Blog Archives
New Jersey Devils Then & Now
From before the lockout until now, I’ve seen a good amount about how this year’s Devils team was going to be much worse than last year’s team. I was curious to see what the stats said about how the two teams compared. So for those who are not very fond of math, you may want to stay away from this post because I’m about to throw a lot of numbers your way. Ready? OK, here we go. The Devils are now 64.58% through their season this year. In comparison to last year’s full season, that’s roughly 53 games into the season. Actually its 52.95 games, but I’ll be nice and round it off to 53 games. Game 53 was on February 7th, 2012. Here are a few stats at that point last season:
- The power play was operating at 16.39% (Scoring 30 goals on 183 power play opportunities)
- The penalty kill was operating at 88.71% (Allowed 21 goals on 186 times shorthanded)
- The Devils had allowed 2 or more power play goals in 3 games (5.66% of their games)
- The Devils were shorthanded 4 or more times in 26 games (49.06% of their games)
- Their goals against average was at 2.75 GA/G*
- Their goals for average was 2.66 GF/G*
- They had picked up 61.32% of possible points
Now here are some stats from this season so far:
- The power play is operating at 17.8% (Scoring 21 goals on 118 power play opportunities)
- The penalty kill is operating at 79.66% (Allowing 24 goals on 118 times shorthanded)
- The Devils have allowed 2 or more power play goals in 5 games (16.13%)
- The Devils have been shorthanded 4 or more times in 16 games (51.61% of their games)
- Their goals against average is at 2.61 GA/G*
- Their goals for average is 2.45 GF/G*
- They’ve picked up 54.8% of possible points
So doing some subtraction, you can see that:
- The power play has picked up 1.41%
- The penalty kill has dropped 9.05% (Of course, last year was a NHL record setting PK)
- They have allowed 2 or more power play goals in 10.47% more of their games
- They have been shorthanded 4 or more times in 2.55% more of their games.
- They are allowing .14 fewer goals per game
- They are scoring .21 fewer goals per game
- They’ve picked up 6.52% less of possible points
As you can see, the Devils have bettered their power play and goals against average, but their goals for, penalty kill, and discipline have gone down. And, overall, are picking up points at a slower pace. Now, none of these stats jump out as a reason to hit the panic button (aside from the penalty kill, but come on, did we seriously expect them to break their own record?) but their performance has dipped just a bit. Injuries and offseason losses have played a big part in this. You can almost attach each dipped stat to a specific player. Martin Brodeur’s absence is going to affect things like the penalty kill and power play goals allowed per game, and losses of Zach Parise to free agency, not resigning Petr Sykora, and Dainius Zubrus to injury have affected the scoring (albeit not by much). Overall, the Devils’ performance has gone down, but not necessarily by all that much, or at least, not as much as most thought it was going to. Now, with Marty Brodeur back and a few other pieces hopefully getting healthy within the next few days it’s crunch time. With only 17 games (or 35.42% of the season) remaining and hovering around the playoff bubble, every game and every point is critical.
*I decided to not count the goals scored in the shootout. That is, for a game that goes to a shootout after being tied 2-2, the final score would be 3-2 in favor of the team that wins the shootout. I chose not to count that extra “goal” as part of the goals against or goals for average. I’ll include them here, though, in case anyone wants to know the numbers with those included: 2011-2012: 2.79 GA/G, 2.83 GF/G | 2012-2013: 2.74 GA/G, 2.52 GF/G
Game Preview – Game 48: Your New Jersey Devils vs Buffalo Sabres
New Jersey Devils (26-19-2, 54 points) vs Buffalo Sabres (19-25-5, 43 points)
7:00 PM EST
TV: MSG+
Radio: WFAN 660 AM
Matchup:
Tonight marks the third of four matchups between the Devils and Sabres this season. Currently the Devils lead the season series 2-0-0 after defeating the Sabres in Buffalo, 5-3 on November 16, and most recently 3-1 on December 28 at Prudential Center.
