Preview: New Jersey Devils Look to Defeat Lowly Montreal Canadiens

Photo via Getty Images.

Overview

After another frustrating loss to the Washington Capitals last night, the New Jersey are set to take on the Montreal Canadiens in the second game of this back-to-back tonight. It was business as usual yesterday, with the Devils getting the edge in play but falling due to poor goaltending. New Jersey will look to rectify this against Montreal, who has the worst scoring offense in the league.

With last night’s loss, the Devils now hold a record of 23-37-5 and are in eighth place in the Metropolitan Division. The Canadiens own a record of 18-37-10 and sit in eighth place in the Atlantic Division.

Projected Lines and Pairings

Devils’

Forwards:

Sharangovich-Hughes-Mercer

Tatar-Hischier-Bratt

Vesey-Boqvist-Johnsson

Greer-McLeod-Bastian

Defense:

Siegenthaler-Hamilton

Graves-Severson

Bahl-Subban

Goalies:

Gillies

Daws

Canadiens’

Forwards:

Caufield-Suzuki-Anderson

Hoffman-Pitlick-Dauphin

Pitlick-Dvorak-Armia

Pezzetta-Evans-Byron

Defense:

Romanov-Savard

Edmundson-Wideman

Lagesson-Schueneman

Goalies:

Allen

Montembeault

Keys to the Game

Jesper Bratt

Surprise, surprise, Jesper Bratt is having another fantastic run. With a goal in yesterday’s loss, Bratt extended his point streak to six games. The Swedish forward has had a career-year so far, potting 22 goals and 42 assists for 64 points in 62 games played. Additionally, Bratt has outstanding underlying metrics, with a 55.57 Corsi-for percentage (CF%) and a 58.91 expected-goals for percentage (xGF%). With the way things are going, Bratt is sure to factor into tonight’s game.

Jack Hughes

But you can’t mention Bratt without Hughes, because he’s also on a great run as of late. He has 13 points in 12 games since the beginning of March. The young Hughes has had a phenomenal season, pouring in 22 goals and 30 assists for 52 points in 45 games played. He’s also posted respectable analytics, with a 52.50 CF% and a 54.23 xG%.

Tonight’s game can be seen on MSG at 7:00 PM EDT.

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