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Game Preview – Game 36: Buffalo Sabres vs Your New Jersey Devils
New Jersey Devils (19-15-1, 39 points) vs Buffalo Sabres (17-15-3, 37 points)
7:00 PM EST
TV: MSG+
Radio: WFAN 660 AM
Matchup:
Tonight’s game will be the second between the Sabres and the Devils this season. The two squads last met on November 16 in Buffalo, which saw the Devils take a 5-3 win.
Larsson Returns From Sweden:
The big story for the New Jersey Devils coming into tonight’s game is the return of Adam Larsson. Larsson had been granted permission from the team to return home to Skelleftea, Sweden in order to attend funeral services for his grandmother.
Despite the dismal circumstances of his travel, and the stressful 12-hour trip, the time away from the team seems to be used to refresh the rookie, who averages 21:55 of ice time per game so far this season.
Coach Peter DeBoer told The (Bergen) Record that Larsson looks good, “I think he appreciated the trip home and we’re glad to have him back.”
Key to Winning:
*Do not put puck in own net.
Last Game Against Buffalo:
NJD (W) @ BUF (L)
Final Score: 5-3
The last time these two teams met, rookie goaltending-sensation Jhonas Enroth got the start for the Buffalo Sabres in place of the injured Ryan Miller. Going into the game, Enroth was a perfect 6-0-0 on the season and had gone nearly a full year since losing in regulation. However, the New Jersey Devils had Ilya Kovalchuk returning to the lineup after missing five games due to leg injury.
The Devils got goals from five different players in the game, including the returning Kovalchuk. Also scoring goals were Zach Parise, Mark Fayne, Patrik Elias and David Clarkson. These five goals were enough to chase Enroth from the game, halfway through the third period.
Martin Brodeur stopped 29 shots for the Devils, including a couple game savers which earned him the third star of the game.
Projected Devils Lineup:
Parise (C) – Henrique – Kovalchuk (A)
Sykora – Elias (A) – Zubrus
Tedenby – Zajac – Clarkson
Boulton – Sestito – Janssen
Salvador – Larsson
Volchenkov – Foster
Taormina – Fayne
Brodeur
Hedberg
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The Latest on the Buffalo Sabres:
Heading into tonight’s game, the Sabres look to win back-t0-back games for the first time since a five game winning streak from November 4-12. In their last game, the Sabres put up four goals against the struggling Washington Capitals, in the first period alone. Ryan Miller made 20 saves in his sixth straight start to give the Sabres the win.
In the game against Washington, the Sabres powerplay put up a pair of goals, including rookie Brayden McNabb’s first career goal. The Sabres powerplay now has seven goals in the last five games, which will be a good match for the league’s best penalty-kill in New Jersey.
When it comes to statistically-hot Sabres players, captain Jason Pominville currently has three points in his last two games and 11 in his last eight. Meanwhile, the Sabres’ leading goal scorer, Thomas Vanek, has a five game point scoring streak in which he has collected eight points in that timeframe.
Projected Sabres Lineup:
Vanek (A) – Hecht – Pominville (C)
Boyes – Roy (A) – Stafford (A)
McCormick – Gaustad (A) – Kaleta
Adam – Ellis – Kassian
Ehrhoff – McNabb
Regehr – Sekera
Leopold – Weber
Miller
Enroth
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Game Preview – Game 35: Your New Jersey Devils @ Carolina Hurricanes
New Jersey Devils (19-14-1, 39 points) vs Carolina Hurricanes (11-19-6, 28 points)
7:00 PM EST
TV: MSG+
Radio: WFAN 660 AM
Matchup:
Tonight will be the third of four matchups between the Devils and the Hurricanes this season. The Devils won both games played at Prudential Center this season on October 10 and November 8, both of which were decided in the third period.
Devils Vs Washington Recap:
Everything looked to be going the New Jersey Devils way in their last game against the Capitals on Friday, that is until the third period.