Devils Playoff Chances:
Currently finding themselves sitting in 7th in the Eastern Conference standings, the New Jersey Devils appear to be doing just enough to get them qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs at season’s end. The problem is, the Devils find themselves 2-6-1 so far this season against the conference’s top four teams. After back-to-back 4-1 losses against the Boston Bruins and Philadelphia Flyers, the Devils find themselves 1-2-0 in the midst of a six-game homestand. Tonight’s game marks the last for the Devils going into the All-Star Break. The Devils NEED the win tonight psychologically.
Keys to Winning:
Obviously, the main key to win is to score more goals than the Sabres tonight. The problem is, both teams thrive on the same situation. The Devils seem to play their best hockey when on the PK, and the Sabres have more success while having the man advantage. The problem is, the Sabres find themselves at league average on the powerplay, tied for 14th in the league with a 18.7% success rate. The Devils, second in the league in PK with a 89.2% success rate, gave up nine powerplay goals over the first 35 games of the season. Unfortunately, the PK has given up the same amount of goals in the last 12 games. It’s a tough situation. You know your team is best when shorthanded, and you do lead the league in SHG’s with 11 while no other team has double digits. Stay out of the box.
Devils Stat Leaders:
Points – Patrik Elias, 45
Goals – Ilya Kovalchuk, 19
Assists – Patrik Elias, 28
Projected Devils Lineup:
Parise (C) – Henrique – Kovalchuk (A)
Sykora – Elias (A) – Zubrus
Ponikarovsky – Josefson – Clarkson
Boulton – Carter – Harrold
Salvador – Fayne
Taormina – Larsson
Volchenkov – Foster
Brodeur
Hedberg
*Scratches – Janssen, Mills
——————–
The Latest on the Buffalo Sabres:
The Sabres are looking to turn things around on the road tonight as they step onto the ice at Prudential Center. Saturday Night in St. Louis, Buffalo lost its 12th straight game on the road, and fifth loss in a row overall. The Sabres’ recent struggles has dropped them in the standings, and they can currently be found tied for last in the East with Carolina. During their current five-game losing streak, the Sabres have been outscored 23-7. Overall this season, the Sabres are 8-15-0 on the road.
Sabres Stats Leaders:
Points – Jason Pominville, 47
Goals – Thomas Vanek, 19
Assists – Jason Pominville, 30
Projected Sabres Lineup:
Vanek – Adam – Pominville
Boyes- Leino – Stafford
Gerbe – Hecht – Kaleta
Ellis – Roy – McCormick
Sekera – Myers
Leopold – Weber
Finley – Gragnani
Miller
Enroth
Follow the Devils Army Generals on Facebook and on Twitter for more in-depth coverage of Jersey’s Team.
Game Preview – Game 42: Your New Jersey Devils vs Calgary Flames
New Jersey Devils (23-16-2, 48 points) vs Calgary Flames (19-19-5, 43 points)
9:30 PM EST
TV: MSG+ 2
Radio: WFAN 660 AM
Matchup:
Tonight mark’s the one and only time that the New Jersey Devils and the Calgary Flames will battle this season. The two teams last met in November of 2010 which saw the game end in a 2-1 shootout win for the Devils.
What a Difference a Year Makes:
Saturday marked the one year mark since the Devils traded their Captain, Jamie Langenbrunner, to the Dallas Stars. It seemed ever since that move, the Devils horrific season seemed to turn around despite missing the playoffs for the first time since the 95-96 season.
The Devils win on Saturday over Pittsburgh, which saw Ilya Kovalchuk score his 15th goal of the season which puts him in a tie for the team-lead with David Clarkson, put them at 48 points so far this season. This is impressively better as the Devils had only 22 points at the halfway point of last season.
This season so far, the Devils have seven players with double digit goal totals. Some of the skaters are surprises including David Clarkson, who has already surpassed his scoring from last season. Other surprises include Petr Sykora, who made the team out of training camp, and rookie Adam Henrique.
The Devils currently find themselves sixth in the Eastern Conference standings. They are two points out of fifth, four out of fourth (currently held by the Flyers), and eight behind the Rangers for first in the division and the East.
