With just four games remaining in the regular season, the New Jersey Devils will take on the lowly Columbus Blue Jackets as the race in the Metropolitan Division heats up. The Devils are coming off a dominant 5-1 win over Pittsburgh, who are fighting for a playoff slot.
Columbus, on the other hand, is in a race to the bottom for Connor Bedard, the projected number-one draft pick labeled as the next generational talent. Nevertheless, the Devils can’t afford to look past the Jackets in an intense playoff race.
The Devils own a record of 49-21-8 with 106 points, three behind the Metropolitan Division-leading Carolina Hurricanes. The Blue Jackets sit dead last in the Metro with a 24-45-8 record.
Lines and Pairings
Devils –
Forwards
Tatar-Hischier-Mercer
Palat-Hughes-Bratt
Meier-Haula-Boqvist
Wood-McLeod-Bastian
Defense
Siegenthaler-Hamilton
Graves-Marino
Bahl-Severson
Goalies
Vanecek
Blackwood
Blue Jackets –
Forwards
Gaudreau-Jenner-Marchenko
Johnson-Roslovic-Foudy
Robinson-Kuraly-Bemstrom
Luoto-Dunne-McKown
Defense
Bayreuther-Peeke
Berni-Boqvist
Bjork-Sweezey
Goalies
Hutchinson
Greaves
Keys to the Game
Can Dawson Mercer Stay Hot?
Last time out, Dawson Mercer led the charge, scoring his first-career hat trick. He is the third Devils’ player to do it this year after Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt. He also scored a goal against Chicago a couple of games ago, so he now has four goals in his last three games. The question now is, can Mercer stay hot going into the playoffs?
Last month, Mercer put together an electrifying run, scoring 11 goals and 20 points in just 12 games. He went silent for a while after that but appears to be getting hot at just the right time. A red-hot Mercer would be a huge asset in the playoffs, so the key now is to keep that momentum in this last stretch of the regular season.
Playoff and Record Update
The Devils are just two wins away from tying their franchise record for wins in a season. They’ll need to win two of their last four to tie the record at 51 wins and three to surpass it.
As for the playoff race, New Jersey’s magic number to secure home-ice advantage in the first round is down to five. That means that any combination of five Devils’ wins and Rangers’ losses will put the Devils on their home turf. Carolina is three points ahead with a game in hand, so time is running out on the Devils’ division championship aspirations.
Here are the playoff matchups in the Eastern Conference if the season ended today:
| Boston Bruins (A1) | New York Islanders (W2) |
| Toronto Maple Leafs (A2) | Tampa Bay Lightning (A3) |
| Carolina Hurricanes (M1) | Florida Panthers (W1) |
| New Jersey Devils (M2) | New York Rangers (M3) |
As the season winds down, it’s a three-way battle between the Islanders, Penguins, and Panthers for the two wild card slots in the East with Buffalo and Ottawa lagging six points behind the pack.
Tonight’s game can be seen on MSGSN at 7:00 pm est.