The New Jersey Devils (6-2-1) face the St. Louis Blues (3-4-1) in the second half of a back-to-back tonight. New Jersey is coming off consecutive wins over Minnesota, including a 5-3 victory last night. The Blues have lost two straight. This is the first of two meetings between the two teams this season.
Match Overview
Per Amanda Stein, the Devils did not hold a morning skate Friday, so there are no new injury updates. However, Nico Hischier did not make the trip, so he remains out with Chris Tierney taking his place.
Vitek Vanecek has started the last three contests, so Akira Schmid is expected to get the nod in goal tonight. In three appearances this season, the Swiss netminder has a .863 save percentage and has allowed 2.50 goals above expected.
Meanwhile, Jordan Binnington is expected to be in net for the Blues. The 30-year-old has posted a .916 save percentage and has stopped 1.66 goals above expected this season.
Robert Thomas leads the Blues in goals, assists, and points with two, four, and six, respectively. Brandon Saad is the only other St. Louis skater with two goals. As a team, St. Louis’ 1.75 goals scored per game is only better than the 0-9-1 San Jose Sharks.
Projected Lines
New Jersey Devils –
Forwards
Toffoli – Hughes – Meier
Palat – McLeod – Bratt
Mercer – Haula – Lazar
Holtz – Tierney – Bastian
Defensemen
Siegenthaler – Hamilton
Bahl – Marino
Hughes – Smith
Goaltenders
Schmid
Vanecek
St. Louis Blues –
Forwards
Buchnevich – Thomas – Kapanen
Saad – Schenn – Kyrou
Toropchenko – Hayes – Vrana
Blais – Sundqvist – Neighbours
Defensemen
Leddy – Parayko
Krug – Faulk
Scandella – Bortuzzo
Goaltenders
Binnington
Hofer
What To Watch For
Timo Meier
Timo Meier’s linemates Jack Hughes and Tyler Toffoli have deservedly gotten plenty of headlines for their hot starts, but Meier is finding a bit of a groove of his own. After being held without a point in his first three contests, Meier has put together a six-game point streak. His eight points rank fourth among New Jersey skaters.
Over that point streak, Meier has posted a 53.13 expected goals-for percentage (xGF%) at five-on-five, which is solid, but not spectacular. However, he is north of 60% in both scoring chances and high-danger chances in that time. Meier has also been a crucial part of the Devils’ red hot top power play, picking up power play points in three straight contests.
Luke Hughes-John Marino Pairing
Thursday night in Minnesota, Luke Hughes was bumped up to the second pair and played alongside John Marino for parts of the night. Hughes is expected to start tonight’s contest back with Brendan Smith, but don’t be surprised to see Lindy Ruff shuffle the pairings mid-game once again.
In just under ten minutes of five-on-five ice time together, Marino and Hughes played a relatively neutral game with a 51.16 xGF%. However, that is still an improvement on Hughes’ 42.94 xGF% in over 90 minutes with Brendan Smith.
Alexander Holtz
Despite playing in the bottom six, Alexander Holtz has scored in three of the last five games for New Jersey. However, it’s not all good news for Holtz.
The 21-year-old has the lowest xGF% among Devils’ skaters at five-on-five at 40.78 over that stretch. His share of scoring chances and high-danger chances while on the ice is also below 40% and Holtz has been outscored 5-3 at five-on-five.
Clearly, there is still more work to be done to clean up his defensive game, especially being deployed in a less-natural, more defensive role in the lineup, but it is still encouraging to see the goals start to come for the former seventh overall pick.
Where To Watch
Puck drop between the Devils and Blues is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. ET on MSGSN.
Note: All statistics via Natural Stat Trick.