The New Jersey Devils (28-26-2) enter the final game before the much-needed Olympic break. Coming into town is the New York Islanders (31-21-5). These two teams have matched up against one another three times, with the Islanders winning all three.
Matchup Overview
Two of the three games were competitive, as one went to overtime and the other was a 2-1 victory for the Islanders with a goal coming later in the period. The third matchup was a lopsided affair, seeing Jacob Markström have one of the worst performances a goalie could have, as he surrendered nine goals in a 9-0 drubbing.
After a good showing on the West Coast trip (winning three of four games), the Devils returned to the East Coast and have lost three of their last four games. Losing to the Jets was an ugly loss and having a no-show against the Senators was a tough look as well. To make matters worse, the Devils got shutout to the Columbus Blue Jackets Tuesday night.
The biggest frustration for this team continues to be a lack of finishing ability. It’s not for a lack of effort, but as a team they are scoring -11.11 goals scored above expected. You can’t soley pin it on the top players because the team as a whole is suffering with goal scoring. Whether it’s close in tight, or getting a breakaway the finishing ability hasn’t been there and needs to be against the Islanders.
The Devils will see a somewhat new-look Islanders team. The Islanders acquired defenseman Carson Soucy from the New York Rangers and former Devil Ondrej Palat. Palat has three points in five games and also scored in his first game as an Islander.
The Islanders are 5-5 in their last 10 games, but have won four of their last six games. They’ve been rolling and large parts to Matthew Schaefer, who has been a point-per-game player over the last five games and lighting the lamp. The Islanders currently sit third in the division and are four points ahead of the next closest team.
The Devils didn’t have Nico Hischier at practice nor Jack Hughes or Connor Brown. It was confirmed that Hughes will not play as he was unable to receive medical clearance per Amanda Stein. It was confirmed that newly-acquired forward Nick Bjugstad will suit up for the team after being acquired on Wednesday.
Projected Lineups
New Jersey Devils
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New York Islanders
Forwards
Palat-Horvat-Barzal
Heineman-Drouin-Holmstrom
Lee-Pageau-Duclair
Maclean-Cizikas-Gatcomb
Defense
Schaefer-Pulock
Pelech-Deangelo
Soucy-Mayfield
Goalies
Sorokin
Rittich
What to Watch For
Matthew Schaefer Maintaining His Rookie Dominance
The youth movement in the NHL is in a very good spot. One of them is Matthew Schaefer, who has helped change the trajectory around the Islanders franchise. He’s been a major bright spot overall, but especially over their last five games.
Schaefer has five points and three goals over his last five games. With his speed and his wicked shot, he’s been dynamite from the back end. In this stretch of hockey for the Islanders, he’s been there most impactful player offensively.
Devils Needing to Simplify Things
The Devils almost need to get back to the basics and simplify things. Scoring goals has been a problem for this team. Simplify things and go harder to the greasy areas and score goals from on tight. That should be the motive against the Islanders.
Since returning to the East Coast, the Devils have generated 7.27 expected goals for, but have scored four at five-on-five. Furthermore, they are getting pummeled in the high-danger areas and have generated 20 shot attempts. Make matters worse, they’ve had the second-fewest high danger shots on goal with 11, only ahead of the New York Rangers.
How to Watch
Thursday night’s puck drop is at 7:00 pm ET and can be found on MSG.