Match-up - Boston Bruins (46-17-5) @ New Jersey Devils (29-26-13) Road/Home records - 18-10-3 -------------- 16-8-7 TV - NESN, MSG Plus Puck drop - 7:00 p.m. ET Season series - Devils lead 1-0 Last 10: Bruins 9-1-0 | Devils 5-5-0 Projected starting goalies - Tuukka Rask vs Martin Brodeur
Projected lines for the Bruins:
Milan Lucic - David Krejci - Jarome Iginla Brad Marchand - Patrice Bergeron - Reilly Smith Loui Eriksson - Chris Kelly - Chris Soderberg Daniel Paille - Gregory Campbell - Shawn Thornton
Zdeno Chara - Andrej Meszaros Matt Bartkowski - Kevan Miller Dougie Hamilton - Torey Krug
Projected lines for the Devils:
Tuomo Ruutu - Travis Zajac - Jaromir Jagr Dainius Zubrus - Patrik Elias - Michael Ryder Ryane Clowe - Adam Henrique - Damien Brunner Tim Sestito - Stephen Gionta - Steve Bernier
Andy Greene - Mark Fayne Bryce Salvador - Marek Zidlicky Jon Merrill - Eric Gelinas
Game notes:
- Having lost two straight games in regulation, the Devils are in desperate need of points. Realistically the Devils' playoff hopes will all but vanish if they don't beat a scorching hot Bruins team tonight. The Devils beat Boston earlier this season and they've been good on home ice this year so it's not an impossible task, but they'll definitely need everyone to bring their 'A' games.
- Statistically speaking, New Jersey has a slight advantage over Boston in special teams. The difference isn't huge, though, so this will likely come down to 5 vs 5 play. The Bruins are one of the top teams in the NHL when playing full strength, so the Devils have their work cut out for them.
- After a nice stretch after the Olympic break where the Devils had no problem filling the net, they've started to struggle offensively again. They haven't been scoring much 5 vs 5 and their powerplay has been poor, too. As a result, Eric Gelinas will return to the lineup tonight. The Devils can't rely solely on him to get things going, but he should certainly help out offensively. He'll need to.
- Martin Brodeur's been pretty good over his last few starts, but at times this season he's fallen hard after a nice string of games. The Devils can't afford any sort of letdown start from him tonight. Boston's a very tough team to score against so if Brodeur allows three or four New Jersey probably won't have much of a chance.
- Jaromir Jagr and Travis Zajac both have six points in their last six contests. Considering the lack of secondary scoring the Devils are getting, those guys will need to keep producing.
- Jarome Iginla has six goals in his last five games. He's fit like a glove in Boston this season and is definitely a guy to watch out for tonight.
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