The New Jersey Devils (16-3-0) have a chance at franchise history when they host the Toronto Maple Leafs (10-5-5) Wednesday night. The Devils tied a franchise best 13-game win streak with a 5-2 victory over the Oilers on Monday. A win tonight would establish a new franchise record. The Devils and Leafs have already met once this season. New Jersey defeated Toronto 3-2 in overtime last Thursday at Scotiabank Arena.
Match Overview
As mentioned above, the Devils are red hot and sit atop the Metropolitan Division. New Jersey’s last loss came on October 24, over four weeks ago.
The Devils did make some roster moves after Monday’s win. Forward Alexander Holtz and defenseman Kevin Bahl were sent down to Utica. Both had been healthy scratches throughout the win streak and the move allows them consistent playing time. No corresponding callups have been announced.
In net tonight, the Devils will likely turn to Vitek Vanecek once again. Vanecek made 25 saves on 27 shots, allowing 0.16 goals above expected in the overtime win at Toronto last week. He has now won his last nine decisions after losing in his Devils debut.
Meanwhile, Toronto enters tonight’s game in second place in the Atlantic Division. The Leafs defeated the Sabres and lost in overtime to the Islanders since their first meeting with New Jersey.
However, Toronto is significantly shorthanded on the blue line. Defenseman Morgan Rielly sustained a knee injury in Monday’s loss to the Islanders and was placed on LTIR. As a result, both Victor Mete and Mac Hollowell were called up, although only one of the pair is expected to play tonight. Toronto is also without defensemen TJ Brodie and Jake Muzzin.
Matt Murray is expected to be in net tonight after backup Erik Kallgren played on Monday. Despite losing to New Jersey last week, Murray played well, making 30 saves on 33 shots and saving 0.38 goals above expected. For the season, Murray has a .913 save percentage and has a 1.03 GSAx.
Projected Lines
New Jersey Devils –
Forwards:
Tatar – Hischier – Zetterlund
Bratt – Hughes – Haula
Sharangovich – Boqvist – Mercer
Wood – McLeod – Bastian
Defensemen:
Siegenthaler – Hamilton
Graves – Marino
Smith – Severson
Goaltenders:
Vanecek
Schmid
Toronto Maple Leafs –
Forwards:
Bunting – Matthews – Nylanders
Robertson – Tavares – Marner
Kerfoot – Holmberg – Jarnkrok
Aston-Reese – Kampf – Engvall
Defensemen:
Giordano – Holl
Sandin – Liljegren
Benn – Hollowell
Goaltenders:
Murray
Kallgren
What to Watch For:
Yegor Sharangovich
Just like the Devils as a whole, Yegor Sharangovich is red hot right now. The 24-year-old winger is on a three-game goal streak that began with the overtime winner in Toronto. Sharangovich has the label of being a streaky scorer, and had previously been held without a point for six straight games.
Last season, Sharangovich had two separate four-game goal streaks which remains his career-best. Look for him to be firing the puck with confidence tonight with a chance to equal that mark.
Devils’ Discipline
Similarly to the Devils’ last opponent, the Oilers, the Maple Leafs have a lethal power play. Toronto ranks sixth in the league with a 28.1% success rate. New Jersey has the league’s eighth-best penalty kill at 81.0%. The Devils killed off four of five Maple Leaf power plays in last week’s overtime win, but giving that many chances to the likes of Auston Matthews, John Tavares, Mitch Marner, and William Nylander is asking for trouble.
However, another huge reason the Devils need to stay disciplined is because they should be able to control this game at five-on-five. New Jersey leads the league with a 62.62% xGF% at five-on-five this season while Toronto sits a respectable 10th, but still nearly ten percentage points below NJ at 52.90%.
Meanwhile, the Devils dominated five-on-five last week in Toronto to the tune of 67.73 xGF%. Now, with Morgan Rielly on LTIR and being able to dictate matchups better on home ice, the Devils may control the play even better this time around.
Vitek Vanecek
After a rocky debut to say the least, Vitek Vanecek has been superb for the Devils. Vanecek’s save percentage on the year is up to .918 and he has saved 2.9 goals above expected. As a reminder, that includes his home-opener performance where he allowed five goals on 19 shots, allowing 2.97 goals above expected.
During this 13 game win streak, Vanecek has allowed three goals in a game just twice. The Czech netminder has also posted an outstanding .933 save percentage and a 6.68 GSAx during his ten appearances during the streak.
As a team, the Devils are seventh in the NHL in save percentage this year, a far cry from 31st in 2021-2022. Last year, there was plenty of talk about where New Jersey would have been with even league-average goaltending. Now, they are getting just that and then some, and sit among the league’s top teams.
Where to Watch:
MSGSN will televise the Devils and Maple Leafs. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET at the Prudential Center.
Note: All statistics via Natural Stat Trick.