Projected Devils Lineup:
Parise (C) – Henrique – Kovalchuk (A)
Sykora – Elias (A) – Zubrus
Palmieri – Zalewski – Clarkson
Boulton – Carter – Tedenby
Salvador – Larsson
Taormina – Foster
Tallinder – Fayne
Brodeur
Hedberg
Scratches: Zajac, Josefson, Janssen
——————–
The Latest on the Calgary Flames:
The Flames are coming off a bounce-back win against the Minnesota Wild on Saturday after they were embarrassed by the Boston Bruins on Thursday night, 9-0.
The game against the Wild saw important career milestones get reached. Going into the third period the Flames and Wild were scoreless until Lance Bouma was able to beat Niklas Backstrom for his first National Hockey League Goal. This goal started a rally which saw Jarome Iginla score, the eventual game winner, as well as Curtis Glencross. Iginla’s goal was his 500th career NHL goal. What makes this mighty impressive is all the goals were scored with the same team, the Calgary Flames.
Iginla has shown no signs of stopping either, as he is currently on pace to score 30+ goals again in what would be his 11th consecutive season.
Flames Stats Leaders:
Points – Jarome Iginla, 33
Goals – Curtis Glencross, 17
Assists – Olli Jokinen, 21
Projected Flames Lineup:
Stempniak – Backlund – Bouma
Byron – Jones – Comeau
Brostopolous – Horak – Jackman
Bouwmeester – Butler
Brodie – Sarich
Wilson – Babstache
Kiprusoff
Irving
Follow the Devils Army Generals on Facebook and on Twitter for more in-depth coverage of Jersey’s Team.
Game Preview – Game 41: Your New Jersey Devils vs Pittsburgh Penguins
New Jersey Devils (22-16-2, 46 points) vs Pittsburgh Penguins (21-14-4, 46 points)
7:00 PM EST
TV: MSG+
Radio: 970 AM WNYM
Matchup:
This will be the third of six meetings between the Devils and the Penguins this season. Pittsburgh won the first game, which was played in Pittsburgh, 4-1. The Devils were able to secure a win against Pittsburgh at Prudential Center on the last day of 2011 by a score of 3-1.
Devils De-claw Panthers:
Last night’s game between the Devils and Panthers did not seem like a hockey game until the third period. It seemed to resemble a tennis matchup early on. Adam Henrique gave the Devils an early 1-0 lead, but the Panthers were able to tie it just under four minutes later. Mr. 1,000, Patrik Elias, was able to give the Devils an early lead in the second period, scoring just 36 seconds into the period. Yet, the Panthers struck again just over two minutes later to tie the game, again.
It seemed as if it was going to be one of those games, again. The Devils blowing leads, and when it appeared that Florida had something to prove, coming out firing in the third period, I did not have a good feeling in the pit of my stomach.
Just seconds after the Devils Army Generals asked on Twitter who would score the game winning goal for the Devils, we had a goalvalchuk. Kovalchuk’s 13th of the season gave the Devils a 3-2 lead, which was enough for the eventual win. Kovalchuk scored a shorthanded empty netter for his 14th of the season, and Captain Zach Parise also scored an empty netter for his 14th of the season as well.
Palmieri Re-Called:
The New Jersey Devils have announced that right wing Nick Palmieri has been re-called from Albany of the AHL, and places Anton Volchenkov on injured reserve, retroactive to December 31.
This season with New Jersey, Palmieri has four goals and three assists in 23 games played. He has been sent down to Albany twice so far this season. In Albany, Palmieri has three goals and one assist in 15 games.
As for Volchenkov, he has missed three straight games after suffering a lower body injury against Pittsburgh on New Year’s Eve.
Where to Watch the Game:
The Devils Army Generals will be hosting a viewing party tonight at Simko’s Grill in Brielle, NJ. There will be giveaways, drink specials, photo-ops, and an appearance by Devils alum, and Stanley Cup Champion… Jim Dowd!
Be sure to check the event on Facebook, by clicking here, for more details!
