Match-up - Buffalo Sabres (16-37-3) @ New Jersey Devils (21-26-9) Road/Home records - 5-20-1 -------------- 11-8-7 TV - NBCSN Puck drop - 7:30 p.m. ET Season series - 1-0 Devils Last 10 - Sabres: 2-8-0 ------- Devils: 5-4-1 Projected starting goalies - Michal Neuvirth vs Cory Schneider
Projected lines for the Sabres via DailyFaceoff.com:
Chris Stewart - Zemgus Girgensons - Tyler Ennis Matt Moulson - Torrey Mitchell - Brian Gionta Marcus Foligno - Brian Flynn - Nicolas Deslauriers Johan Larsson - Matt Ellis - Cody Hodgson
Andre Benoit - Zach Bogosian Nikita Zadorov - Rasmus Ristolainen Mike Weber - Andrej Meszaros
Projected lines for the Devils:
Tuomo Ruutu - Scott Gomez - Jaromir Jagr Adam Henrique - Patrik Elias - Steve Bernier Mike Cammalleri - Travis Zajac - Jordin Tootoo Dainius Zubrus - Jacob Josefson - Stephen Gionta
Andy Greene - Adam Larsson Jon Merrill - Marek Zidlicky Eric Gelinas - Pete Harrold
Injured/ill: Ryane Clowe, Stephen Gionta, Damon Severson, Bryce Salvador.
What to watch:
1) Expect a very low-scoring 2-1-type game. These are arguably the two worst offensive teams in the league, and Cory Schneider is playing exceptional hockey right now. Michal Neuvirth is decent, too, so I have a hard time believing there will be more than three or four goals in this one.
2) In effort to push Jaromir Jagr towards a trade, tank, or perhaps both, Jagr has been seeing less ice of late. He's played 16:45 or less in seven consecutive games and has been held pointless in his last three. He surprisingly has four points in his last seven, but it's going to be tough to increase his value when his ice is down and he's not scoring.
3) Jordin Tootoo continues to practice on New Jersey's PP, and the expectation is we'll see him on there once again tonight. He has zero power play points this season, and looks completely out of place on the PP, so I wouldn't expect much on the man advantage tonight.
4) Since January 1st the Devils are last in the NHL averaging 20.6 shots per game. They've rarely went over 20 of late, but they should be able to reach that plateau tonight.
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