Brief Overview

After a hard-fought win against Montreal, the New Jersey Devils are coming off a soul-crushing defeat at the hands of the Boston Bruins. It was a bad performance by the entire group, which saw them lose 8-1. Since returning from the Canada road trip, the Devils have gone 2-3-0. The Devils have a tough test ahead against the top-seeded Florida Panthers.

The Panthers (46-15-6), are in first place in the Atlantic Division and own the top seed in The Eastern Conference. The Panthers come into this afternoon winning four of their last five games and are coming off a 4-0 win against the Chicago Blackhawks.

Projected Lineups

New Jersey Devils’

Forwards

Sharangovich-Hughes-Mercer

Tatar-Hischier-Bratt

Johansson-Boqvist-Wood

Vesey-McLeod-Bastian

Defense

Siegenthaler-Hamilton

Graves-Severson

Smith-Subban

Goalies

Gillies

Daws

Florida Panthers’

Forwards

Verhaeghe-Barkov-Duclair

Huberdeau-Giroux-Lomberg

Marchment-Bennett-Reinhart

Mamin-Luostarinen-Thornton

Defense

Forsling-Weegar

Chairot-Gudas

Monitor-Hagg

Goalies

Bobrovsky

Knight

Keys To Victory

For the Devils, a big key is limiting the Panthers’ chances and keeping the puck out of the net. The Florida Panthers lead the NHL in goals scored with 180. The Panthers are loaded and can score up and down the lineup. The Panthers average 3.32 Goals per 60 minutes, which is another league’s best.

Special team’s play can be a factor. The high flying Panthers have the 10th best power play, with a success rate of 23.1%. The Devils have the 10th best penalty kill), with a success rate at 80.9 percent. The Devils will wed to be better than Thursday evening against Boston.

Players To Watch

Johnathan Huberdeau

There is a long list of players to watch for on this Panthers team. Alexander Barkov, Claude Giroux, Sam Bennett, etc. But Huberdeau is at the very top. Huberdeau set the record for most assists by a left wing with 71 and currently leads the Panthers in points with 94. Huberdeau could make a case for the Hart Trophy with his level of play. He has eclipsed his career-high in points and has eight points in his last five games.

Jack Hughes

Jack Hughes continues his stellar play. The star center is leading the way for the Devils. Hughes had both goals against Montreal, and scored the only goal off an absurd angle against the Bruins. Hughes has eight points in his last five games. The offense seems to run through him and will be one to watch for against this Florida squad.

Where To Watch

Puck Drop is at 12:30 PM and can be found on NHLN and MSG+.