The New Jersey Devils visit the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday night in their first meeting of the season series. The Devils have not performed well. They are on a five-game losing streak, including losing their last four at home. They also lost the first of a two-game road trip against the Boston Bruins 4-1 on Saturday. They’ll try to end this skid in Ottawa before heading home.
Related: 3 takeaways from Devils’ deflating 4-1 loss to Boston
The Senators are also on a losing streak, just not as bad as the Devils. They lost the first two games of their three-game home stretch against the New York Rangers and St. Louis Blues. They will look for a win at home before heading out for three games on the road.
Devilish storylines
Although Timo Meier and Jesper Bratt had maintenance days yesterday, the two seem to be okay in the setup for tonight’s game against the Senators. This is a great sign for New Jersey as they are key members of their top six.
Meier and Bratt attended the optional morning skate in Ottawa, as did Jake Allen, meaning it’s likely Jacob Markstrom will be in attendance tonight’s starting goalkeeper. Their records this season are fairly even, with Markstrom recording one fewer win in two fewer starts.
The player to watch in this game is Simon Nemec. He has been a big part of the Devils’ success, ranking sixth in points with 15 through 29 games, and his plus-4 rating ranks second on the team. However, he has been quiet lately, going four games without a goal. It would be a good time for him to pick up his attacking game again.
Team stats
Devils from New Jersey
Season record: 16-12-1
Top scorers:
- Nico Hischier – 10 goals (G), 16 assists (A), 26 points (P)
- Jesper Bratt – 5 G, 21 A, 26 P
- Timo Meier – 11 G, 12 A, 23 P
- Dawson Mercer – 10 G, 11 A, 21 P
- Jack Hughes – 10 G, 10 A, 20 P
Goalkeeper statistics:
- Jake Allen – 8-6-0, 2.52 goals against average (GAA), .908 save percentage (SV%)
- Jacob Markstrom – 7-6-1, 3.51 GAA, 0.876 SV%
- Nico Daws – 1-0-0, 1.00 GAA, 0.968 SV%
Ottawa Senators
Season record: 13-11-4
Top scorers:
- Tim Stutzle – 11 G, 13 A, 24 P
- Drake Batherson – 10 G, 14 A, 24 P
- Jake Sanderson – 6 G, 17 A, 23 P
- Shane Pinto – 12 G, 6 A, 18 P
- Dylan Cozens – 9 G, 8 A, 17 P
Goalkeeper statistics:
- Linus Ullmark – 10-7-4, 3.00 GAA, 0.877 SV%
- Leevi Merilainen – 3-4-0, 3.36 GAA, 0.876 SV%
Projected lineups
(Subject to change before puck drop)
According to The Hockey Writers’ expected lineup article.
Devils from New Jersey
Timo Meier – Nico Hischier – Stefan Noesen
Ondrej Palat – Dawson Mercer – Jesper Bratt
Arseni Gristyuk – Cody Glass – Connor Brown
Paul Cotter – Luke Glendening – Angus Crookshank
Jonas Siegenthaler-Dougie Hamilton
Brenden Dillon-Luke Hughes
Dennis Cholowski-Simon Nemec
Jacob Markstrom
Jake Allen
Scratched: Juho Lammikko, Colton White
Injured: Evgenii Dadonov, Jack Hughes, Marc McLaughlin, Zack MacEwen, Johnathan Kovacevic, Brett Pesce
Ottawa Senators
Nick Neven – Tim Stutzle – Fabian Zetterlund
Brady Tkachuk-Dylan Cozens-Drake Batherson
Michael Amadio – Ridly Greig – Claude Giroux
Stephen Halliday – Lars Eller – David Perron
Jake Sanderson-Artem Zub
Tyler Kleven-Jordan Spence
Nikolas Matinpalo-Nick Jensen
Linus Ullmark
Levi Merilainen
Scratched: Olle Lycksell, Dennis Gilbert, Kurtis MacDermid
Injured: Shane Pinto, Thomas Chabot
Next step for the Devils
After two road games, the Devils return home to host the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday, December 11.
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