The New Jersey Devils conclude a back-to-back tonight as they play host to one of their biggest rivals in the Philadelphia Flyers.
New Jersey picked up a convincing 4-1 win over Philadelphia back in October but you can bet the Flyers will be a much tougher go this time around.
Despite a very slow start to the season the Flyers sit just three points out of a playoff spot as they are playing some pretty good hockey of late. The Flyers have won three straight and four of five entering this game.
One of the biggest reasons for that (beyond their top players starting to score) is the play of defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere. The 22-year-old rookie has scored four goals and tallied six points in just nine games while making a positive impact in possession.
The roster remains almost identical but this is a much different Flyers team than we saw at the beginning of the season. The Devils will need to be on their game tonight.
LINEUPS *will not play, unsure of who takes his spot
Cammalleri - Henrique - Stempniak Elias - Zajac* - Palmieri O'Neill - Josefson - Kennedy Matteau - Gionta - Tootoo
Greene - Larsson Moore - Severson Gelinas - Merrill
Schneider
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Raffl - Giroux - Schenn Read - Couturier - Simmonds VandeVelde - Bellemare - Voracek Laughton - Cousins - McDonald
Del Zotto - Schultz Medvedev - Schenn Manning - Gostisbehere
Mason/Neuvirth
WHAT TO WATCH 1) Gostisbehere has goals in three of his last five, points in four of his last five and has recorded at least two shots in all nine games he's played this season. He's truly a weapon on the back end and is a guy the Devils need to pay special attention to.
2) Cory Schneider enters tonight's game having posted a .920SV% or better in 13 of his last 14 starts. He's been playing outstanding hockey of late and will need to keep that trend going tonight as a) the Flyers seem to have found their scoring touch and; b) the Devils are in the second half of a back-to-back against a fresh team.
3) I thought Stefan Matteau played the best game of the season (and maybe his NHL career) against the Hurricanes last night. He was disruptive on the forecheck, used his body effectively around the net and had a few good looks from just outside the paint. He finished the game with four shots and three hits in just 13 minutes of ice. The Devils would love to see that kind of game from him more often.
The game is at 7 eastern and can be seen on MSG+ 2 and CSN-Philadelphia.
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