Match Overview
Coming off of a tense overtime loss to the Boston Bruins, the New Jersey Devils will march into a battle with the feared Washington Capitals tonight. It hasn’t been easy for the Devils in 2021, but they came away with three points in their recent series with Boston. Things won’t get any easier against Washington, whom the Devils have struggled mightily against this season.
The rivalry between these two teams has been one-sided this year, the Devils are 1-5-2 against Washington thus far. The Devils own a record of 13-16-5, seventh in the East Division. The Capitals, on the other hand, sit at 23-8-6 and are in first place.
Projected Lines
Devils’ Lines
Forwards
Bratt-Zajac-Sharangovich
Kuokkanen-Hughes-Palmeri
Wood-Zacha-Johnsson
Maltsev-McLeod-Boqvist
Defense
Smith-Severson
Kulikov-Subban
Murray-Vatanen
Goalies
Blackwood
Wedgewood
Capitals’ Lines
Forwards
Ovechkin-Kuznetsov-Oshie
Sheary-Backstrom-Wilson
Vrana-Eller-Sprong
Hagelin-Dowd-Hathaway
Defense
Dillon-Carlson
Orlov-Schultz
Chara-Jensen
Goalies
Samsonov
Vanecek
What/Who to Watch
Jesper Bratt
I’m really liking what Jesper Bratt is doing, there’s no other way to put it. The young Swede has two goals, one of which was an overtime winner, and eight points in his last ten games. He seems to have really come out of his shell as of late.
Analytically, he’s been elite. His expected goals-for (xG%) is at 52.57, his high-danger Corsi-for % (HDCF%) is at 54.55, and his Corsi-For % (CF%) is an amazing 56.75. He is undoubtedly one of the best skaters the Devils have, and he’s ramping it up production-wise. I’ll definitely be watching him tonight.
Kyle Palmieri
Despite a slow start, Palmeri has also been a key cog in the offense as of late. He’s come up with clutch goals, including the only goal in Sunday’s win. He’s also solid analytically with a CF% of 51.38.
It’s unfortunate that I have to say this, but what I just mentioned is increasing his trade value. Palmeri is in the final year of his five-season pact with New Jersey and there has been little buzz about his extension. He could be relatively valuable on the market, there are plenty of contending teams that could use an extra top-six forward. I’m not looking forward to a potential trade, but I am looking forward to watching him tonight.
My Prediction
I’m not too optimistic about tonight’s game. I predict that the Devils get manhandled 4-1.
Tonight’s game can be seen on MSG+ at 7:00 pm.