Tonight the New Jersey Devils host the Calgary Flames in a battle between two teams on the outside of the playoff picture looking in or, alternatively, the two teams I cover.
While both sides won their last game, and have mediocre-to-underwhelming records over the last 10, the Flames surely have the advantage heading into this game.
They've won their last two contests, both against current playoff teams, and are controlling 52.5% of the shot attempts over their last 25 games, which puts them 4th in the league. Over that same span, the Devils sit 30th controlling just over 45% of the attempts.
The reason there isn't a large gap in the standings is goaltending. Brian Elliott has been better over his last few starts, but he and Chad Johnson essentially took turns getting lit up for about a month and a half. The Flames lost their share of games as a result, including several they deserved to win.
If the Devils are to win and crawl within five points of a playoff spot, they need Elliott to play like the guy with a .896SV% on the year, not the guy with a .946SV% over his last two starts. If that doesn't happen, I don't see them getting two points because the Flames have been, and likely will be, the better team at 5v5.
Here are the expected line combinations for New Jersey:
Taylor Hall - Travis Zajac - Kyle Palmieri Miles Wood - Adam Henrique - Mike Cammalleri Pavel Zacha - Jacob Josefson - Stefan Noesen Joseph Blandisi - Sergei Kalinin - P.A. Parenteau
Andy Greene - Ben Lovejoy Kyle Quincey - Damon Severson Seth Helgeson - Steve Santini
Cory Schneider
And the expected lines for the Flames (via dailyfaceoff.com):
Matthew Tkachuk - Mikael Backlund - Michael Frolik Johnny Gaudreau - Sean Monahan - Troy Brouwer Kris Versteeg - Sam Bennett - Alex Chiasson Lance Bouma - Matt Stajan - Micheal Ferland
Mark Giordano - Dougie Hamilton T.J. Brodie - Dennis Wideman Brett Kulak - Deryk Engelland
Brian Elliott
A few notes:
1) The Backlund line has been Calgary's best for much of the year, but the Monahan line may be the one the Devils need to key on tonight. Monahan has eight goals in his last nine games and at least three shots in nine of 10. He is playing at an elite level right now and the Devils need to respect that.
2) Schneider was not himself for much of the season but he's been much better of late posting a .928 save percentage since January 1st.
3) Hall has fared very well against the Flames in his career putting up 26 points and just under 100 shots in 28 games. He has a point in eight of his last 10 games overall, too, so he should feel pretty good about himself heading into this game.
Tonight's game is scheduled for 7:30 and can be seen on MSG, SNW.
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