After a scoreless first period, the Devils had what I believe is one of their best second periods all season. Great constant pressure in the offensive zone eventually led the Devils to scoring three unanswered goals from Ilya Kovalchuk, Alexander Urbom, and Adam Henrique. The offensive play combined with Martin Brodeur’s goaltending, the odds seemed to be in the Devils favor… until the third period.
The three-nothing lead has always been considered the worst lead in hockey. This proved to be true once again as the Capitals scored three unanswered goals of their own forcing the game to overtime.
Once overtime had come in gone, it was time for a penalty shot shootout which saw Ilya Kovalchuk and Patrik Elias score on their attempts, and saw Martin Brodeur, not only stop Nicklas Backstrom, but ROB Alex Ovechkin for the win.
The win gave the Devils their 38th and 39th points of the season, which has them tied with the Ottawa Senators for seventh in the Eastern Conference.
Last Game Against Carolina:
CAR (L) @ NJD (W)
Final Score: 3-2
In their last game against the Hurricanes, the New Jersey Devils were without star forward Ilya Kovalchuk. They relied on offense of the line of Sykora-Elias-Zubrus which combined for two goals and three assists in the contest.
Adam Henrique had the eventual game winner as he successfully completed a wrap around which slid the puck under the pad of Hurricanes’ goaltender Arturs Irbe, I mean Cam Ward.
Henrique’s game winner was his second in as many games. “The kid’s got a knack for big goals,” coach Peter DeBoer said of Henrique who is now second in overall rookie scoring with 9 goals, 17 assists.
Projected Devils Lineup:
Parise (C) – Henrique – Kovalchuk (A)
Sykora – Elias (A) – Zubrus
Tedenby – Zajac – Clarkson
Sestito – Carter – Janssen
Salvador – Fayne
Volchenkov – Foster
Taormina – Urbom
Hedberg
Brodeur
*Note: Adam Larsson is not injured and is on his way back from Sweden after attending funeral services for his grandmother.
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The Latest on the Carolina Hurricanes:
The season so far hasn’t been very kind to the Carolina Hurricanes, who currently find themselves last in the Eastern Conference Standings.
A coaching change has already been made this season for the Hurricanes as they have brought former Devil Kirk Muller on to be the head coach, and Muller has brought former Devils player and coach, John MacLean, to serve as one of the assistant coaches.
The Hurricanes are coming off of a win in their last game on Friday night as they defeated the Senators 2-1 in overtime, thanks to a goal from Tuomo Ruutu. It was the first time this season that the Hurricanes won a game that needed extra time to be decided. They currently have six overtime losses.
Cam Ward stopped 22 of 23 shots and is expected to make the start tonight at the RBC Center against the Devils.
Projected Hurricanes Lineup:
Tlusty – Staal (C) – Dwyer
Ponikarovsky – Jokinen – Ruutu
Bowman – Sutter (A) – LaRose
Nodl – Brent – Stewart
Gleason (A) – McBain
Spacek – Harrison
Joslin – Allen
Ward
Peters
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Game Preview – Game 34: Washington Capitals @ Your New Jersey Devils!
Washington Capitals (17-14-1, 35 points) vs New Jersey Devils (18-14-1, 37 points)
7:00 PM EST
TV: MSG+
Radio: WFAN 660 AM
Matchup:
Tonight will be the third of four matchups between the Devils and the Capitals. Most recently, they split a home-and-home on November 11 and 12, which saw the Capitals collect the win in New Jersey, and the Devils return the favor in Washington.
Devils Picking Up Play:
Despite being only four games over .500, the New Jersey Devils’ play recently has been picking up. Before their 4-1 loss Tuesday against division rivals, the New York Rangers, the Devils were on a season-high four game winning streak.
