After getting embarrassed in front of the home crowd by the lowly Arizona Coyotes, the New Jersey Devils host the Carolina Hurricanes for the first of two meetings within a span of a week. The Devils enter the contest seventh in the Metropolitan Division. Meanwhile, The Hurricanes are second, only behind the New York Rangers.
Overviews
The Devils currently are on a three-game losing streak land will look to bounce-back tonight. This begins a stretch in the schedule where they will be facing some playoff-caliber hockey clubs. Tonight’s a much stouter test after losing to the lowly Coyotes. Health-wise, minus Ty Smith (lower-body injury) and the players with longer-term injuries, the Devils have most everyone else.
After getting blown out by the Columbus Blue Jackets, the Hurricanes are riding a two-game win streak. In that span, they have managed to outscore their opponents 11-2. Tonight will be the second game of a back-to-back for after facing the division-leading New York Rangers. The team also is projected to be without Martin Necas who is in the NHL’s COVID-19 Protocols.
Projected Lines
New Jersey Devils’ –
Please check back to our social media page closer to puck drop for lineup updates.
Carolina Hurricanes’ –
Forwards:
Teravainen/Aho/Jarvis
Niederreiter/Trocheck/Svechnikov
Lorentz/Staal/Fast
Leivo/Kotkaniemi/Stepan
Defensemen:
Slavin/DeAngelo
Skjei/Pesce
Smith/Cole
Goalies:
Raanta
Andersen
What/Who To Watch For
- The Hurricanes’ franchise centerman, Sebastian Aho, is as advertised. He currently leads the team in points with 39. He is second in power play points and also tied for first in short-handed (SH) points. Aho is a huge part of their game plan and has five points in his last five games.
- The Hurricanes are as good as their record indicates. According to Natural Stat Trick, they are 2nd in Corsi-for % (CF%) at 55.49 and they are seventh in expected goals-for % (xGF%) at 53.00. The team is also fifth in the league with a power play success rate of 25.5%. They also own the league’s best penalty kill which has a staggering success rate of 90.1%. This is a major test for the Devils this evening.
- The biggest key to shutting down Carolina’s big guns will be the defensive pairing of Damon Severson and Jonas Siegenthaler. According to MoneyPuck.com, that defensive pairing for the Devils leads the team in expected goals-against per 60 minutes (xGA/60) at 1.95. Look for those two to be deployed in key situations against the Carolina’s best forward group.
Puck drops at the Prudential Center at 7:00 PM ET. Game can be viewed on MSG+.