The New Jersey Devils (22-11-3) are set to take on their rivals, the New York Rangers (16-16-1) on Monday at 1:00 pm ET at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.
Match Overview
The Devils are coming off a shutout win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday after falling to the Columbus Blue Jackets the game before in rough fashion. The Devils enter Monday one point back of the Washington Capitals for first place in the Metropolitan Division with 47 on the season. The Capitals have three games in hand on New Jersey.
Goalie Jacob Markstrom picked up perhaps his easiest shutout of his career against the Penguins, only having to make 12 saves to secure the clean win. After a bit of a shaky start to his Devils’ tenure, Markstrom has been lights out in December, registering a 6-0-1 record with a 1.14 goals-against average and .942 save percentage in seven starts.
Markstrom’s numbers are more of a testament to the play of the Devils overall. New Jersey allowed 39 shots in a 5-1 win over the Rangers on December 2. Since then, Markstrom hasn’t seen more than 20 shots in a game in December. New Jersey isn’t allowing a ton of scoring opportunities over this stretch of play and it’s because of the relentlessness of their play. It also helps when your power play is still hitting at the second-best clip in the NHL at 29.5%.
The Rangers, for lack of a better term, have been reeling. New York enters Monday in sixth place in the division with 33 points. If the season were to end today, the Rangers would be well out of the playoff picture. This was a team that entered the season with Stanley Cup aspirations after a trip to the Eastern Conference Final last season. Now, the Rangers could be staring down a retool if they miss the postseason.
Since beginning the season 12-4-1, the Rangers are 4-12-0 and have losses to bottom-dwellers in Nashville and Chicago over the past week or so. New York has traded captain Jacob Trouba and once touted prospect Kaapo Kakko recently. The team will also be without tough-guy Matthew Rempe, who was suspended eight games for his hit on Dallas Stars defenseman Miro Heiskenen a few days ago.
Projected Lineup
New Jersey Devils
Forwards
Meier – Hischier – Noesen
Cotter – Hughes – Mercer
Palat – Haula – Bratt
Tatar – Dowling – Bastian
Defense
Dillon – Hamilton
Hughes – Pesce
Siegenthaler – Kovacevic
Goalies
Markstrom
Allen
New York Rangers
Forwards
Panarin – Trocheck – Lafreniere
Kreider – Chytil – Cuylle
Berard – Zibanejad – Smith
Edstrom – Carrick – Vesey
Defense
Lindgren – Fox
Schneider – Borgen
Vaakanainen – Ruhwedel
Goalies
Shesterkin
Quick
What to Watch For
Can Devils Flip the Ice?
Last time these two teams faced each other, the Devils spent most of the game fending the Rangers off. Markstrom had to make 38 saves while the Devils generated 28 shots on goal. It wasn’t a bad effort by any means, but, if you look at the rest of December, the Devils aren’t allowing anything close to that to any other team.
There’s reason to believe things may be different given the Rangers’ current status and play. But it will be very important in this game for the Devils to maintain the edge in possession and jump on the Rangers with an early goal. Jesper Bratt scored nearly 1:30 into the first matchup and the Devils were able to coast to a victory. Capitalizing on the power play will also be key.
Devils/Rangers Rivarly
The Rangers have been the better franchise for most of the past decade. New York has had the upper-hand and has made deep playoff runs. The Devils time is now. Laying another beatdown on the Rangers would go a long way in burying them deeper in the Metropolitan standings while also sending a message that New Jersey is superior.
It sounds a little cheesy and cliche, but you’d expect some fight back from the Rangers in this type of environment. But you won’t have to deal with antics from Rempe or Trouba, so the Devils should play much more loose. You have the edge in physicality and finesse so go out there and establish dominance over a rival you’ve been losing to for most of the past 10 years (outside that playoff matchup).
Where to Watch
Monday’s game at Prudential Center is set for a 1:00 pm ET puck drop and can be watched on MSG.