Looking at the standings, the Devils currently sit fourth in the Atlantic Division, but are still within striking distance of the teams above them. Currently the Devils are five points behind the Penguins, seven behind the Rangers, and nine behind the Flyers. Not only are they within striking distance of division teams, but the Devils currently sit eighth in the Eastern Conference standings. A win tonight, could put them up as high as sixth. Also, their opponents tonight , the Washington Capitals, are only two points behind the Devils for eighth. A win tonight is key for both teams.
Tonight’s game at Prudential Center will be an important one for the Devils as they look to get back on the winning side of the standings. Despite having only won half of the games on their home ice, the Devils still have the best penalty kill in the league. And while their powerplay is good enough for 27th out of 30, the Devils might catch a break due to the Capitals having collected the least amount of points, in the East, while on the road.
Last Game Against Washington:
NJD @ WSH
Final Score: 3-2 SO
The Devils found themselves down 2-0 to end the first period, but goals from Petr Sykora and Ryan Carter tied the game up shortly before the end of the second period.
After a scoreless third period and overtime, the game went into a shootout. Zach Parise scored in the first round for the Devils, but the next skater for the Capitals was Alexander Ovechkin who got one past Johan Hedberg. The shootout remained tied until the fourth round when David Clarkson, of all people, scored the game winner.
Projected Devils Lineup:
Parise (C) – Henrique – Kovalchuk (A)
Sykora – Elias (A) – Zubrus
Tedenby - Zajac – Clarkson
Sestito – Carter – Janssen
Salvador – Foster
Volchenkov – Urbom
Taormina – Fayne
Brodeur
Hedberg
*Note: Adam Larsson has been granted permission to return to Sweden to attend his grandmother’s funeral. He is expected to miss tonight’s game as well as Monday’s game against Carolina.*
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The Latest on the Washington Capitals:
It’s hard to imagine that the Capitals have gone 10-14-1 since they started the season at 7-0-0. A lot has changed since than including a coaching change. After firing Bruce Boudreau, the Capitals now have Dale Hunter behind the bench calling the shots.
In their last game, on Tuesday, the Capitals defeated the Nashville Predators by a score of 4-1. After this win, the Capitals have won four out of their last six proving that the Capitals team looks to have their feet back under them. The bright side of this victory was that the Capitals big-three, Ovechkin, Backstrom, and Semin all had a goal in the game. Surprisingly, this was the first time this had happened since October 2010.
Injury wise, the Capitals are still missing Mike Green, who is still recovering from a groin injury suffered six weeks ago. Besides him, no impact players are missing from their lineup.
Also, it is being reported that the Capitals will be wearing their third jersey tonight at Prudential Center. These are the jerseys that the Capitals wore during the Winter Classic last season.
Projected Capitals Lineup:
Ovechkin (C) – Laich – Brouwer
Johansson – Backstrom (A) – Semin
Chimera – Halpern – Ward
Hendricks – Perrault – Knuble (A)
Alzner – Carlson
Schultz – Wideman
Hamrlik – Orlov
Neuvirth
Vokoun
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Three Questions with Ken Daneyko
Hockey players always get asked the same questions during interviews: When did you start playing hockey? Who was your favorite player growing up? What’s your favorite moment of your career so far?
Retired hockey players always get asked different questions over and over: What do you think of the team now? Which player resembles you the most in playing style? Which Cup winning team was your favorite?
I recently had the opportunity to interview three-time Stanley Cup Champion, and Mr. Devil himself, Ken Daneyko.
Instead of asking him the typical questions, I decided that fans would like to know more about Ken Daneyko as a person, and not a hockey player.
Here is the interview with Ken Daneyko about celebrities, pizza, and music.
Game Preview – Game 33: New York Rangers @ Your New Jersey Devils!
New York Rangers (18-8-4, 40 points) vs New Jersey Devils (18-13-1, 37 points)
7:00 PM EST
TV: MSG+
Radio: WFAN 660 AM
Matchup:
Surprisingly, this will be the first of six meetings between the Atlantic Division rivals this season. This comes just eight games before the halfway point of the season for the Devils. Last season, the Rangers took the season series 4-2.
