Overview
After a dominant 7-2 win over the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday, the New Jersey Devils (9-9-1) will look to build momentum against the New York Islanders (8-6-6) tonight at the Prudential Center.
Before Saturday’s win, the Devils had lost three straight games and seven of their last eight. Energized by Nico Hischier’s return to action, the Devils got back in the win column against Buffalo.
The Islanders, coming off a three-game winning streak-killing 1-0 shootout loss to the Philadelphia Flyers, are the perfect team to do that against.
The Devils sit in seventh place in the Metropolitan Division with 19 points. The Islanders are in fifth place with 22 points.
Lines and Pairings
Devils-
Forwards
Toffoli-Hughes-Mercer
Palat-Hischier-Bratt
Lazar-McLeod-Holtz
Willman-Tierney-Bastian
Defense
Siegenthaler-Hamilton
Bahl-Marino
Hughes-Miller
Goalies
Vanecek
Schmid
Islanders-
Forwards
Barzal-Horvat-Holmstrom
Engvall-Nelson-Palmieri
Lee-Pageau-Wahlstrom
Gauthier-Cizikas-Clutterbuck
Defense
Romanov-Pulock
Dobson-Mayfield
Reilly-Hutton
Goalies
Sorokin
Varlamov
Keys to the Game
Miller and Hughes Make an Impact
Something’s rumbling on the bottom defensive pair. For most of the season, Luke Hughes has played with Brendan Smith to minimal results, with the pair posting a 52.79 Corsi-for percentage (CF%) and a 42.03 expected goal percentage (xG%) over 137 minutes. This was probably due more to Smith holding Hughes back than Hughes’ own play.
Due to a slew of injuries on offense and the return of Miller, however, Smith has been pushed into a forward role and Hughes has played consistently with Miller. Since the Devils’ November 16 game against the Penguins, when Hughes and Miller first linked up, the pair have notched a 61.39 CF% and a 71.04 xG% over 53 minutes.
Injury News
So far, the Devils’ season has been a tale of injuries. The good news is that most of the forward corp is back and rolling. Timo Meier is the only top-six forward still out with no word on his return. He did not practice yesterday. Erik Haula, injured in the win against the Sabres, also did not practice yesterday and will not play against New York. Chris Tierney caught a puck to the mouth in practice yesterday but appears likely to play after receiving some stitches.
Where to Watch
Tonight’s game, at the Prudential Center, can be seen on MSGSN at 7:00 p.m. EST.