Projected Devils Lineup:
Parise (C) – Henrique – Kovalchuk (A)
Sykora – Elias (A) – Zubrus
Tedenby – Zalewski – Clarkson
Boulton – Carter – Palmieri
Salvador – Larsson
Taormina – Foster
Tallinder – Fayne
Brodeur
Hedberg
Scratches: Zajac, Josefson, Janssen
——————–
The Latest on the Pittsburgh Penguins:
Just last week, the Penguins were on the verge of tying the New York Rangers on-top of the Atlantic Division standings, after being prevented by the Philadelphia Flyers, the New Jersey Devils also gave them a loss on New Year’s Eve.
Last night, the Rangers gave the Penguins their season’s worst winless streak of three games, all of which have been against division rivals. After losing at home last night in Pittsburgh, the Penguins will come out strong to make sure they don’t lose back-to-back games at CONSOL Enery Center. Despite the Penguins going up against future hall of famer Martin Brodeur, who has been playing spectacularly against the Penguins recently going 3-1-1, the Devils have yet to win at the Penguins’ new home, 0-3-1.
On the injury front, the Penguins saw Pascal Dupuis (lower body), Steve Sullivan (illness), Richard Park (foot), Paul Martin (lower body) and Zbynek Michalek (undisclosed) all return to the lineup for the Penguins’ game against the Rangers last night. However, just when it seemed all was starting to right itself, the Penguins may be without center Jordan Staal.
With just under five minutes left in the game, Staal and Rangers forward Mike Rupp collided at center ice in what appears to have been knee-to-knee contact. Staal was in obvious pain, but eventually stood and made his way off the ice. Penguins Head Coach Dan Bylsma had no update on Staal’s condition at the end of last night’s game and he is listed as questionable for tonight’s game against the Devils.
Projected Penguins Lineup:
Kunitz – Malkin – Neal
Dupuis – Staal – Kennedy
Sullivan – Park – Cooke
Adams – Vitale – McDonald
Orpik – Niskanen
Martin – Michalek
Lovejoy – Engelland
Fleury
Johnson
Follow the Devils Army Generals on Facebook and on Twitter for more in-depth coverage of Jersey’s Team.
Game Preview – Game 39: Boston Bruins @ Your New Jersey Devils
New Jersey Devils (21-15-2, 44 points) vs Boston Bruins (24-10-1, 49 points)
7:30 PM EST
TV: NBC Sports Network
Radio: WFAN 660 AM
Matchup:
This will be the second of four games between the New Jersey Devils and Boston Bruins this season. The two teams last met on November 15, in Boston, which saw the defending Stanley Cup Champions sneak past the Devils, 4-3.
Shorthanded Goal Blows Devils Third Period Lead:
The New Jersey Devils kryptonite this season has been third period leads and shorthanded goals. Both of these combined to give the Devils only their second overtime loss this season.
So far this season, the Devils have given up 12 shorthanded goals. No other club has given up more than five shorthanded goals. Currently, the Devils are on pace to break the season-record of shorthanded goals against, which is 22 shared by three teams: the 1984-85 Pittsburgh Penguins, the 1991-92 Minnesota North Stars, and the 1995-96 Stanley Cup Champions, the Colorado Avalanche.
On the bright side, the Devils currently are tied with the Carolina Hurricanes for scoring the most shorthanded goals as a team, so far this season, with seven. Last year, the Devils only had five shorthanded goals all season.
No matter how atrocious the powerplay unit seems this year by not converting on powerplay chances and giving up shorthanded goals, the team is still doing a lot better than they were at this point last season. Just be thankful that the Devils aren’t 19 games below NHL-.500, like they were at one point last year.
Projected Devils Lineup:
Parise (C) – Henrique – Kovalchuk (A)
Sykora – Elias (A) – Zubrus
Tedenby – Carter – Clarkson
Boulton – Sestito – Janssen
Salvador – Larsson
Tallinder – Fayne
Taormina – Foster
Brodeur
Hedberg
*Note: Travis Zajac is expected to be a scratch tonight due to expected soreness in his achilles tendon.