Patrik Elias to Miss Tonight’s Game:
Just three days after breaking the franchise’s career goals record, Patrik Elias is expected to miss the Devils’ first game against the Rangers tonight. Elias, who missed practice yesterday due to feeling ill, says he’s still not feeling well enough to play a full 60 minute game.
Without their leading scorer, this season and all-time, the Devils will move Travis Zajac up to the second line between Petr Sykora and Dainius Zubrus. Zajac has only averaged just above 15 minutes of ice time per game, since returning from a torn achilles, but will have to play just a little bit more tonight.
With Elias’ absence, Adam Henrique has been bumped up to the first powerplay unit with Parise, Clarkson, Kovalchuk and Foster.
This also means that Ryan Carter will center the third line, and Tim Sestito, who has been scratched the past two games, will center the fourth line.
Against the Rangers:
The Devils are 78-70-27-1 all-time versus the Rangers, and are 50-31-7-0 when playing in New Jersey.
Patrik Elias is the leading scorer for the Devils against the Rangers with 61 points (18 goals, 43 assists) in 69 games played.
With Elias’ absence tonight, the active Devil with the most points against the Rangers is Ilya Kovalchuk with 36 points (19 goals, 17 assists) in 38 games played.
David Clarkson leads active Devils in average penalty minutes per game against the Rangers. Currently he has 53 PIM in only 23 games against the Blue Shirts.
Starting goaltender, Martin Brodeur, is 43-26-20 in his career against the Rangers with a 2.13 GAA.
Projected Devils Lineup:
Parise (C) – Henrique – Kovalchuk (A)
Sykora – Zajac – Zubrus
Tedenby - Carter – Clarkson
Boulton – Sestito – Janssen
Salvador – Larsson
Volchenkov – Foster
Taormina – Fayne
Brodeur
Hedberg
——————–
The Latest on the New York Rangers:
In the Rangers latest game, on Saturday, Brad Richards scored a goal with less than a second left in regulation to give the Rangers a 3-2 win over the Phoenix Coyotes. In the game, Marian Gaborik scored the other two Rangers goals to give him a team lead of 17 on the season (which is 6th in the NHL). Those two goals also marked career goals 299 and 300 for Gaborik.
However the injury plague keeps striking the Rangers. In what might make good TV for HBO’s 24/7, the Rangers are now playing without three of their top six defensemen. Steve Eminger suffered a shoulder injury during the game on Saturday, and he will now join Mike Sauer (concussion) and Mark Staal (concussion) on the injured list. If it couldn’t get any worse, Jeff Woywitka may not be able to play in tonight’s game against the Devils due to a sore foot.
Rookies Stu bickel and Tim Erixon have been recalled from the Connecticut Whale to fill in.
Projected Rangers Lineup:
Anisimov – Stepan – Gaborik
Dubinsky – Richards (A) – Callahan (C)
Hagelin – Boyle – Mitchell
Rupp – Fedotenko – Prust
McDonagh – Girardi (A)
Del Zotto – Stralman
Erixon – Bickel
Lundqvist
Biron
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What’s in a Game: WFAN Statistician – JohnCarl Ziegler
When listening to the New Jersey Devils on WFAN 660 AM, you hear Matt Loughlin and Sherry Ross blurt out statistics with no hesitation at all. While these journalists are incredibly gifted at what they do, they have a little bit of help when it comes to the statistics. No, not the internet, but a man named JohnCarl Ziegler.
Ziegler graduated from St. John’s University in 2008, where he studied Sports Management. Hoping to one day become a broadcaster for the National Hockey League, Ziegler got his break when the New Jersey Devils were looking for a statistician to assist with radio broadcasts.
So what does it take to be a statistician for a NHL broadcast? Ziegler told me that organization and a good memory is key.
