The Devils are back in action Wednesday when they take on the Senators in a clash of a couple pretty good teams trying to crawl back into the playoff picture. It's a big game for both clubs, one that could launch the winner right back into the thick of things.
In the meantime here are some off-day thoughts on the Devils:
- Perhaps the biggest question surrounding the Devils right now is who gets sent to Albany when injured players start to return to the lineup. Ryane Clowe is nearing a return and, from my understanding, Bryce Salvador is as well. Given the commitments to these two players (long-term deal for Clowe, captaincy for Salvador) it's safe to say they'll both be inserted to the lineup the second they're healthy.
Given the Devils lack of scoring ability I have a hard time believing a top-9 forward will sit for Clowe, so I expect either Tim Sestito or Cam Janssen to be scratched or reassigned to Albany. Likely Sestito.
As for what happens on defense, my guess is Jon Merrill is sent back to Albany - at least temporarily. He's done about as well as he could have handling some pretty big minutes as a first year pro, but he's stuck in a numbers game. Unless somebody else gets injured on defense or Lou Lamoriello moves a body out, it looks like Merrill will go back to Albany for a little more seasoning. Obviously it's encouraging when young players handle themselves well at the NHL level and you'd like to see them stick around, but a little more development time in Albany wouldn't hurt.
- It's still a little ways away, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Jacob Josefson sit on Wednesday. He played just over seven minutes on Saturday and didn't accomplish much of anything. He was running around a lot in his own zone and was caught out of position in the defensive zone a few times. Considering his defensive game is the best aspect of his game, it's usually not a good thing when he struggles in that regard. Andrei Loktionov should play Wednesday.
- Given Martin Brodeur's 33-save performance against the Lightning, you have to think he'll get the nod in goal against the Senators. Play the hot hand as long as they're rested.
Prospect Updates
- Ryan Kujawinski recorded an assist in a 6-4 Kingston loss to a powerhouse London Knights team. Kujawinski was a healthy scratch the night before due to taking a bad penalty in overtime during the prior game, so it was nice to see him jump back into the lineup and get on the scoresheet.
- Ben Johnson (Windsor) and Ben Thomson (North Bay) were both held off the scoresheet in losing efforts for their respective teams.
- Myles Bell scored his 16th goal of the season in Kelowna's 5-2 win. He has now scored in four straight games and five of his last six overall. He has seven goals in that span including four game-winning-goals.
- I'm not a big +/- guy as it can be very deceiving depending on the situation a player is used in or the team he plays for, but Graham Black was minus-4 in Swift Current's 5-2 loss to Calgary. He's had a very productive season thus far so I'll chalk that up as a bad game. Onto the next one.
- Anthony Brodeur stopped 7-7 in relief of Robert Steeves in Gatineau's 4-0 loss to Drummondville.
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