The New Jersey Devils (24-22-2) head out west for a five game road trip. Awaiting them is the Calgary Flames (21-23-4). This is the first game of a back-to-back set for the Devils to kick off the pivotal road trip.
Matchup Overview
The Devils find themselves 15th in the Eastern Conference and two points ahead of the last-place New York Rangers. However, they are five points out of third place in the Metropolitan Division and seven points out of the final wild card spot. The Devils’ season has been very up and down, as has been there latest stretch of games.
The Devils started the month losing four games in a row and in disappointing fashion. After losing four in a row, including a 9-0 defeat to a divisional rival, the Devils put together a short losing streak before losing to the Hurricanes last time out on Saturday.
As for the Flames, they are entering this game after a big time trade. Out the door is defenseman Rasmus Andersson, who was moved to the Golden Knights. Coming in is Zack Whitecloud and other key pieces.
The Flames have been buried in the basement of the Western Conference all season long. They started the month losing four games in a row, but have won three of their last four games. This is the first meeting between the two teams before they meet again in March after the Olympics.
Key injuries are Ondrej Palat (illness) for the Devils and Zayne Parekh (upper body) and Jake Bean (knee).
Projected Lineups
New Jersey Devils
Forwards
Bratt-Hughes-Dadonov
Meier-Hischier-Mercer
Gritsyuk-Glass-Brown
Cotter-Glendening-Lamikko
Defense
Hughes-Pesce
Siegenthaler-Kovacevic
Dillon-Hamilton
Goalies
Markstrom
Allen
Calgary Flames
Forwards
Zary-Kadri-Gridin
Sharangovich-Backlund-Coronato
Huberdeau-Frost-Farabee
Lomberg-Kirkland-Klapka
Defense
Bahl-Weegar
Kuznetsov-Whitecloud
Hanley-Brzustewicz
Goalies
Wolf
Cooley
What to Watch For
Taking Advantage At Five-On-Five
There is no denying how poor things have gone for the Devils at five-on-five this season. Finishing is by far their biggest issue. The Devils sit 31st in goals scored at five-on-five this season.
The Calgary Flames have been stellar on the penalty kill in the month of January. Despite spending 37 minutes of time on the penalty kill, they’ve allowed one goal. The Devils have just as much time on the power play this month, but have scored just four goals with the man advantage. They’ll have to hone in on one of their weaknesses because special teams could be a challenge.
Jack Hughes Finding the Back of the Net
As the calendar flipped to 2026, Jack Hughes has yet to find the back of the net. He does lead the Devils in points this calendar month (eight), but him scoring goals and lighting the lamp goes a long ways for the Devils’ success. In fact, Hughes hasn’t scored a goal since returning to the lineup against the Sabres (Dec. 21).
It’s not for a lack of effort though. Hughes hasn’t scored generated the third-most individual expected goals (ixG) with 2.43. He has the third-most shot attempts, scoring chances, and high-danger shot attempts. Like a lot of the Devils’ scoring woes, snake bitten is a good term for him right now. If he can start scoring goals, the Devils will be in a much better spot to succeed.
How to Watch
Monday’s puck drop is at 9:00 pm ET and can be found on MSG.