The New Jersey Devils will be looking for a much better showing tonight in Edmonton following an underwhelming loss to Calgary on Monday.
In the opening of their road trip through Western Canada the Devils mustered up just 20 shots and two goals against a Flames team that has been a disaster all season.
The good news is it shouldn't be too difficult to match those totals against the Oilers as they rank 29th in goals against per game and are allowing a hair less than 30 shots on a nightly basis.
While the Oilers' body of work has been less than spectacular they appear to be heading in the right direction. They've trimmed down the amount of shots against of late and are the NHL's 5th best possession team since the turn of the calendar.
This is a winnable game but the Devils can't afford to take the Oilers lightly. They don't have nearly enough talent to look past teams and expect anything good to come of it.
LINEUPS Cammalleri - Henrique - Stempniak Kalinin - Zajac - Palmieri Tlusty - Josefson - Tootoo Farnham - Gionta - O'Neill
Greene - Larsson Moore - Severson Merrill - Schlemko
Kinkaid
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Hall - Draisaitl - Purcell Pouliot - Nugent-Hopkins - Eberle Hendricks - Letestu - Yakupov Korpikoski - Lander - Pakarainen
Nurse - Sekera Klefbom - Fayne Davidson - Gryba
Talbot
THREE KEYS 1) The Devils need to throw pucks on net any chance they get. Goaltending has been an issue for the Oilers again this season (surprise!) as both goaltenders own sub .900 save percentages. Test 'em early and often.
2) Taylor Hall and Leon Draisaitl are taking opponents to the woodshed right now and, as a whole, the Oilers have a lot more star power than the Devils. If this turns into fire wagon hockey it won't end well for the Devils so it's imperative that they force Edmonton into playing a low-event game.
3) The Oilers are a very fast team and they can turn a bad pinch or a bobbled puck at the line into an odd-man rush in a hurry. Devils blue liners need to make sure they pick their spots when it comes to jumping into the play. The game is at 9 eastern and can be seen on MSG+2 and SN Oilers.
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