The Matchup: The New Jersey Devils (24-22-2) at the Calgary Flames (21-23-4)
The Time: 9:00 PM ET
The Broadcast: TV — MSGSN, ESPN+
Do or Die
The Devils do not have any room to spare.
They are right around the bottom
of the Eastern Conference. They just lost again to the Carolina Hurricanes.
But on this western road trip (the last real one of the season), the Devils have a chance to get back into the mix. The Calgary Flames, who they will face tonight, traded Rasmus Andersson to the Vegas Golden Knights for Zach Whitecloud, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round pick (with protections and conditions on the picks), and a prospect. Zach Whitecloud might factor in for the Flames tonight, but he does not have the puck moving skill that Rasmus Andersson has. The Devils have to bring the house on the now even-less skilled Calgary defense, which is now led entirely by MacKenzie Weegar and Kevin Bahl, who lead the remaining Flames defenders in points with 16 and 10, respectively.
Anderson might have been weak defensively, but Calgary is pretty much mailing in the rest of the season at this point. I cannot blame them. With their top two centers being a 35-year old Nazem Kadri and a 36-year old Mikael Backlund, it’s not hard to see why this season has not gone as planned for them. To his credit, the long-time Flame, Backlund, has been solid this season, boasting by far the best on-ice results on Calgary along with 31 points in 48 games. Kadri, however, is firing a ton of shots on goal without very much efficiency. Age might have caught up with him a bit too much.
We Want Lenni
On Saturday, the Devils called up Lenni Hameenaho only to scratch him for Juho Lammikko in the place of the sick Ondrej Palat. While Palat’s status had not been updated prior to the trip, I can assume that he will be playing. On the other hand, I see no reason why players like Paul Cotter and Luke Glendening should continue getting cardio workouts. With a really skilled scoring winger like Hameenaho waiting in the press box, the Devils are just making their own lives more difficult. In a season like this, the team can use a spark, and Hameenaho might just be able to bring it.
Don’t Sit Dougie
Remember how I noted that Calgary’s defense is weakening, and that the Devils should bring a ton of offensive pressure tonight? Dougie Hamilton would be necessary for that kind of approach. Against Carolina, Hamilton again fared the best of the Devils defensemen on the ice, showing more reliable breakout skill than the other five blueliners put together. Whether he’s playing better than usual or the rest of the defense is playing awfully doesn’t really matter — none of the right-handed defensemen have played in a way that makes me think they deserve to be in the lineup over him. We want shots, we want goals, and Dougie keeps getting the points.
Your Thoughts
Will you be watching tonight? What do you think of the matchup? Leave your thoughts in the comments below, and thanks for reading.
