After a 7-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday, the New Jersey Devils (36-26-6, 3rd Metropolitan) will face their division rival Columbus Blue Jackets (31-27-8, 5th Metropolitan) at Nationwide Arena. This is a crucial game for both teams as the Devils and Blue Jackets jockey for position in the Eastern Conference playoff race. These teams last played each other on March 11, a game the Devils won 5-3.

Overview

The Devils are coming off one of their worst losses of the season in terms of final deficit. However, despite going down 3-1, they battled back to a 4-3 deficit to put them within striking distance. The Penguins scored shortly after, however, and scored again on the empty net. The seventh goal was an insult to injury as Jacob Markstrom let by a late softy.

Saturday’s loss ended a three-game winning streak for New Jersey, a surprise with the losses of Jack Hughes, Dougie Hamilton, and Jonas Siegenthaler. There is reason for hope in Devils land: the team has looked more cohesive and urgent without three of their best players and could pick up where they left off to continue this hot streak.

The Blue Jackets have trended in the opposite direction since their last matchup against New Jersey last week. They lost their next two games to Vegas and the New York Rangers and have now lost five of their last six contests.

With 70 points, the Jackets are two points behind the Rangers for the final wild card and are right in the mix with Montreal, Detroit, Boston, the New York Islanders, and Pittsburgh. This is a game Columbus cannot afford to lose.

Lines and Pairings

Devils-

Forwards

Meier-Hischier-Noesen

Sprong-Glass-Bratt

Palat-Mercer-Tatar

Cotter-Lazar-Bastian

Defense

Hughes-Pesce

Dumoulin-Kovacevic

Dillion-Nemec

Goalies

Markstrom

Allen

Blue Jackets-

Forwards

Voronkov-Fantilli-Marchenko

Johnson-Jenner-Chinakhov

Aston Reese-Danforth-Olivier

Van Riemsdyk-Kuraly-Kunin

Defense

Werenski-Fabbro

Mateychuk-Provorov

Johnson-Severson

Goalies

Tarasov

Greaves

Keys to the Game

Can Goaltending Be Reliable?

When Jacob Markstrom went on the injured list in January, Devils fans feared that the strong goaltending that had kept the team in the playoff race long after the scoring had tapered off in the new year. Jake Allen and Nico Daws proved them wrong, earning a combined 17.88 goals saved above expected (GSAx) in the 12 games Markstrom missed.

Markstrom’s return was welcome amidst the slew of injuries that followed but he hasn’t performed to expectations recently, authoring a .833 SV% and -6.53 GSAx in five games this month. Allen has remained strong but the Devils will need the elite tandem they had before Markstrom’s injury if they have any chance to make an impression on the playoff race. If Markstrom doesn’t pick up the pace, head coach Sheldon Keefe could turn to Jake Allen to be his starter the rest of the way. 

Cody Glass Stays Hot

When one superstar falls, another comes along to take his place, kind of. Cody Glass has made a strong impression in the four games since he arrived in New Jersey, scoring two goals and tallying four points in four games. Astoundingly, the former Penguin has filled in nicely for Jack Hughes’ lost production, playing well on a line with Jesper Bratt.

Whether it’s a genuine outburst of production or a side effect of Bratt finally leading a top-six line with Hughes gone, top-six production will be vital down the stretch with the Devils as short-handed as they are.

Where to Watch

Monday night’s game can be seen on MSGSN at 7:00 pm ET.