Each game day, Ziegler will write down everything he believes is key for the upcoming game for both teams, whether it’s an upcoming milestone, points streak, and even up-to-date stats on the players. He said he really likes looking at trends approaching the game as opposed to how a certain player has played his entire career versus a certain team. One example Ziegler told me was one game he noticed that Devils defenseman Anton Volchenkov had four points within his last six games, and he felt this was an important stat to note because how often does Volchenkov have a hot streak like that.
Ziegler says he files away everything from every game just in case he needs to ever go back and check something over again, such as when a team returns to play the Devils at Prudential Center. He will pull out his folder and note what happened the last two times the teams faced each other at Prudential Center.
When it comes to obtaining certain information, Ziegler says he uses the Internet quite a bit, but really utilizes the media guide and his own memory. The media guide includes a lot of statistics, not only on present Devils players, but as well as previous seasons. This year, the New Jersey Devils didn’t print a media guide, but instead chose to use a digital version which is available on their website.
Not only do the media guide and the Internet help Ziegler when he needs to tell Matt Loughlin about an absurd statistic, but he depends on his own memory as well. Ziegler has been watching the Devils ever since he was a young child, and watches every game. And while he doesn’t know exact stats such as what the Devils record is on Tuesday games, he can tell you what the Devils record was in 1999-2000, and he credits it on the fact that he was there and able to witness it.
“There are a lot of times I’m very confident and I’ll just write it down without checking it because I know I’m 100% right, and I tell myself that I should really double check it, and I shouldn’t get too cocky, but I just know it’s right.”
Before he started working with the team, Ziegler attended every game he possibly could. His favorite memory as a fan occurred on June 9, 2003, Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals (yeah, he told me the EXACT date). He was sitting in Section 103, Row 19, Seats 1 & 2. Not only was it a special moment for him because the Devils had won the Stanley Cup, but he realized that it had been two years to the day, that the Devils lost a Game 7 to the Colorado Avalanche in the 2001 Stanley Cup Finals.
While working with the team, his favorite memory is his very first game during the 2006-2007 while he was still a junior in college. Being a fan, he had always dreamed of working for his favorite hockey team and now that he had the ability, he took it all in. About that game, Ziegler said, “Wow. So this is what it’s like. This is what I have to look forward to for the rest of my life? I like it!”
As with all jobs, being a statistician must get stressful right? According to Ziegler, wrong. Though he admits he has his moments where he zones out and watches the game while he should be getting the next statistic ready to be read over the airwaves, he is always in working, hockey mode 99.9% of the time and is stress-free 100% of the time.
Be sure to catch JohnCarl Ziegler’s statistic work during Devils home game broadcasts on WFAN 660 AM.
Niedermayer Ready For His Night
The New Jersey Devils held a news conference today with General Manager Lou Lamiorello and the man who is being honored tonight, Scott Niedermayer.
Niedermayer’s number 27 will join Ken Daneyko’s number 3, and Scott Stevens’ number 4 up in the rafters of Prudential Center tonight.
Niedermayer is excited about the night. During the news conference, he talked about how he tried not to think about it so much when he was nearing the end of his career with the Anaheim Ducks, “It seemed like it sure was a long ways away when I was across the country and not thinking about it a whole lot, but now that I’m here, I’m excited.”
Opening the news conference, Niedermayer thanked Lou Lamiorello for giving him the opportunity to play in New Jersey. He told the press despite owning a red & green Devils jersey as a kid, and knowing the names of the players on the team, he didn’t know much about New Jersey.
Niedermayer credits his skating ability as part of his success within the organization, and he credits Scott Stevens & Ken Daneyko, as well as other veteran defensemen, for teaching him and taking him under their wings. He also said it’s fitting that the first three retired numbers are the key defensemen from the 1995, 2000, and 2003 Stanley Cup teams. Niedermayer said defense was the strength back then, much like offense is the strength of the team now.
