The time has finally come. The New Jersey Devils begin their 2026-27 schedule at the Prudential Center. Coming to town is the Philadelphia Flyers and there is no better way to kick off the regular season. 

Matchup Overview 

The Devils are looking to bounce back after a disappointing season. They finished with a 42-37-3 record, seventh in the Metropolitan Division. They failed to make the playoffs, which was attributed to poor injury luck and also poor performance. The Devils brought in Sunny Mehta to be the new general manager of the Devils and he has put his fingerprints all over this roster in the summer. 

There will be new faces that are in town and should play a very big role. Mehta made the inevitable trade involving goalie Jacob Markström and and recieved Evan Rodrigues in return. Mehta also signed forward Anthony Martha, giving the Devils a shooting threat, but the big move was bringing in Luke Evangelista and also giving him a big extension. Evangelista is a solid two-way player and is coming off his most productive season as an NHL player. Mehta came in, hit the ground running and added a ton of depth to the forward group. Optimism should be high with this group. 

As for the Flyers, they are looking to capitalize on a season where they made the playoffs. Not only did they make the playoffs, but they won the first round, only to get bounced by the eventual Stanley Cup champions.

With the Ducks matching Philadelphia’s offer sheet with Leo Carlsson, the Flyers did not do a ton to the group. The biggest addition was acquiring Joseph Woll from the Maple Leafs. He is coming off the worst year of his career, but prior to the 2025-26 season, he had a save percentage above .900 in every year. Given Philadelphia opened against Pittsburgh Wednesday, New Jersey should see Woll in net. Dan Vladar is coming off a strong season in what was his strongest workload (51 starts), posting a 2.42 goals against average and .906 save percentage.

Aside from the slew of extensions general manager Daniel Briere inked, the biggest eyeballs will be on rookie Porter Martone. The hockey world got a small glimpse of him last season and he should be a huge piece to their puzzle.

Projected Lineup 

New Jersey Devils 

Forwards 

Meier-Hischier-Evangelista

Martha-Hughes-Bratt

Gritsyuk-Rodrigues-Mercer

Lombardi-Glass-Noesen

Defense 

Hughes-Pesce

Siegenthaler-Hamilton

Dillon-Chisholm

Goalies 

Allen

Daws

Philadelphia Flyers 

Forwards

Tippett-Zegras-Martone

Foerster-Dvorak-Konecny

Bump-Cates-Michkov

Grundstrom-Couturier-Acciari 

Defense 

Sanheim-Ristolainen

York-Drysdale

Seeler-Benoit

Goalies 

Woll

Vladar

What to Watch for 

Luke Evangelista Impact in the Top Six 

Who doesn’t love the new guys on the block? One of the most exciting players that the Devils brought into the fold was Evangelista. A player with a stellar two-way game and a player who is coming off a 50-plus point season. This is a player that fits a need, as he is great at generating chances off the rush and his style of play should bode well for playing alongside Nico Hischier and Timo Meier. That’ll be a line to watch for in its own right. Hischier himself touched on the impact he could have. 

“I think he’s a very smart player that can finish chances but also create,” the Devils captain said. “It’s been great. A great guy. Fits in perfectly well with this group here,” Hischier said. “And obviously on the ice, he has a lot of skill, he’s a very smart guy that sees the ice very well. He fits perfectly on our line. We’re just trying enjoy ourselves out there, have fun and work hard and he fits in perfectly.”

Evangelista played a big role in the teams’ final preseason game by scoring two goals. In two games played together, the chemistry is developing and the line of Evangelista, Hischier, Meier looked good together. The trio had a Corsi-for percentage (CF%) of 61.54, and an expected goals-for percentage (xGF%) of 63.52.

Porter Martone 

The good news for Flyers fans is that Matvei Michkov came into camp in great shape and should look to have a much better season. What the hockey world will get to see is Porter Martone, who is one of the top prospects in the entire sport. 

Martone got a small sample in the regular season (nine games) and did well in terms of impacting the team. In those nine games, he finished with a 50.68 CF%, saw the Flyers have an edge in shots (56-43), the Flyers outscore teams 5-3, and a 50.43 xGF%. 

Martone as a whole scored four goals and posted 10 points. He is an all type of situations player, especially power play, where he had four points and gives them a dynamic weapon. Martone did have five points in the postseason as well. 

Martone is going to be a game changer for the Flyers and a player that fans could dread matching up against. 

How to Watch 

Thursday’s puck drop is at 7:00 pm ET and can be found exclusively on ESPN+.