We are so back.
The puck will drop on the New Jersey Devils’ 2024-25 season today in Prague, Czechia against the Buffalo Sabres. The wait is finally over after a long offseason full of anticipation of what this team can accomplish.
Overview
The Devils are coming off an eventful offseason that saw them add Jacob Markstrom and Brett Pesce. Last season was a disappointment for Jersey. They caught the injury bug too often and underperformed their way to a 38-39-5 record, good for just seventh in the Metropolitan Division. The NHL regulars played an underwhelming preseason, going 0-4-0 before they shipped out to Prague, but the excitement is as high as ever in New Jersey.
The Sabres are also coming off a disappointing season that saw them finish five points out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Their offseason, however, was much more questionable. Their most notable addition was Jason Zucker on a one-year, $5 million contract to replace the departing Jeff Skinner. There’s hope in Buffalo that this year will break the 13-year playoff drought, but their offseason doesn’t inspire confidence.
Lines and Pairings
Devils –
Forwards
Meier-Hughes-Bratt
Tatar-Hischier-Mercer
Palat-Haula-Nosen
Cotter-Lazar-Bastian
Defense
Dillon-Hamilton
Siegenthaler-Kovacevic
Casey-Nemec
Goalies
Markstrom
Allen
Sabres –
Forwards
Peterka-Thompson-Tuch
Benson-Cozens-Quinn
Zucker-McLeod-Greenway
Malenstyn-Lafferty-Aube Kubel
Defense
Dahlin-Jokijaru
Byram-Power
Samuelsson-Clifton
Gilbert-Bryson
Goalies
Lukkonen
Levi
Keys to the Game
Bench Battle
Both the Sabres and Devils have new head coaches but one of them is a familiar face to both squads. Buffalo brought back former Devils coach Lindy Ruff in the offseason for a second round in western New York. Ruff had an up-and-down tenure in New Jersey, leading the Devils to the playoffs in 2022-23 before the huge step back in 2023-24. Will the Sabres system resemble what he applied in New Jersey or will he try something different?
The Devils hired Sheldon Keefe of the Maple Leafs in the offseason to try and get into win-now mode. Ruff is a fantastic coach for team development and cohesiveness, but general manager Tom Fitzgerald made the decision that he wasn’t going to be the guy to take them over the finish line. Now, fans will get a look at Keefe’s system for the first time on Friday.
Power Play or Power Outage?
Last season was rough for both teams’ power play units. The Devils got off to a very strong start, leading the league in power play success rate for the first part of the year. Then the injuries hit and the man-advantage collapsed. It was one-dimensional and anemic down the stretch. They still finished with a respectable 22.45 power play success rate, but the end of the season left a lot to be desired.
The Sabres’ power play was bad from start to finish. Their man-advantage was little more than a momentum generator for their opponent as they finished with a 16.59 success rate. Both teams have new head coaches and both will be looking to shake up their systems.
Marky’s First Rodeo
Last year’s disappointing season came down to one position groups; goaltending. Five goalies combined for -8.72 goals saved above expected (GSAx), a disastrous mark. The situation was even worse before Kaapo Kahkonen and Jake Allen came in via trades. Much of that total came down to massive regression from Vitek Vanecek, who earned an awful -10.67 GSAx.
With the addition of Markstrom in the offseason and with Jake Allen as his backup, the Devils hope to have finally solved the position that has been plaguing them for years. Now is Jacob Markstrom’s first opportunity to prove them right.
Where to Watch
Friday’s opened game can be seen on NHL Network for out-of-market viewers and on MSGSN for in-market viewers at 1:00 pm ET.