Devils Gameday Preview: Closing Out the Road Trip in Winnipeg

The New Jersey Devils are getting ready to close out their three-game road trip against the Winnipeg Jets. New Jersey is hoping to end on a good note and keep their winning streak alive.

The Jets are also on a three-game winning streak of their own. The Devils have won nine of their last ten games, while Winnipeg just broke a nine-game losing streak. With the pressure on the line for the Jets to keep their win streak going, the Devils could capitalize.

Devils Storylines

Of course, the biggest storyline heading into this game is the fact that Connor Hellebuyck is not playing in his return game to Winnipeg. The Devils put out a statement after their game on Sunday that this was a decision general manager Sunny Mehta made; it was clear that Hellebuyck wanted to play in his return to Winnipeg, but the front office stepped in and it was out of his control. The Devils will host Winnipeg later this month, on Nov. 28, so perhaps he can play against his former team then.

This game is also Dawson Mercer’s first against his former team. He just scored his first goal with the Jets on Thursday against the Vancouver Canucks. He also had an assist for his first multi-point game with his team. Mercer was seen talking to some of the Devils players at morning skate, so there seems to be no bad blood there. However, it has to feel weird playing against a former team for the first time.

Nico Daws will be Winnipeg’s netminder for this game. He also went to Winnipeg in the trade for Hellebuyck, and this will be the first time he goes head-to-head against Jake Allen. The pair grew close in New Jersey, so this goaltending matchup is exciting while also being bittersweet.

Ahead of this game, the Devils recalled forward Riley Tufte from their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Utica Comets. Against the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Devils went with 11 forwards and seven defensemen, since Anthony Mantha was injured against the New York Islanders. Despite New Jersey calling Tufte up from Utica, they will play tonight with the same line combinations they had in Toronto.

The player to watch in this game is Timo Meier. Despite a slow start in the season, he scored two goals in the second period against Toronto. It looked like he had his spark back against the Maple Leafs, and we’ll see if he can score again against Winnipeg.

Team Stats

New Jersey Devils
Season Record: 13-5-0

Top Scorers:

1. Jack Hughes — 9 goals (G), 16 assists (A), 25 points (P)
2. Jesper Bratt — 3 G, 15 A, 18 P
3. Nico Hischier — 8 G, 5 A, 13 P
4. Arseny Gritsyuk — 8 G, 5 A, 13 P
5. Luke Hughes — 6 G, 5 A, 11 P

Goalie Stats

1. Jake Allen — 6-3-0, 3.20 goals-against average (GAA), .881 save percentage (SV%)
2. Connor Hellebuyck — 5-0-0, 1.96 GAA, .913 SV%

Winnipeg Jets
Season Record: 7-8-3

Top Scorers:

1. Kyle Connor — 13 G, 6 A, 19 P
2. Mark Scheifele — 4 G, 14 A, 18 P
3. Cole Perfetti — 7 G, 7 A, 14 P
4. Neal Pionk — 4 G, 8 A, 12 P
5. Gabriel Vilardi — 1 G, 8 A, 9 P

Goalie Stats:

1. Stuart Skinner — 6-4-3, 3.26 GAA, .883 SV%
2. Clay Stevenson — 1-3-0, 3.61 GAA, .870 SV%
3. Nico Daws — 0-1-0, 3.11 GAA, .913 SV%

Projected Lineups

(Per NHL.com, subject to change)

New Jersey Devils

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

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

Jake Allen
Connor Hellebuyck

Scratched: Riley Tufte

Injured: Anthony Mantha

 Winnipeg Jets

Kyle Connor — Mark Scheifele — Gabriel Vilardi
Cole Perfetti — Brayden Yager — Dawson Mercer
Alex Iafallo — Adam Lowry — Viggo Bjorck
Cole Kopeke — Morgan Barron — Isak Rosen

Dylan Samberg — Neal Pionk
Josh Morrissey — Dyaln DeMelo
Mario Ferraro — Tyrel Bauer

Nico Daws
Stuart Skinner

Scratched: Clay Stevenson, Nino Niederreiter, Haydn Fleury

Injured: Nick Bjugstad