The New Jersey Devils just went through one of their worst stretches in years -- they won five times in 22 games -- but appear to be snapping out of it having won consecutive contests.
They'll look to build on that with a third straight win tonight when they play host to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
For years, the Leafs have been a doormat for opposing teams to walk all over but that is certainly no longer the case. Led by an abundance of high-end rookies, the Leafs have picked up at least a point in nine of their last 10 and are now just two back of 2nd in the Atlantic Division.
On top of all the firepower up front, the Leafs also possess a few good defensemen and, despite a slow start, Frederik Andersen owns an impressive .920 save percentage on the year.
This is a good team and one that will certainly give the Devils all they can handle, especially without Andy Greene. Let's see if the Devils can rise to the challenge.
Here are the expected line combinations for New Jersey:
Mike Cammalleri - Adam Henrique - Kyle Palmieri Taylor Hall - Pavel Zacha - P.A. Parenteau Sergey Kalinin - Travis Zajac - Nick Lappin Miles Wood - Devante Smith-Pelly - Beau Bennett
Jon Merrill - Damon Severson Kyle Quincey - Ben Lovejoy Seth Helgeson - Steve Santini
Cory Schneider
And the expected lines for the Maple Leafs (via dailyfaceoff.com):
Leo Komarov - Nazem Kadri - William Nylander Zach Hyman - Auston Matthews - Connor Brown James van Riemsdyk - Tyler Bozak - Mitch Marner Matt Martin - Frederik Gauthier - Nikita Soshnikov
Morgan Rielly - Nikita Zaitsev Jake Gardiner - Connor Carrick Matt Hunwick - Roman Polak
Frederik Andersen
A few notes:
1) New Jersey's defense has struggled for much of the year even with Greene. His absence means a poor defense gets that much worse. Cory Schneider will probably face Grade A chances early and often in this one so he'll need to be good for the Devils to have a chance.
2) If I'm John Hynes, I get Taylor Hall's line out against the Hunwick - Polak pairing as often as possible. They bleed shots, chances and are clearly the worst unit on the roster. Hall blowing Polak's doors off shift after shift could be fun.
3) The Maple Leafs lead the league in power play chances per 60 minutes played. In other words, New Jersey will pay if they can't stay out of the box.
Tonight's game is scheduled for 7:00 pm eastern and can be seen on MSG+ and SNO.
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