Thursday night, the New Jersey Devils look to get back on track by defeating the Carolina Hurricanes. The Devils have gone 7-3-0 over their past 10 games, with their only losses being to the Calgary Flames and Tampa Bay Lightning on the road, and the San Jose Sharks at home.
The Devils are currently 12-7-2, which currently has them third in the Metropolitan divison. The Hurricanes hold a record of 14-4-0, which has them first in the Metro.
Match Overview
The Carolina Hurricanes have a couple streaks on the line against the Devils. The first is their three game winning streak which they extended last night by defeating the Philadelphia Flyers 4-1. The second is their six game winning streak they have against the Devils dating back to the 2023 postseason.
The last time the Devils defeated the Hurricanes was game three of their second round series against them two seasons ago. The Devils won that game 8-4, but have been outscored 21-9 in the six games since then.
Lines and Pairings
Devils
Forwards
Palat-Hughes-Bratt
Meier-Hischier-Noesen
Cotter-Haula-Mercer
Bowers/Foote-Dowling-Tatar
Defense
Dillon-Hamilton
Hughes-Pesce
Siegenthaler-Kovacevic
Goalies
Markstrom
Allen
Hurricanes
Forwards
Svechnikov-Aho-Roslovic
Robinson-Kotkaniemi-Necas
Martinook-Staal-Carrier
Jost-Drury-Blake
Defense
Slavin-Burns
Orlov-Chatfield
Gostisbehere-Walker
Goalies
Martin
Kotchetkov
Keys to the Game
Facing a Third String Goalie
Since Frederick Andersen is out indefinitely with an injury, and Pyoter Kotchetkov played Wednesday night in Philadelphia, the Devils will get their rare chance to face a third string goalie. Spencer Martin, who is the projected to starter in Newark, has a 1-1-0 record this season with an .891 save percentage. It just so happens that his one win was a shutout, so, even the Hurricanes’ third goaltender can be dangerous.
Either way if the Devils want to snap their losing streak against the Canes they’ll need to put pucks on net and test the career AHL goalie early and often.
Finally Resting
The Devils last game against the Lightning was their sixth in 10 days. It was the Lightning’s second in nine. Before this break, the Devils had a large lead on most other teams in games played, so a four day break like the one the team just had was sorely needed.
With players like Timo Meier and Brett Pesce recovering from minor injuries they suffered recently, the break couldn’t have come at a more perfect time to help the team get rested and hopefully geared up for another tough stretch of games. The Devils have seven games in 12 days coming up including two games against the Capitals, a game against the Rangers, and of course, Thursday night’s game against Carolina.
Where to Watch
Puck drop at the Prudential Center is scheduled for 7:00 pm ET. The game can be seen on MSG SportsNet.