The New Jersey Devils (16-12-1) head north of the border to take on the Ottawa Senators (13-11-4). The Devils, currently on the outside looking in of the playoffs, are looking to get out of their slump and turn their season around.
Match Overview
A little over a week ago, the Devils were on top of the world. They had just defeated the Sabres 5-0 on Black Friday and sat in first place in the Eastern Conference. Flash forward 10 days, and the Devils have officially hit rock bottom.
Following their 4-1 defeat to the Bruins on Saturday, the Devils have now lost five in a row and have only scored one goal in their last three. It’s not like the Devils have been playing in close games either. All five of the Devils’ losses during the skid have come by two goals or more, including two shutouts.
The Senators, as well, are looking to find some rhythm. After a slow start, they hoped the return of captain Brady Tkachuk would help them flip the season around. So far, however, it has done the opposite. The Senators are just 1-4-0 with Tkachuk in the lineup, and, in a tough conference, their hopes of a postseason return are starting to dwindle.
Lineup
Devils
Forwards
Meier-Hischier-Noesen
Palat-Mercer-Bratt
Gritsyuk-Glass-Brown
Cotter-Glendening-Crookshank
Defense
Siegenthaler-Hamilton
Dillon-Hughes
Cholowski-Nemec
Goalies
Markström
Allen
Senators
Forwards
Tkachuk-Stützle-Zetterlund
Perron-Cozens-Batherson
Amadio-Greig-Giroux
Cousins-Halliday-Hodgson
Defense
Sanderson-Zub
Kleven-Spence
Matinpalo-Jensen
Goalies
Ullmark
Meriläinen
Keys to the Game
Goal Scoring
It’s official, the Devils have a scoring issue. The Devils have scored just one goal in the last three games. The big guns on offense have started to fall off, and the bottom six continue to fail to produce any sort of offense.
The bottom six in particular has been a major disappointment. Over the five-game skid, the bottom six have failed to produce a single goal. It’s become abundantly clear that Nico Hischier, Timo Meier, and Jesper Bratt can’t do it all, so the Devils will need the bottom-six to step it up.
Injury Updates
Head coach Sheldon Keefe has provided updates over the past week on injured Devils. Jack Hughes has started skating again and is on schedule with his finger injury. Brett Pesce has also started skating again, but Keefe said he is still decently far out from a return.
The Devils’ injury bug might not be done yet. Timo Meier and Jesper Bratt took maintenance days on Monday, and Keefe said their status for the game is still uncertain. However, it was confirmed Tuesday afternoon that they should be good to go, per Amanda Stein. Meier and Bratt have produced the majority of the team’s offense with Hughes out, and losing either of them for any time would be devastating.
Where to Watch
You can watch Tuesday night’s game starting at 7:00 pm ET on MSGSN.