The New Jersey Devils (38-34-2) return home Thursday night. They’ll take on the Washington Capitals (38-28-9), who sit sixth in the Metropolitan Division. They’ll play each other for the final time, with the Devils going 1-1-1 in the season series thus far.
Matchup Overview
The Devils’ lone win against the Capitals came in the very first meeting and that was back in November. Since then, they’ve dropped the last two, but they were only one goal losses. The last meeting took place on March 20.
Since playing the Capitals last, the Devils have won three games. They are coming off a brutal loss to the New York Rangers in lopsided fashion. The Devils have given Jacob Markström more time in the crease, starting 12 of the 17 games since the break. He has a -2.7 goals saved above expected and an .884 save percentage.
The Capitals are coming into New Jersey with a nice wave of momentum. They’ve won three straight, scoring four or more goals in each win and against teams that are very much in the playoff mix. Despite trading John Carlson, the Capitals have called up Lane Hutsons brother Cole Hutson, injecting needed youth into the lineup. The Capitals sit three points behind the final wild card team, so these two points matter a lot.
Projected Lineup
New Jersey Devils
Forwards
Meier-Hischier-Mercer
Bratt-Hughes-Brown
Hameenaho-Glass-Bjugstad
Dadonov-Cotter-Tsyplakov
Defenseman
Siegenthaler-Hamilton
Hughes-Kovacevic
Dillon-Nemec
Goalies
Allen
Markstrom
Washington Capitals
Forwards
Ovechkin-Strome-McMichael
Lapierre-Dubois-Wilson
Beauvillier-Sourdif-Leonard
Duhaime-Kampf-Miroschnichenko
Defenseman
Fehervary-Sandin
Chychrun-Van Riemsdyk
Hutson-Roy
Goalies
Thompson
Lindgren
What to Watch For
Being Better in the High-Danger Areas of the Ice
If there is an area where the Devils have struggled against the Capitals, it is the high-danger spaces. In the first three games at five-on-five play, the Devils have been outshot 29-17 in that area of the ice. Furthermore, they’ve been outscored 5-0. Simply put, the Devils need to capitalize better and they need to clamp down on limiting higher quality chances.
The Capitals do a good job of keeping teams to the perimeter. If the Devils are to generate anything of quality, they should look to the inner slot between the two faceoff circles. It’s very hard to get in close, but certainly something the Devils should look to improve in the final meeting.
What Will Ovechkin Do Against the Devils?
There is a world where this is the end for Ovechkin, as he is in the final year of his deal. Ovechkin has had a great career and even more so against the Devils, where he also scored his 700th career goal.
Ovechkin has 44 goals in 81 career games against the Devils. In three games this season, he has two goals and four points. He just joined Gretzky as the only two players to have 1,000 career NHL goals and seeing if he continues to do damage against the Devils will be something to watch as a hockey fan.
How to Watch
Tuesday’s puck drop is at 7:00 pm ET and can be found on MSG.