——————–
The Latest on the Boston Bruins:
After a slow start, the defending Stanley Cup Champions found themselves with the longest winning streak in the league earlier this season, 10 games. After that was ended, a new streak started when the Bruins looked to win their eighth consecutive game in their last game of 2011 on Saturday against the Stars, but the Stars had different plans handing the Bruins a 4-2 loss. During the Bruins’ seven-game win streak, the Bruins outscored their opponents by a 32-8 margin, but were outshot 244-212.
If you’re a Devils fan reading this, the intimidating stat is the Bruins are 21-3-1 in their last 25 games and are 10-2-0 in their last 12 road games.
Tonight’s game will be the Bruins first game of 2012, and only their third in the past 12 days. The question going into the game is: will the rest benefit the Bruins or will they be relaxed?
Projected Bruins Lineup:
Lucic – Krejci – Horton
Marchand – Bergeron – Seguin
Pouliot – Kelly – Peverly
Paille – Hamill – Thornton
Chara – Boychuk
Seidenberg – Corvo
Ference – McQuaid
Thomas
Rask
Follow the Devils Army Generals on Facebook and on Twitter for more in-depth coverage of Jersey’s Team.
Game Preview – Game 38: Your New Jersey Devils @ Ottawa Senators
New Jersey Devils (21-15-1, 43 points) vs Ottawa Senators (19-5-5, 43 points)
7:30 PM EST
TV: MSG+
Radio: WFAN 660 AM
Matchup:
Tonight, the New Jersey Devils and Ottawa Senators will meet for the second time this season. They last met on December 8 at Prudential Center which saw Adam Henrique give the Devils the edge in a shootout, 5-4.
Devils Only Fourth in the Atlantic Division?:
Am I reading the standings right? The Devils find the Islanders as the only team under them with an 11 point difference.
The Devils have gone 7-3-0 in their last ten, and are playing some of their best hockey this season. Going into tonight’s matchup, the Devils find themselves tied for sixth in the Eastern Conference Standings with their opponents for the night, the Ottawa Senators, and the newly re-formed Winnipeg Jets. Tonight’s game between the Devils and Senators is an important one as even though they are tied for sixth in the East, they’re only one point ahead of the ninth place Washington Capitals.
After their win against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday, the Devils find themselves three points behind the flight-less bird for third in the division, and fifth in the Conference.
The only problem with the Devils so far this season, when it comes to the standings at least, is they’re heavily relying on the shootout. The first tiebreaker for this season, is regulation+overtime wins. Shootout wins will not count. So far this season, the Devils have eight of their 21 wins in a shootout, giving them 13 regulation+overtime wins. Most of the others in the conference have around 18, 19 wins. The Devils need to learn to hold onto a lead and get wins in regulation or, if they must, the sudden death overtime.
Henrique named Rookie of the Month:
For the last month of 2011, Adam Henrique was named the rookie of the month. Henrique had 13 points (5 goals, 8 assists) and posted a +9 rating in 14 games in the month. Henrique was a key part to the Devils winning 10 of 14 games and propelling the Devils into sixth in the Eastern Conference.
This is the first month that Edmonton’s Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has not won the award, showing that Adam Henrique is indeed a threat for Rookie of the Year at season’s end.
Projected Devils Lineup:
Parise (C) – Henrique – Kovalchuk (A)
Sykora – Elias (A) – Zubrus
Tedenby – Zajac – Clarkson
Boulton – Carter – Janssen
Salvador – Larsson
Taormina – Foster
Tallinder – Fayne
Brodeur
Hedberg
——————–
The Latest on the Ottawa Senators:
The Senators are dominating the All-Star balloting, which is no surprise due to the game being played at Scotiabank Place.
The Sens find themselves tied for sixth with the Devils and Jets in the Eastern Conference standings, and are second in the Northeast Division. The Senators won five of their last seven games which has them within six points of the Bruins for the division lead; however, the Bruins have four games in hand on the Senators, which might be the Division title out of reach for the Senators with the way the defending Stanley Cup Champions have been playing.
