Matchup Overview
The New Jersey Devils come into this one off another tough loss at the hands of the Washington Capitals, falling 2-1 in overtime on Friday night. Capitalizing on scoring opportunities was the achilles heel once again for NJ. This is something they hope to fix this afternoon. It’s not going to be easy for the New Jersey to figure out a way to finally beat Washington. Especially, if they are unable to score on their high quality chances.
Projected Devils’ Lines
Please note, these were the Devils’ lines in practice yesterday morning. Last night, Jesper Boqvist was assigned to the taxi squad and Tyce Thompson was recalled. It is yet to be seen who gets the nod there.
Forwards
Johnsson – Hughes – Palmieri
Kuokkanen – Zajac – Sharangovich
Maltsev – Zacha – Wood
Bratt – McLeod – Boqvist/Thopmson
Defense
Smith – Severson
Kulikov – Subban
Murray – Vatanen
Goalies
Blackwood
Wedgeood
Projected Washington Lines
Forwards
Ovechkin – Eller – Oshie
Sheary – Backstrom – Wilson
Panik – Kuznetsov – Sprong
Hagelin – Dowd – Hathaway
Defense
Dillon – Carlson
Orlov – Schultz
Chara – Jensen
Goalies
Vanecek
Samsonov
What to Watch
Kyle Palmieri
With the trade deadline closing in and rumors swirling\, it’s getting harder and harder to see Palmieri remaining a Devil once the deadline passes. It’s been a bit of a tough season for Kyle this year, but it feels like he is due to get back in the goal column. Given how good of a Devil Palmieri has been, now is the time to really enjoy him while he’s still around.
Jack Hughes
Although he wasn’t able to capitalize Friday night, Hughes was all around the action and had a handful of glorious scoring opportunities. Hughes continues to show flashes this season, his ability to finish just doesn’t seem to be fully developed quite yet. Whether it’s ringing a shot off the post or getting denied on a breakaway opportunity, he’s so close yet just can’t break through. Look for him to once again be heavily involved in the push offensively, and hopefully today is the day he sneaks one under the crossbar.
It should be a fun one this afternoon, and a very Happy Easter to all who will be celebrating today!