The New Jersey Devils (4-2-0) continue their road trip, as they travel to take on the Ottawa Senators (2-1-0). The Devils are coming off a tough defeat against division opponent Carolina Hurricanes and are looking to bounce back into the win column.
Match Overview
Through six games this season, the Devils overall have been playing good hockey. A large reason for this is new-found stability from their goaltending tandem, as they rank 10th in team save percentage. It’s a complete turnaround from the 2023-24 season.
The Devils started strong in Prague and its continued on American soil. The offense has seen good production come from their depth, as Paul Cotter and Stefan Noesen lead the team in points. Against the Hurricanes, Jack Hughes finally broke through for his first goal of the season. That’s a huge break, as the Devils needed their superstar to get going. He and the Devils will look to continue their offensive output against the Senators.
The Senators are 2-1-0 and are coming off a thrilling 8-7 victory over the Los Angeles Kings in overtime. The goaltending wasn’t there, but they had strong offensive impacts. At five-on-five play, they finished with a Corsi-for percentage (CF%) of 63.54 and controlled the expected goals share. This is the first time that the Devils’ interim coach from last year (Travis Green) with face New Jersey.
The Senators will need to dig deeper to win, as starting goalie Linus Ullmark is battling a muscle strain and remains out.
Projected Lineups
New Jersey Devils
Forwards
Meier-Hughes-Bratt
Tatar-Hischier-Mercer
Cotter-Haula-Noesen
Palat-Lazar-Bastian
Defense
Dillion-Hamilton
Siegenthaler-Kovacevic
Casey-Nemec
Goalies
Allen
Markstrom
Ottawa Senators
Forwards
Tkachuk-Stutzle-Giroux
Gregor-Norris-Batherson
Perron-Pinto-Amadio
Cousins-Gaudette-Macewen
Defense
Sanderson-Hamonic
Chabot-Jensen
Kleven-Bernard-Docker
Goalies
Forsberg
Soogard
What to Watch For
Special Teams Matchup
In some games, special teams can become the difference. In tonight’s matchup, the Devils penalty kill and the Senators power play will be something to watch for. The Devils sit eighth in penalty minutes (39), but have been dynamite on the penalty kill. As it stands, the Devils have the third-best penalty kill in the league with a 93.8% success rate. Now, the sample size is small for the Senators with only three games played, but they have the second-best power play in the league.
The Senators have no shortage of weapons on the man advantage. They have had four different players score goals with the man advantage and five players have more than one point. Their top producers are Josh Norris and Jake Sanderson. The roles reversed are a factor too.
However, on the flip side, the Senators have had trouble killing penalties; sitting at 30th on the penalty kill. With the weapons that the Devils have on the power play, it’s a unit that can make an impact on the overall game when given the chance.
The Captain Leading the Way
Hughes may have finally broke through and scored his first of the season, but the captain is on a point streak. Nico Hischier has four points in his last three games. Also, three of his four points have come on the man advantage and the goal against the Hurricanes helped keep them in it.
While the depth has shined brightly to start, the captain has been hot the last three games and looks for it to continue against the Senators.
Where to Watch?
Tonight’s puck drop is at 7:00 pm ET and can be found on MSG.