Projected Lineups for the Penguins vs Devils – 12/21/24

The Pittsburgh Penguins take on the New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center tonight. Here are the projected/expected lineups sourced from NHL.com staff writers, independent correspondents, and others.

PENGUINS (15-14-5) at DEVILS (21-11-3)

7 p.m. ET; SN-PIT, MSGSN

Penguins projected lineup

Rickard Rakell — Sidney Crosby — Bryan Rust
Michael Bunting — Evgeni Malkin — Cody Glass
Anthony Beauvillier — Drew O’Connor — Philip Tomasino
Matt Nieto — Blake Lizotte — Noel Acciari

Owen Pickering — Kris Letang
Matt Grzelcyk — Erik Karlsson
Pierre Oliver Joseph — Ryan Shea

Tristan Jarry
Alex Nedeljkovic

Scratched: Kevin Hayes, Jesse Puljujarvi, Ryan Graves

Injured: Marcus Pettersson (lower body)

Status report

Joseph is expected to replace Graves and make his season debut with the Penguins; the defenseman was acquired in a trade with the St. Louis Blues on Dec. 18.

More from THW:

• Projected Lineups for Penguins vs Predators – 12/19/24
• Penguins Bring Back Pierre-Olivier Joseph in Trade With Blues
• LA Kings Game Notes: Still Winless in OT With 3-2 Loss to Pittsburgh

Devils projected lineup

Ondrej Palat — Jack Hughes — Jesper Bratt
Timo Meier – Nico Hischier — Stefan Noesen
Paul Cotter — Erik Haula — Dawson Mercer
Tomas Tatar — Justin Dowling — Nathan Bastian

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

Jacob Markstrom
Jake Allen

Scratched: Kurtis MacDermid, Colton White

Injured: Curtis Lazar (knee), Santeri Hatakka (shoulder)

Status report

Lazar, a forward, will not play again until after the holiday break, per Devils coach Sheldon Keefe. … Hatakka skated on his own prior to the morning skate, but the defenseman isn’t close to returning.

More from THW:

• Dear Santa: New Jersey Devils’ 2024-25 Wishlist
• Devils Have a Depth Scoring Problem
• Blue Jackets’ Merzlikins Shines in Win Over Devils