After beating the Panthers in their home opener, the New Jersey Devils (3-1-0) will host the Edmonton Oilers (2-1-1) in a matinee game Saturday afternoon. The Devils enter Saturday’s contest with a three-game winning streak and are looking to extend it against the reigning Western Conference champion Oilers.
Overview
The Devils have gotten off to a strong start to the season while having more than their fair share of injuries. Their last win came without goaltender Jacob Markstrom, who is expected to miss a couple of weeks with a lower-body injury sustained in the win against Columbus. Despite this, the Devils earned a commanding win over Florida in his absence. New Jersey will look to win another with Jake Allen in the net.
The Oilers are coming off a 4-2 loss to the Islanders on Thursday, their first in regulation this season. After a similarly strong start to the year, they will look to get back to its scoring ways tonight. The Islanders outscored the Oilers by two goals despite Edmonton outshooting them 33-25. The Oilers will look to correct that against a hot Devils team.
The Devils sit third in the Metropolitan Division with six points. The Oilers are also in third in the Pacific Division with five points.
Lines and Pairings
Devils-
Forwards
Palat-Hughes-Bratt
Meier-Hischier-Mercer
Gritsyuk-Glass-Brown
Cotter-Glendening-Halonen
Defense
Hughes-Pesce
Siegenthaler-Hamilton
Dillion-Nemec
Goalies
Allen
Daws
Oilers
Forwards
Mangiapane-McDavid-Tomasek
Nugent Hopkins-Draisaitl-Roslovik
Podkolzin-Frederic-Kapanen
Howard-Henrique-Savoie
Defense
Ekholm-Bouchard
Nurse-Stecher
Kulak-Emberson
Goalies
Skinner
Pickard
Keys to the Game
Spending Too Much Time In The Box
Penalties were one of the main issues the Devils faced that prevented them from scoring more against Florida. They took six of them on Thursday. That’s more than half a period wasted without a chance to score. Granted, Florida got a few soft calls, but the Devils still need to be more disciplined today.
They’ll look to play more efficient defense to prevent extended defensive zone shifts that lead to penalties. This is a must against an Oilers team looking to find the back of the net more.
Lackluster Edmonton Offense, For Now
After starting the year with a respectable six goals through two games, Edmonton has followed it up with four goals in its last two games. In those games, Edmonton earned a 39.37 expected goals for percentage (xG%) and a 50.70 xG% in their last two games, respectively. They’ll need to find more high-danger chances and shot volume if they want to generate offense against New Jersey.
Noesen Injury Update
The Devils got some mixed news on the Stefan Noesen injury yesterday. He’ll remain out for today’s game, but he is reportedly taking reps with the team in practice and will soon make his debut.
Where To Watch
Saturday’s game can be seen on MSGSN at 3:30 pm ET.