A player to watch on the Senators tonight is Daniel Alfredsson. The Sens Captain has five points in his last five games.
Projected Senators Lineup:
Greening – Spezza – Michalek
Condra – Turris – Alfredsson
Foligno – Smith – Butler
Daugavins – Konopka – Neil
Kuba – Karlsson
Cowen – Gonchar
Phillips – Lee/Carkner
Anderson
Auld
Follow the Devils Army Generals on Facebook and on Twitter for more in-depth coverage of Jersey’s Team.
Game Preview – Game 37: Pittsburgh Penguins vs Your New Jersey Devils
New Jersey Devils (20-15-1, 41 points) vs Pittsburgh Penguins (21-12-4, 46 points)
3:00 PM EST
TV: MSG+
Radio: WFAN 660 AM
Matchup:
Today’s matinee matchup between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the New Jersey Devils will be the second game between the two clubs this season and the first of three at Prudential Center.
Balanced Scoring is Success:
The Devils have won eight of our their last 11 games, and the credit for this success is the balanced scoring seen from the team this season.
The Devils, who currently sit sixth in the Eastern Conference standings with 41 points, are tied with the Philadelphia Flyers with seven skaters with double-digit goals.Patrik Elias is the leading scorer so far this season with 13 goals, but right behind him are Zach Parise (12), David Clarkson (12), Ilya Kovalchuk (11), Petr Sykora (10), Dainius Zubrus (10), and rookie sensation Adam Henrique (10).
Speaking of Adam Henrique, he is the player to watch for the Devils today. Remember, Henrique made the team out of training camp this season, to find himself on the fourth line and not really making the most of his chance. He was sent down to Albany of the American Hockey League to work on his game. Following an injury to Jacob Josefson (broken clavicle), Henrique was recalled and has been on fire since. Currently on a three-game point streak (2 goals, 1 assist), the rookie is second on the team with 18 assists and third on the team with 28 points. He is only seven points, behind Edmonton’s Ryan Nugent-Hopkins for the rookie lead in scoring.
Last Game Against Pittsburgh:
NJD (L) @ PIT (W)
Final Score: 4-1
Devils Goal Scorers: Patrik Elias
Pittsburgh Goal Scorers: Staal (2), Kunitz, Neal
For more game stats from this game, click here.
Projected Devils Lineup:
Parise (C) – Henrique – Kovalchuk (A)
Sykora – Elias (A) – Zubrus
Tedenby – Zajac – Clarkson
Boulton – Sestito – Janssen
Salvador – Larsson
Volchenkov – Foster
Tallinder – Fayne
Brodeur
Hedberg
——————–
The Latest on the Pittsburgh Penguins:
The Penguins looked to move into a tie with the New York Rangers at the top of the Atlantic Division, but the Philadelphia Flyers prevented that from happening and snapped the Penguins’ four-game winning streak.
Speaking of four-game winning streaks, the Penguins look to win their fourth straight against the Devils, despite Martin Brodeur starting in net who has a 8-1-1 with a 0.79 GAA and four shutouts in his last 10 starts versus Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh is also 1-4-1 in their last six road games against the Devils.
The Penguins will need an offensive surge from center Jordan Staal, which shouldn’t be a problem considering his success against New Jersey. He’s currently on a three-game goal-scoring streak, giving him 15 so far on the season, projecting him for 36 total this season. In his last two games against the Devils, Staal has three goals and an assist.
Projected Penguins Lineup:
Kunitz – Malkin – Neal
Cooke – Staal – Kennedy
Sullivan – Vitale – Dupuis
Williams – Adams – Asham
Orpik – Niskanen
Despres – Michalek
Lovejoy – Picard
Fleury
Johnson
Follow the Devils Army Generals on Facebook and on Twitter for more in-depth coverage of Jersey’s Team.
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
——————–
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
Follow the Devils Army Generals on Facebook and on Twitter for more in-depth coverage of Jersey’s Team.
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.
——————–
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
Follow the Devils Army Generals on Facebook and on Twitter for more in-depth coverage of Jersey’s Team.
