Devils Gameday Preview: Hosting the Avalanche with Big Lineup Changes

On Tuesday, Oct. 20, the New Jersey Devils are getting ready to host the Colorado Avalanche. The Devils are coming off of a hard road loss against the Washington Capitals on Saturday, Oct. 17 and will look to get back on track against the Avalanche in this game.

The Avalanche are also coming off of a hard loss, falling to the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday, Oct. 19 in a surprising loss. Even though they’ll be tired, since they are coming into the second half of a back-to-back, the Avalanche will come out with a ferocious attempt to get back into the win column.

Devils Storylines

For the first time since Oct. 12, Luke Evangelista will re-enter the Devils lineup after missing the last three games due to illness. Evangelista was fighting a fever, which is why the Devils’ front office suggested he stay home against the Capitals. Now that he’s had the extra time to rest and recover, Evangelista is ready to get back out there.

In addition, Connor Brown is making his season debut after missing the start of the season due to a lower-body injury. He was on injured reserve (IR) retroactive to Sept. 28.

Brown spent time playing alongside Jesper Boqvist and Cody Glass on the fourth line during the morning skate. He spent the majority of his paying time last season alongside Glass, so the pair already have chemistry together. Boqvist is the newcomer to the trio but already looks to be working out well for the bottom six.

With Evangelista and Brown re-entering the lineup, Amadeus Lombardi and Stefan Noesen will come out. Noesen was sent down to the Devils’ American Hockey League (AHL) team, the Utica Comets, earlier in the season, but was recalled when they needed an additional forward due to Evangelista’s illness. This season marked Lombardi’s NHL debut, which is a historic moment for the young forward.

Since the Devils have activated Brown off of IR, they will need to send a player down to Utica. The best bet would be to send Noesen back down as Lombardi would need to be placed on waivers. With the level of play he showed in his first NHL games, there’s no guarantee he will clear.

The player to watch in this game is Arseny Gritsyuk, who scored a goal and recorded an assist against Washington on Oct. 17 and has three points in the past two games. He will hope to continue his strong start to the season against Colorado.

Team Stats

New Jersey Devils
Season Record: 4-4-0

Top Scorers:

1. Jack Hughes – 2 goals (G), 7 assists (A), 9 points (P)
2. Jesper Bratt – 2 G, 5 A, 7 P
3. Nico Hischier – 4 G, 1 A, 5 P
4. Arseny Gritsyuk – 3 G, 2 A, 5 P
5. Luke Hughes – 3 G, 1 A, 4 P

Goalie Stats:

1. Jake Allen – 3-2-0, 3.18 goals-against average (GAA), .876 save percentage (SV%)
2. Nico Daws – 1-2-0, 3.38 GAA, .857 SV%

Colorado Avalanche
Season Record: 5-3-1

Top Scorers:

1. Nathan MacKinnon – 6 G, 10 A, 16 P
2. Martin Necas – 5 G, 6 A, 11 P
3. Artturi Lehkonen – 6 G, 3 A, 9 P
4. Cale Makar – 3 G, 6 A, 9 P
5. Brock Nelson – 3 G, 4 A, 7 P

Goalie Stats:

1. Scott Wedgewood – 1-0-1, 2.40 GAA, .902 SV%
2. Mackenzie Blackwood – 4-3-0, 2.90 GAA, .889 SV%

Projected Lineups

(Subject to change ahead of puck drop)

Colorado Avalanche

Artturi Lehkonen — Nathan Mackinnon — Martin Necas
Gabriel Landeskog — Brock Nelson — Nazem Kadri
Jaden Schwartz — Fedor Svechkov — T.J. Hughes
Parker Kelly — Gavin Brindley

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

Scott Wedgewood
Mackenzie Blackwood

Scratched: N/A

Injured: Logan O’Connor, Zachary L’Heureux

New Jersey Devils

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

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

Jake Allen
Nico Daws

Scratched: Remi Poirier, Brenden Dillon, Stefan Noesen, Amadeus Lombardi

Injured: Nick Bjugstad

Next Up for the Devils

The Devils will remain home and host the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday, Oct. 22. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 PM ET.