He said he felt spoiled that he won the Stanley Cup three times within his first 12 seasons of his career, but that winning the cup that first time was an amazing experience that he’d never forget. Winning the Cup with the Ducks in 2007, he said, almost duplicated that feeling because there were so many players who had never won it before such as Teemu Selanne and his brother, Rob Niedermayer.
To sum up his time in New Jersey, Niedermayer said that the most special moments were just being with his teammates. He named Daneyko, Stevens, Brodeur, and Doug Gilmour as those he was honored to have played with in New Jersey.
Is he nervous about tonight? “Hopefully I don’t mess up too many times or slip on the ice. So, if I don’t do that, it’s a success.”
Best to Wear #19 – Travis Zajac
Congratulations to Travis Zajac, who was voted by the Devils Army as the best player to ever wear #19.
It’s fitting that Zajac was voted as the best to wear #19, as he is expected to re-join the Devils lineup very soon.
Click here to take a look at Travis Zajac’s player profile that we posted back in May, on his birthday, before his torn achilles injury.
We will return next week with Best to Wear #20. Start thinking of who you will vote for, now.
Game Preview – Game 29: Your New Jersey Devils @ Tampa Bay Lightning
New Jersey Devils (14-13-1, 29 points) vs Tampa Bay Lightning (12-15-2, 26 points)
7:00 PM EST
TV: Versus
Radio: WFAN 660 AM
Matchup:
Tonight will be the second of four matchups between the Lightning and the Devils this season, it will also be the second of two matchups played at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa. The two teams last met on November 19 in Tampa with the Devils coming away with a 4-2 victory.
Taormina Looking to Make Most of Second Chance:
Matt Taormina made the Devils out of training camp last year and had three goals and two assists in the Devils’ first 17 games last season. He had appeared to be adapting to NHL play quickly. Then on November 14, 2010, teammate Mattias Tedenby fell on Taormina’s ankle during a practice session which eventually sidelined Taormina for the rest of the season.
Taormina rehabbed throughout the spring and summer and came into training camp, looking for a fresh start. However, a back injury caused Taormina to be sidelined for a week during training camp, which hurt his chances at making the roster. He started the season in Albany.
Now with Andy Greene sidelined for four weeks, and Anton Volchenkov listed as day-to-day, Taormina has gotten a second chance to prove that he belongs in the NHL. He had over 16 minutes of ice time in Saturday’s loss to Montreal, and even had some powerplay time.
Taormina practiced on Sunday with the second powerplay unit, and is expected to play on the unit tonight.
Projected Devils Lineup:
Parise (C) – Henrique – Kovalchuk (A)
Sykora - Elias (A) – Clarkson
Zubrus - Carter – Palmieri
Boulton – Sestito – Tedenby
Talinder – Fayne
Salvador – Larsson
Taormina – Urbom
Hedberg
Brodeur
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The Latest on the Tampa Bay Lightning:
In five games so far in the month of December, the Tampa Bay Lightning have come away with only two points out of a possible 10. In those five games, the Lightning have scored first four out of five. However, squandering an early lead has become a Bolt trademark. This was last seen on Saturday when Ryan Shannon gave the Lightning an early 1-0 lead over the Flyers, but the Broad Street Bullies scored three unanswered and never relinquished the lead.
The team is clearly hurting from the absence of all-star Martin St. Louis, who is out indefinitely with facial and nasal fractures after teammate Dominic Moore hit him with a puck during a pre-game skate two games ago.
Lightning head coach Guy Boucher says the difference between last year’s Lightning team and this year’s is the fact that the Lightning are struggling on the man-advantage this season. The Bolts have a 14.7% powerplay success, which is still higher than the Devils; however, with the Devils 93.4% PK, the chances of the Lightning improving their PP tonight is slim to none.
Projected Lightning Lineup:
Malone – Stamkos (A) – Downie
Pyatt – Lecavalier (C) – Purcell
Thompson – Moore – Shannon
Jones – Hall – Tyrell
Hedman – Brewer (A)
Bergeron – Gilroy
Clark – Gervais
Roloson
Garon
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