Match Overview
After their 3-1 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday, the red-hot New Jersey Devils are set to face Columbus in the second game of this home-and-home series. With the recent win against Columbus, the Devils have won four of their last five and have begun the long crawl out of the hole they dug themselves into in December.
Surprisingly, they have done all of this through a slew of injuries, COVID-related absences, and goaltending ineptitude. New Jersey is three points out of the final wild-card spot, and with a win today, they can tighten the race even further.
The streaking Devils have a record of 14-16-5 and sit in fifth place in the Metropolitan Division. The Jackets, on the other hand, hold a record of 15-16-1 and are in seventh place in the Metro Division.
Lines and Pairings
Devils’ Lines
Check our social media pages closer to puck drop for more information.
Blue Jackets’ Lines
Forwards:
Laine-Jenner-Nyquist
Voracek-Sillinger-Bjorkstrand
Chinakhov-Kuraly-Domi
Robinson-Roslovic-Bemstrom
Defense:
Gavrikov-Bean
Kukan-Boqvist
Christiansen-Peeke
Goalies:
Korpisalo
Berube
What to Watch For
More Injuries, More Covid
The Devils’ success in this new year hasn’t come easy. In fact, it has been in spite of a boatload of injuries and COVID-19 protocol bound players. As of now, Mason Geertson, Pavel Zacha, Andreas Johnnson, Yegor Sharangovich, and Dougie Hamilton (who also has a broken jaw) are on the COVID-19 list. Despite this, New Jersey has slogged through their first five games of 2022, and they will have to grind through tonight to earn a victory.
MacKenzie Blackwood’s Struggles
MacKenzie Blackwood performed well in Thursday’s win against Columbus, but that hasn’t been the case in some of his other recent outings. From December 29th to January 4th, Blackwood played some of the worst hockey of his career. As he amassed a worrying .871 save percentage (SV%). He did, however, only let in one goal against the Blue Jackets and earned a .969 SV% as well as saved about 2.5 goals above expected.
Blackwood’s inconsistency is something he has struggled with since last season, and he needs to clean it up quickly if he wants to lock down the starting job in the future. Specifically, he needs to be better about rebounds and make the routine saves, an aspect of his game that has been infuriating to watch as of late. The Devils have proved they can score goals and win without MacKenzie Blackwood at top performance. But, if he can build some momentum with tonight’s game, it would make the task a lot easier.
Jack Hughes
There’s no doubt about it, Jack Hughes is really good. He had a goal and two assists on Thursday, adding to the astounding stretch he’s on. In his last five games, the young winger has notched four goals and 12 points. Hughes has clearly transformed into the player he was drafted to be. An explosive playmaker who can skate by anyone and make a scoring chance out of anything. He will definitely make this one an interesting contest.
My Prediction
It’s always tough to win with so many injuries, but I’ll play the hot hand and bet on the Devils to win 5-4.
Odds For Tonight’s Game
The money line odds for the Devils’ tonight are +110 against the Columbus Blue Jackets courtesy of Betway. Tonight’s over under goal matchup is set at 6.5 goals.