Devils Gameday Preview: Hosting the Capitals with Major Lineup Changes

The New Jersey Devils are back at home to take on the Washington Capitals on Thursday, Nov. 12. The two teams already faced off back at Capital One Arena this season, and the series now heads to Prudential Center.

The Devils return home after a three-game road trip, where they won two. Unfortunately, the last game of the trip ended in a 4-2 loss to the Winnipeg Jets.

The Capitals are ready to close out a two-game road trip before heading back to D.C. They are currently on a two-game winning streak after beating the Florida Panthers at home and taking down the Ottawa Senators 3-2 in overtime on Tuesday. While the Capitals will look to continue their winning streak, the Devils are hoping to get back into the win column.

Devils Storylines

The Devils have made some significant, but necessary, lineup changes. Although they went 11 forwards and seven defensemen in their last two games, the Devils had success against the Toronto Maple Leafs but not so much against the Jets. The Devils will be back to a proper lineup against the Capitals that will feature some new faces.

With the Devils dealing with an injured Anthony Mantha, they originally recalled Riley Tufte from their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Utica Comets, ahead of their game against the Jets. He didn’t play in Winnipeg, and on Wednesday, the Devils placed Mantha on Long Term Injured Reserve (LTIR) and sent Tufte back down to Utica. In addition, they recalled Stefan Noesen and Lenni Hameenaho from the Comets.

Hameenaho played 33 games with the Devils last season and recorded eight points. This season in Utica, he leads the team with nine points in 11 games. He has also been working on his defensive game and currently has a plus-6 rating. In just his second season within the Devils organization, it is clear Hameenaho has put in the work to try and make the NHL roster and his hard work has paid off.

Noesen has played in five games with the Devils this season but was sent down to Utica due to an excess of forwards. Now, he will get a chance to demonstrate his excellent veteran presence.

To slot Hameenaho and Noesen into tonight’s lineup, Amadeus Lombardi will be a healthy scratch. This is nothing against his performance to start the season but rather just a chance to get other players in the lineup.

The defense will also see some changes Brett Pesce is unavailable for tonight’s game due to illness, while Johnathan Kovacevic is undergoing imaging for his injury sustained against Winnipeg and his timeline to return is still to be determined. Since the Devils are down a defenseman, they have recalled Vladislav Kolyachonok from the Comets and he will be New Jersey’s sixth defenseman tonight.

Kolyachonok signed with the Devils during summer’s free agency and has played for five different teams throughout his five-year tenure in the NHL. He has spent the majority of his career in the AHL, but has 87 NHL games under his belt. He will be paired with Brenden Dillon, a veteran player whose expertise and experience will be a great chance for Kolyachonok to develop more.

Team Stats

New Jersey Devils
Season Record: 13-6-0

Top Scorers:

1. Jack Hughes — 9 goals (G), 17 assists (A), 26 points (P)
2. Jesper Bratt — 4 G, 15 A, 19 P
3. Arseny Gritsyuk — 8 G, 6 A, 14 P
4. Nico Hischier — 8 G, 5 A, 13 P
5. Luke Hughes — 6 G, 5 A, 11 P

Goalie Stats:

1. Jake Allen — 6-4-0, 3.19 goals-against average (GAA), .881 save percentage (SV%)
2. Connor Hellebuyck — 5-0-0, 1.96 GAA, .913 SV%

Washington Capitals
Season Record: 10-6-0

Top Scorers:

1. Dylan Strome — 3 G, 12 A, 15 P
2. Jordan Kyrou — 5 G, 9 A, 14 P
3. Alex Tuch — 11 G, 2 A, 13 P
4. Jakob Chychrun — 2 G, 10 A, 12 P
5. Ryan Leonard — 5 G, 6 A, 11 P

Goalie Stats:

1. Logan Thompson — 7-4-0, 3.09 GAA, .891 SV%
2. Charlie Lindgren — 3-2-0, 3.08 GAA, .881 SV%

Projected Lineups

(Per NHL.com, subject to change)

Washington Capitals

Alex Tuch — Dylan Strome — Jordan Kyrou
Aliaksei Protas — Pierre-Luc Dubois — Tom Wilson
Alex Ovechkin — Justin Sourdif — Anthony Beauvillier
Boone Jenner — Ilya Protas — Ryan Leonard

Jakob Chychrun — Matt Roy
Martin Fehervary — Timothy Liljegren
Cole Hutson — Jack St. Ivany

Logan Thompson
Charlie Lindgren

Scratched: Ethen Frank, Ivan Miroshnichenko, Justin Holl

Injured: Rasmus Sandin, Vincent Desharnais

New Jersey Devils

Arseny Gritsyuk — Jack Hughes — Jesper Bratt
Timo Meier — Nico Hischier — Luke Evangelista
Stefan Noesen — Evan Rodrigues — Connor Brown
Jesper Boqvist — Cody Glass — Lenni Hameenaho

Jonas Siegenthaler — Luke Hughes
Declan Chisholm — Dougie Hamilton
Brenden Dillon — Vladislav Kolyachonok

Connor Hellebuyck
Jake Allen

Scratched: Amadeus Lombardi, Brett Pesce

Injured: Anthony Mantha, Johnathan Kovacevic

Next Up for the Devils

The Devils will play the second half of a home-and-home on Saturday, Nov. 14 at Capital One Arena. This will be the last time the Devils head to D.C. for the season. Puck drop for that game is scheduled for 7 PM ET.