Devils Gameday Preview: Back-to-Back Concludes Against Avalanche

On Wednesday, Oct. 28, the New Jersey Devils will face the Colorado Avalanche for the season series finale, rounding out the second half of a back-to-back on the road. Last night, they defeated the Dallas Stars 5-1 in an impressive performance, featuring two goals from Nico Hischier and a strong first start for new Devil Connor Hellebuyck.

The Devils are looking to extend their current winning streak to five games, while the Avalanche are trying to get back in the win column after falling to the Nashville Predators 6-2 on Sunday.

Here are all the latest details ahead of puck drop at 9 PM ET.

Storylines

After a thrilling 4-3 victory over the Avalanche on Oct. 20, the Devils are on the hunt for their second win against them this season, this time in Colorado. In the last matchup, New Jersey outshot their opponent 41-34, also leading with 24 blocked shots, 18 hits, and a 64.9 faceoff win percentage. Since this matchup, the Devils have tightened up on the back end, so it will be interesting to see how their defensive mindset plays out against the Avalanche.

Arseny Gritsyuk has been on a hot streak recently, with five goals and eight points in his last six games. He extended his point streak against the Stars on Tuesday night, earning an assist on Jesper Boqvist’s second-period goal. Unsurprisingly, Gritsyuk will remain on the Devils’ top line, and his impact speaks for itself. According to MoneyPuck, he averages 2.13 goals and 3.2 points every 60 minutes.

So far this season, the Devils’ power play has been a source of inconsistency. In their last five games, they’ve scored only twice across 12 opportunities. Hischier remains the only player with multiple goals on the man advantage, leading the team with four.

Based on today’s projected lines, it appears that Brenden Dillon will be a healthy scratch once again. The veteran defenseman missed five-consecutive games earlier this month, returning to action on Saturday afternoon against the Los Angeles Kings. In his stead, Declan Chisholm will skate on the third pairing with Johnathan Kovacevic.

Now that the Devils have found stability within the crease, it’s important that Jake Allen continues his dominant start to 2026-27. He’s gone 5-2-0 in his first seven contests, averaging an .886 save percentage (SV%). What’s even more impressive is that he allowed just one goal against the Kings. Moving forward, the Devils need this level of dependability from their backup goaltender.

Team Stats

New Jersey Devils

Season Record: 8-4-0

Top Scorers:

• Jack Hughes — 4 goals (G), 10 assists (A), 14 points (P)
• Jesper Bratt — 2 G, 9 A, 11 P
• Arseny Gritsyuk — 6 G, 4 A, 10 P
• Nico Hischier — 7 G, 2 A, 9 P
• Luke Evangelista — 3 G, 5 A, 8 P

Goalie Stats:

• Jake Allen — 5-2-0, 2.84 goals against average (GAA), .886 SV%
• Connor Hellebuyck — 1-0-0, 1.00 GAA, .944 SV%

Colorado Avalanche

Season Record: 6-5-1

Top Scorers:

• Nathan MacKinnon — 7 G, 14 A, 21 P
• Martin Necas — 6 G, 10 A, 16 P
• Artturi Lehkonen — 10 G, 4 A, 14 P
• Cale Makar — 3 G, 8 A, 11 P
• Devon Toews — 4 G, 6 A, 10 P

Goalie Stats:

• Mackenzie Blackwood — 5-3-0, 2.91 GAA, .893 SV%
• Scott Wedgewood — 1-2-1, 3.48 GAA, .889 SV%

Projected Lineup

(Subject to change before puck drop)

New Jersey Devils

Arseny Gritsyuk — Jack Hughes — Jesper Bratt
Timo Meier — Nico Hischier — Luke Evangelista
Anthony Mantha — Evan Rodrigues — Jesper Boqvist
Amadeus Lombardi — Cody Glass — Connor Brown

Luke Hughes — Brett Pesce
Jonas Siegenthaler — Dougie Hamilton
Declan Chisholm — Johnathan Kovacevic

Jake Allen
Connor Hellebuyck

Scratched: Brenden Dillon, Remi Poirier

Injured: Seamus Casey

Colorado Avalanche

Artturi Lehkonen — Nathan MacKinnon — Martin Necas
Gabriel Landeskog — Brock Nelson — Nazem Kadri
Jaden Schwartz — Fedor Svechkov — T.J. Hughes
Parker Kelly — Nicolas Roy — Logan O’Connor

Devon Toews — Cale Makar
Brett Kulak — Sam Malinski
Josh Manson — Brent Burns

Mackenzie Blackwood
Scott Wedgewood

Scratched: Noah Juulsen

Injured: Zachary L’Heureux

Next Up for the Devils

The Devils will conclude their three-game road trip against the Vegas Golden Knights on Friday night for the first of two matchups between the clubs this season. Puck drop is scheduled for 6 PM ET.