score of 4-2 over Pittsburgh. Wouldn’t that be nice to see?