The New Jersey Devils are continuing their road trip, heading down to Florida to take on the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday, Nov. 18. They were just in the nation’s capital, where they took on the Washington Capitals on Saturday, Nov. 15. It was a tough-fought game, but the Devils were victorious 3-2 in the shootout.
Related: Arseny Gritsyuk Has Been Exactly What the Devils Need
This game marks the second of a three-game homestand for the Lightning. However, the first one did not go in their favor. On Sunday, Nov. 16, the Lightning lost 6-2 to the Vancouver Canucks. Tampa Bay will try to turn their fate around in Benchmark International Arena tonight.
This is the second meeting of three for these two teams. The first matchup was on Oct. 11, where the Devils beat the Lightning 5-3 in Florida. Let’s hope the Devils can keep this winning energy alive and well again tonight.
Devils Storylines
Before the Devils traveled down to Florida, they headed back to New Jersey to participate in one more practice at home. This was a huge benefit for them, as three familiar faces returned to the ice. Evgenii Dadonov, Dougie Hamilton, and Connor Brown were all on the ice and participants in practice. All three players are game-time decisions.
While being on the ice is a huge step for all three players, it is even larger for Dadonov, who has only played in the season opener for the Devils. New Jersey signed him as a free agent during the offseason, and he desired to make an impact with his new team. Unfortunately, a fractured hand got the best of him. It appears things are looking up, and he will finally get his chance to play with the Devils again sooner rather than later.
Also ahead of this practice, the Devils placed Cody Glass on injured reserve (IR) and recalled defenseman Ethan Edwards from their American Hockey League (AHL) team, the Utica Comets. Edwards has been a solid member of the Utica team, playing in 13 games and recording five points. Although Hamilton is traveling with the team, he might not be ready to play just yet. In this case, Edwards might get to play in his first NHL game.
The player to watch in this game is Arseni Gritsyuk. The young rookie opened the scoring for the Devils against the Capitals. With Jack Hughes out of the lineup, he has been an important part of the top line, and he is finding chemistry with Nico Hischier who is now centering the top line. Gritsyuk is one player to keep your eye on.
Team Stats
New Jersey Devils
Season Record: 13-4-1
Top Scorers:
- Jack Hughes – 10 goals (G), 10 assists (A), 20 points (P)
- Jesper Bratt – 5 G, 12 A, 17 P
- Dawson Mercer – 9 G, 7 A, 16 P
- Timo Meier – 5 G, 9 A, 14 P
- Simon Nemec – 4 G, 8 A, 12 P
Goalie Stats:
- Jake Allen – 7-2-0, 2.24 goals-against average (GAA), .916 save percentage (SV%)
- Jacob Markstrom – 5-2-1, 3.67 GAA, .870 SV%
- Nico Daws – 1-0-0, 1.00 GAA, .968 SV%
Tampa Bay Lightning
Season Record: 9-7-2
Top Scorers:
- Jake Guentzel – 8 G, 9 A, 17 P
- Nikita Kucherov – 8 G, 8 A, 16 P
- Brandon Hagel – 7 G, 8 A, 15 P
- Victor Hedman – 0 G, 12 A, 12 P
- Anthony Cirelli – 7 G, 4 A, 11 P
Goalie Stats:
- Andrei Vasilevskiy – 6-5-2, 2.77 GAA, .900 SV%
- Jonas Johansson – 3-2-0, 3.26 GAA, .890 SV%
Projected Lineups
(Subject to change before puck drop)
As per The Hockey Writers’ projected lineup article.
New Jersey Devils
Arseni Gritsyuk — Nico Hischier — Jesper Bratt
Timo Meier — Dawson Mercer — Connor Brown
Ondrej Palat — Juho Lammikko — Stefan Noesen
Shane Lachance — Luke Glendening — Paul Cotter
Jonas Siegenthaler — Simon Nemec
Ethan Edwards — Luke Hughes
Dennis Cholowski — Dougie Hamilton
Jacob Markstorm
Jake Allen
Scratched: Brenden Dillon, Colton White, Nathan Legare
Injured: Jack Hughes, Cody Glass, Zack MacEwen, Marc McLaughlin, Evgenii Dadonov, Johnathan Kovacevic, Brett Pesce
Tampa Bay Lightning
Gage Gonclaves — Brayden Point — Nikita Kucherov
Brandon Hagel — Anthony Cirelli — Jake Guentzel
Oliver Bjorkstrand — Yanni Gourde — Zemgus Girgensons
Curtis Douglas — Jack Finley — Scott Sabourin
J.J. Moser — Darren Raddysh
Charle-Edouard D’Astous — Erik Cernak
Emil Lilleberg — Max Crozier
Andrei Vasilevskiy
Jonas Johansson
Scratched: Declan Carlile, Steven Santini
Injured: Nick Paul, Pontus Holmberg, Dominic James, Ryan McDonagh, Niko Huuhtanen
Next Up for the Devils
The Devils will continue their tour of the south and take on the Florida Panthers on Thursday, Nov. 20.
