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DEVILS (21-8-2) at HURRICANES (19-6-6)
Head-to-Head:
It's a fight for sole possession of first place in the Metropolitan Division as both the Devils and Hurricanes are tied with 44 points.
Tuesday's game is the first of four meetings between the Devils and Hurricanes this season. The Devils will host the New Years Day matchup and 10 days later the Devils travel to North Carolina again to start a five-game road trip. The final matchup is Mar. 12 at Prudential Center.
Last season, the Devils lost three of their four games against the Hurricanes. New Jersey started last season's matchups with a 7-4 win on Jan. 22 but fell 2-1 a week later. In the final week of the 2021-22 season, the Devils dropped two games to the Hurricanes, a 3-2 overtime loss on Apr. 23 and a 6-3 loss on Apr. 28.
Devils Team Scope:
The Devils are on a five-game losing skid, only picking up one point over those games. Over their last ten contests, New Jersey has gone 4-4-2, a departure from a red-hot start that included 13 straight wins. Over the last few practices, the Devils have focused on some minor details that have led to goals against and losses as many of these games have been one-goal differences (excluding empty net goals).
After missing the last six weeks with an MCL sprain, Mackenzie Blackwood is back with the Devils and available to play. Most recently, Blackwood completed a conditioning stint with the Utica Comets playing two games. After shaking off the rust of a month and a half off, Blackwood stopped 31 of the 33 shots he faced for a .939 save percentage.
Blackwood and Vitek Vanecek are the two Devils goaltenders on the road trip as Akira Schmid was reassigned to the Comets on Monday. Vanecek is 12-3-2 through his 18 starts and 20 games played. The netminder has a .912 save percentage and is averaging 2.37 goals against. Jack Hughes leads the Devils with 16 goals and 36 points, while Hughes and Jesper Bratt are tied for a team high 20 assists. Dougie Hamilton's five assists over the last five games lead the Devils during that stretch. Hamilton currently has seven goals and 17 assists for 24 points.
Hurricanes Team Scope:
The Hurricanes have won seven of their eight games in December, only dropping one in overtime against the Ducks on Dec. 6. This month, the Hurricanes have outscored their opponents 28-18. Carolina is finding success in the final month of 2022 after going 6-4-4 in November.
Rookie goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov's impressive play over 14 games has been a key for the Hurricanes. Kochetkov is 9-1-4 with a .923 save percentage and 2.01 goals against average. The rookie has started four of the last five games for the Hurricanes.
Andrei Svechnikov leads the Hurricanes with 17 goals while Brent Burns' 18 assists are a team high. Martin Necas's 30 points lead Carolina. Defenseman Brady Skjei's five points in as many games leads the Hurricanes over those games. Skjei has six goals and eight assists through 31 games. Tuesday's game is the final of a four-game homestand for Carolina.
By the Numbers:
Jack Hughes has scored the Devils opening goal five times this season which leads the team. Hughes is also 12th in the NHL for shots on goal with 125 through 31 games played. The forward is also sixth in franchise history for power play goals by a player under 22 with 14 career power play goals.
The Hurricanes are one of the best teams in the NHL with limiting goals against at home, only allowing their opponents to score at total of 34 goals through 12 games at PNC Arena.
Injury Updates
Devils
Bernier (Hip - LTIR)
Palat (Groin - IR)
Bastian (Upper body - Indefinite)
Hurricanes
Aho (Lower-body - day-to-day)
Andersen (Lower-body - IR)
Kase (Concussion - IR)
