Tuesday, The New Jersey Devils (13-5-0) round out their road trip as they take on the Winnipeg Jets (7-8-3)
Game Preview
The Devils come into this game as maybe the hottest team in the NHL. Following their win Sunday night in Toronto, New Jersey has won five in a row and 11 of their last 13. This insane stretch of play has gotten them to fifth in the entire NHL and second in the Metropolitian Division.
One of the guys the Devils have to thank for this success is someone the Jets are very familiar with. After forcing his way out of Winnipeg, Connor Hellybuck has made himself the most hated player in Manitoba. It’s fair to say the welcome he will get from Jets fans will be far from warm. General manager Sunny Mehta and head coach Sheldon Keefe have no interest in playing into the media show, however, as they made the decision to bench Hellybuck in favor of Jake Allen.
On the other side of the ice will be a very familiar face for New Jersey. After five seasons and 420 games with the club, Dawson Mercer will play his first game against the Devils tonight. Him and the Jets have seemingly found a rhythm after a rough start to the season. They’ve now won three games in a row, and find themselves just four points out of a playoff spot. Now they have a chance to prove themselves against one of the NHL’s best.
Lines and pairings
Devils
Forwards
Gritsyuk-Hughes-Bratt
Meier-Hischier-Evangelista
Boqvist-Rodrigues
Lombardi-Glass-Brown
Defense
Hughes-Pesce
Siegenthaler-Hamilton
Chisholm-Kovacevic
Dillon
Goalies
Allen
Hellybuck
Jets
Forwards
Connor-Scheifele-Vilardi
Perfetti-Yager-Mercer
Iafallo-Lowry-Bjorck
Koepke-Barron-Rosen
Defense
Morrissey-DeMelo
Samberg-Pionk
Ferraro-Baeur
Goalies
Skinner
Stevenson
Keys to the Game
Stay Hot Jack
One reason for the Devils undefeated week in the play of star forward Jack Hughes. The former first-overall pick was awarded NHL’s Second Star of the Week after recording three goals and nine points. His point total has now increased to 25, which leads the Devils and sits 11th in the NHL.
Puck Possession
The Devils have been one of the top puck possession teams at five-on-five all season long. They enter Tuesday’s game second in the league in shot attempt ratio and second in expected goals-for percentage. Meanwhile, the Jets rank 24th and 23rd in those respective categories. This according to Natural Stat Trick.
The Devils should be able to flex their muscles at five-on-five. It’ll just come down to Jake Allen getting back to the game he had the last few years in New Jersey and the team being able to continue to finish off their chances.
Where to Watch
Puck drop Tuesday is set for 7:00 pm ET. The game can be found on MSG SportsNet and NHL Network out of market.