The New Jersey Devils (36-34-4) host the Pittsburgh Penguins (33-30-11) tonight. New Jersey has not played since Friday’s 5-2 defeat to Buffalo while Pittsburgh downed the Rangers 5-2 at Madison Square Garden last night.
Both the Devils and Penguins are clinging to slim playoff hopes, sitting six and five points out of the final playoff spot, respectively, both having played one game more than Washington in the second wild card spot. This is the third and final meeting of the year between the division rivals, with New Jersey already securing a pair of 5-2 wins.
Match Overview
The Devils practiced on Monday morning, and there were several encouraging injury updates. The biggest news of the day was that Jonas Siegenthaler and Kurtis MacDermid are expected to return at some point this week, potentially as soon as today, per Amanda Stein. Both were practicing in full contact jerseys and working in with the penalty kill, although both were predominantly getting reps as extras, also per Stein.
After practice, New Jersey assigned defensemen Santeri Hattaka to Utica, perhaps signaling that Jonas Siegenthaler is ready to return tonight. Check out our social channels closer to puck drop to see if either Siegenthaler or MacDermid draw back into the lineup.
Jack Hughes also returned to practice Monday after taking a couple of maintenance days, per Stein.
Jake Allen figures to get the start tonight. Since joining New Jersey at the trade deadline, Allen has posted a .923 save percentage and a 4.35 goals saved above expected (GSAx).
Meanwhile, Pittsburgh is likely to start Tristan Jarry for the first time since March 24 tonight. Jarry was supposed to play against the Rangers last night, but was sick, so backup Alex Nedlejkovic took the first end of Pittsburgh’s back-to-back. This season, Jarry has a .904 save percentage and a 5.33 GSAx.
Elsewhere, Sidney Crosby is still the star Devils fans are familiar with. Last night against New York, Crosby registered three points, clinching his 19th consecutive point-per-game season. That ties an NHL record held by Wayne Gretzky. Crosby has been on fire recently with 13 points in his last five games.
While Crosby’s 82 points lead the team, Evgeni Malkin is the only other Penguin north of 50 points. Jake Guentzel had eclipsed that plateau before being traded to Carolina for Michael Bunting.
Erik Karlsson has not reached the heights of his 2022-2023 Norris-winning campaign, but he leads all Penguins’ defensemen with 46 points. Pittsburgh mainstay Kris Letang is just behind him with 45.
Projected Lines
New Jersey Devils
Forwards
Meier – Hischier – Bratt
Hughes – Haula – Holtz
Palat – Nosek – Mercer
Willman – Tierney – Lazar
Defensemen
Bahl – Marino
Hughes – DeSimone
Smith – Nemec
Goaltenders
Allen
Kahkonen
Pittsburgh Penguins
Forwards
O’Connor – Crosby – Rust
Bunting – Malkin – Rakell
Smith – Eller – Puustinen
Puljujarvi – Carter – Bemstrom
Defensemen
Joseph – Letang
Pettersson – Karlsson
Shea – St. Ivany
Goaltenders
Jarry
Nedeljkovic
What To Watch For
Dawson Mercer
With the playoffs growing more and more unlikely by the day, the play of younger skaters becomes all the more intriguing to the New Jersey brass compared to veterans on expiring deals. One such player is Dawson Mercer, who has generally struggled this season, but has seen his play improve over the past month.
In March, Mercer posted a 52.88 Corsi-for percentage (CF%) and a 59.50 expected goals-for percentage (xGF%) at five-on-five, the latter of which led all Devils’ skaters that played in more than three games for the month. The Devils also had a 36-24 edge in high-danger chances with Mercer on the ice at five-on-five.
Over his last five games, Mercer registered an even more impressive 69.15 xGF% at five-on-five which also led the team. On top of that, Mercer netted a pair of goals in New Jersey’s 5-2 win over Pittsburgh on March 19.
Alexander Holtz
Alexander Holtz is getting a big opportunity to close the season, finally skating on a line with Jack Hughes. Holtz was playing alongside Hughes Friday in Buffalo, and the results were exciting for Devils’ fans.
Holtz led the team with an 88.28 xGF% at five-on-five in Buffalo while maintaining an 11-1 edge in scoring chances and a 5-0 edge in high-danger chances. The 2021 first-round pick is expected to be back with Hughes tonight, offering a potential glimpse into the future of the New Jersey top-six.
Luke Hughes
Another young Devil to turn in a strong stretch of recent games is Luke Hughes. The rookie defenseman has led all New Jersey blue liners over the last five contests with a 63.04 xGF% at five-on-five. Hughes has also turned in a scoring chance and high-danger scoring chance advantage north of 60%.
Where To Watch
Puck drop from the Prudential Center is set for 7:00 pm ET on MSGSN.
Note: All statistics via Natural Stat Trick.