Thursday, the New Jersey Devils open their season in Raleigh to face-off against the Hurricanes, the team who eliminated the team in April.
The Devils went 42-33-7 last year which landed them third in the Metropolitan division. The Hurricanes finished just ahead of them in second with a record of 47-30-5.
Match Overview
While it was generally a quiet offseason, these two teams each made their handful of moves. The Devils added Evgenii Dadonov and Connor Brown in free agency for much-needed forward depth, but the best acquisition may have come from within. Arseny Gritsyuk looked like the real deal in preseason and will start the season on the team.
The Hurricanes were also looking to revamp their forward group and did so with one of the biggest additions of the summer when they signed Nikolaj Ehlers to a six-year, $51 million contract. Carolina also injected their blueline with some youth, trading for K’Andre Miller from the Rangers and inserting Russian rookie Alexander Nikishin.
With the Devils at mostly full health, they’ll be looking for their first win in Raleigh in 10 tries (regular season and playoffs). Over the team’s last 20 games in North Carolina, they’re 3-16-1 with a negative-33 goal differential.
Lines and Pairings
Devils
Forwards
Dadonov-Hughes-Bratt
Meier-Hischier-Mercer
Palat-Glass-Brown
Cotter-Glendening-Gritsyuk
Defense
Hughes-Pesce
Dillon-Nemec
Siegenthaler-Hamilton
Goalies
Markstrom
Allen
Hurricanes
Forwards
Ehlers-Aho-Jarvis
Svechnikov-Stankoven-Blake
Martinook-Staal-Carrier
Hall-Kotkaniemi-Robinson
Defense
Slavin-Walker
Miller-Chatfield
Nikishin-Gostisbehere
Goalies
Andersen
Kochetkov
Keys to the Game
New Season, Same Back-End
While all the focus on the Devils will rightfully be on the additions to the forward group, that means the team’s excellent defense and goaltender won’t get the recognition it deserves. Last season, the Devils allowed the fifth-fewest goals against, sixth-fewest shot attempts against, and had the second-best penalty kill.
That group is essentially returning everyone. The only subtraction is Johnathan Kovacevic who could be out until January following offseason knee surgery. The Devils hope Simon Nemec, who played the best hockey of his life in the postseason last year, can fill his spot in the lineup and some.
In net, Jacob Markstrom, Jake Allen, and Nico Daws combined for a .911 save percentage (SV%) at five-on-five (5v5). That mark was seven points higher than their .904 5v5 SV% in 2023-24.
Next Step
For years many in the hockey-sphere have been wondering when the Devils would take their big step into contenders. Some thought they did after a franchise record-breaking 2022-23 season, however what they have accomplished since would say otherwise. The Eastern Conference, and especially the Metropolitan division is the weakest it’s been in years. If there were to be a time to pounce it would be now, but luck and health needs to be on the Devils side unlike the last two seasons.
How to Watch
Thursday night’s game will begin at 7:30 pm ET on ESPN+ and Hulu.