Game Preview: Devils End Road Trip Against Penguins

Returning from the North after losing to the Winnipeg Jets, the New Jersey Devils make a stop in Pittsburgh to take on the Penguins.

They’re looking to break a three-game skid against a hot team right now. The Penguins are winners in five straight games and are quickly climbing the Metropolitan Division ladder, having already leapfrogged the Devils. New Jersey can hop back over Pittsburgh with a clean two points tonight. Perhaps New Jersey can turn the tides against the team they swept in 2022-23, winning all four matchups against the Penguins last season.

We’ll see if they will or won’t do it with Jack Hughes.

Let’s dive into New Jersey’s matchup against Pittsburgh tonight.

Time: 7:00 PM      Watch/Stream: MSG/MSG+      Listen: DEVILS HOCKEY NET

Projected Devils Lineup

Timo Meier – Michael McLeod – Jesper Bratt

Tyler Toffoli – Dawson Mercer – Alexander Holtz

Ondrej Palat – Erik Haula – Curtis Lazar

Tomas Nosek – Chris Tierney – Nathan Bastian

Luke Hughes – Dougie Hamilton

Jonas Siegenthaler – John Marino

Kevin Bahl – Brendan Smith

Vitek Vanecek

Akira Schmid

Projected Penguins Lineup

Jake Guentzel – Sidney Crosby – Bryan Rust

Rielly Smith – Evgeni Malkin – Rikard Rakell

Drew O’Connor – Lars Eller – Radim Zohorna

Matt Nieto – Noel Acciari – Vinni Hinostroza

Ryan Graves – Kris Letang

Marcus Pettersson – Erik Karlsson

Ryan Shea – Chad Ruhwedel

Tristan Jarry

Magnus Hellberg

Last Game

Defensive lapses and goaltending woes continued for the Devils in their 6-3 loss against the Jets. Believe it or not, New Jersey actually controlled the play at 5-on-5 with a 58.95 CF%. However, they lacked finish and couldn’t keep the puck out of their own net. The Devils received goals from Timo Meier, Dawson Mercer, and John Marino. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough as Josh Morrissey collected four assists, Kyle Connor collected three points including two goals, and Nikolaj Ehlers netted a pair himself. Akira Schmid was less than stellar, stopping just 25 pucks on 30 shots. Connor Hellebuyck was much more reliable for Winnipeg stopping 31 out of 34 pucks.

Player to Watch

Tonight’s Devils player to watch is Timo Meier who extended his goal and point streak to three games, scoring his fifth goal of the season against the Jets on Tuesday. With some key injuries within New Jersey, the Devils are looking to Meier as one of the leaders on the ice. In his career against the Penguins, Meier has accrued four goals and nine points in 11 contests. He has not played against Pittsburgh yet while playing for the Devils.

Devils vs. Jets

According to the Devils PR, “The Devils face-off with their Metropolitan Division rivals three times this season.

Remaining matchups:

Mar. 19, vs PIT, 7:00 P.M.
Apr. 2, vs PIT, 7:00 P.M.

ALL-TIME vs PIT

Record: 126-108-17-6
Home: 67-47-13-3
Road: 59-61-4-3

DID YOU KNOW…

The most goals in franchise history earned in a single game vs Pittsburgh is nine, which was earned on Oct. 28, 2000, at Pittsburgh in a 9-0 win.

The most goals that the Devils allowed in a single game vs Pittsburgh is nine, twice, last logged on Dec. 13, 1990, in a 9-5 loss.

The most shots that Jersey earned in a single game vs Pittsburgh is 49, twice, last logged on Oct. 11, 2008, in a 2-1 win at Pitt.

The most shots that the Devils allowed in a single game vs Pittsburgh is 49, on Nov. 26, 2011, in a 4-3 shootout loss at Pitt.

The last time the Devils shut out the Pens was on Mar. 24, 2016, in a 3-0 win at Pitt.

The last time that Pitt. shut out the Devils was on Jan. 26, 2016, in a 2-0 loss at Pitt.”

UPCOMING SCHEDULE

Sat. Nov. 18, vs NYR, 7:00 P.M. E.T.
Wed. Nov. 22, at DET, 7:00 P.M. E.T.
Fri. Nov., 24, vs CBJ, 3:00 P.M. E.T.
Sat. Nov. 25, vs BUF, 7:00 P.M. E.T

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