Devils Game Preview vs. Blue Jackets: Betting Odds, How to Watch, Projected Lines, & More

It’s back to action tonight as the holiday break is wrapped up and the New Jersey Devils are back in action. The Devils will host the Columbus Blue Jackets tonight in their third meeting of the season. The Metropolitan Division rivals split the first two meetings earlier this year.

One key factor missing in both of the first two meetings was defenseman Damon Severson. The former Devils defenseman returns to the Prudential Center for the first time as a member of the visiting club. Severson recently came off the injured reserve from an oblique injury. He played for Columbus on Dec. 23rd just before the holiday break.

On the New Jersey side, head coach Lindy Ruff is in better spirits following a victory previous to the holiday break. Before last Saturday’s victory, New Jersey was on a three-game skid. The third loss left New Jersey’s head coach rightfully disgruntled with a few poor efforts in front of their fans.

Looking ahead, let’s dive into everything you need to know when the Devils host the Blue Jackets tonight.

How to Watch

Time: 07:00 PM      Watch/Stream: MSGSN 2/MSG+      Listen: DEVILS HOCKEY NET

Projected Devils Lineup

Forwards

Tyler Toffoli – Jack Hughes – Jesper Bratt

Ondrej Palat – Nico Hischier – Curtis Lazar

Timo Meier – Michael McLeod – Dawson Mercer

Nathan Bastian – Erik Haula – Alexander Holtz

Defensemen

Jonas Siegenthaler – Simon Nemec

Luke Hughes – John Marino

Kevin Bahl – Brendan Smith

Goaltenders

Vitek Vanecek

Akira Schmid

Projected Blue Jackets Lineup

Forwards

Johnny Gaudreau – Adam Fantilli – Justin Danforth

Yegor Chinakhov – Dmitri Voronkov – Kirill Marchenko

Kent Johnson – Cole Sillinger – Emil Bemstrom

Alexander Texier – Brendan Gaunce – Mathieu Olivier

Defensemen

Zach Werenski – Erik Gudbranson

Ivan Provorov – Damon Severson

Andrew Peeke – David Jiricek

Goaltenders

Elvis Merzlikins

Spencer Martin

Last Game

The Devils entered the holiday break earning their way back into the win column, snapping a three-game skid. Timo Meier potted a pair of goals, helping propel New Jersey to victory over the Detroit Red Wings. Tyler Toffoli added a single marker of his own, his 14th of the season and the eventual game-winning goal. Patrick Kane and Shayne Gostisbehere each scored for Detroit in the Devils’ 3-2 victory. Vitek Vanecek had a strong performance earning the win in a 22-save performance. Michael Hutchinson made 33 saves in his season debut.

Player to Watch

Tyler Toffoli went pointless in six straight games between Dec. 1st and Dec. 13th. He earned his first game-winning goal with New Jersey, tallying the team’s third goal on Sat., Dec. 23, vs Detroit. Toffoli ranks second on New Jersey with 97 shots behind J. Hughes who ranks first with 120 shots on goal. His 14 goals in 32 games has the Devils forward on pace to score about 36 goals this season.

Devils vs. Red Wings

Per the Devils’ PR, “The Devils and Columbus face-off for the third of four matchups this season, while the team is 1-1-0 against the Blue Jackets for 2023- 24. The team’s last met on Dec. 16, at Columbus, which nodded a 6-3 win. Jack Hughes also netted his second-career hat-trick in the contest.

Damon Severson is likely to face-off against his former team for the first time in his career. The veteran defenseman played in 647 career regular-season games with New Jersey, which ranks seventh all-time for defensemen in franchise history. Severson’s 263 career points also ranks fifth all-time in franchise history for defensemen.

ALL-TIME vs CBJ

Record: 20-23-1-5
Home: 11-9-1-3
Road: 9-14-0-2

DID YOU KNOW…

The most goals in franchise history earned in a single game vs Columbus is eight, which was earned on Apr. 6, 2023, after an 8-1 win at the Rock.

The most goals that the Devils allowed in a single game vs Columbus is six, three times, last logged on Feb. 10, 2018, after a 6-1 loss at Columbus.

The most shots that Jersey earned in a single game vs Columbus is 53, which was logged on Oct. 30, 2022, in a 7-1 victory.

The most shots that the Devils surrendered against Columbus in a single game was 55, which was logged in a 4-3 shootout win on
Feb. 16, 2020.

The last time the Devils shut out Columbus was on Feb. 28, 2015, in a 2-0 win at Columbus (C. Schneider, 33 saves).

The last time Columbus shut out the Devils was on Jan. 18, 2020, in a 5-0 loss at Columbus (E. Merzlikins, 41 saves).”

UPCOMING SCHEDULE

Fri. Dec. 29, at OTT, 7:00 P.M. E.T.
Sat. Dec. 30, at BOS, 7:00 P.M. E.T.
Wed. Jan. 3, at WSH, 7:30 P.M. E.T.
Fri. Jan. 5, vs CHI, 7:00 P.M. E.T.
Sat. Jan. 6, vs VAN, 7:00 P.M. E.T.

Betting Odds

Devils – Blue Jackets Odds

Moneyline Odds

Puck Line Odds

Total Odds

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