Following a 5-3 victory over the Montreal Canadiens, the New Jersey Devils look to extend their winning streak to three games against the New York Islanders. Let’s see what has changed in this matchup since the Devils last faced the Isles in October.
The Essentials
Matchup: New Jersey Devils at New York Islanders
Date: November 9, 2024
Time: 7:30 PM ET
Broadcast: MSGSN, MSGSN2, ESPN+
Listen: Devils Hockey Network
Last Devils Game: The Devils defeated the Montreal Canadiens on November 7, 2024, by a final score of 5-3. Check out Chris’ recap of that game.
Last Islanders Game: The Islanders defeated the Ottawa Senators by a final score of 4-2 on November 7, 2024. Check out the NHL.com recap of that game.
Last Devils – Islanders Game: The Devils last played the Islanders on October 25, 2024, and lost in overtime. Check out Chris’ recap of that game.
Recent Momentum: The Islanders have won three of their last five games. The Devils have won four of their last five games.
The Lineups
Islanders
Based on their game against the Senators, here is how the Isles lined up.
Forwards
Kyle Palmieri – Brock Nelson – Maxim Tsyplakov
Anders Lee – Jean-Gabriel Pageau – Bo Horvat
Pierre Engvall – Casey Cizikas – Simon Holmstrom
Matt Martin – Kyle MacLean – Oliver Wahlstrom
Defense
Isaiah George – Noah Dobson
Scott Mayfield – Ryan Pulock
Dennis Cholowski – Grant Hutton**
Goaltenders
Semyon Varlamov started against the Senators, which means Ilya Sorokin is the likely starter on Saturday. Unfortunately for the Devils, Sorokin has posted a .921 save percentage through eight games played and has saved 3.31 goals above average (GSAA). He is playing well and will not be easy to beat.
Isles Injuries
The Islanders’ blue line has been riddled with injuries. The defensive pairings above are based on the ice time played together against Ottawa (per Natural Stat Trick). Adam Pelech has been placed on the Injured Reserve. Alexander Romanov (upper body) and Mike Reilly (concussion) are listed as day-to-day but did not start against the Sens.
Forwards Mathew Barzal (upper body) and Anthony Duclair (lower body) are on the Injured Reserve.
Devils
Forwards
Dawson Mercer – Nico Hischier – Timo Meier
Jesper Bratt – Jack Hughes – Ondrej Palat
Paul Cotter – Erik Haula – Stefan Noesen
Kurtis MacDermid – Justin Dowling – Tomas Tatar
Defense
Brenden Dillon – Dougie Hamilton
Jonas Siegenthaler – Johnathan Kovacevic
Luke Hughes – Brett Pesce
The Devils called up Utica Comets defenseman Nick DeSimone on Friday, but I do not expect him to break into the lineup on Saturday.
Goaltenders
Although he started against the Canadiens, I expect Jacob Markstrom to start in the net on Saturday.
What to Watch For
The Special Teams Battle
The Isles have only killed 66.7 percent of their penalties, which is one of the worst penalty kill percentages in the NHL. The Devils’ power play has played well this season, converting on over 25 percent of their power plays. The Isles do not take many penalties and are ranked among the lowest in the NHL in penalty minutes, but if the Devils draw some penalties, they should have a decisive edge.
Bratt (and Hughes) on the PK
Head coach Sheldon Keefe has been entrusting Jesper Bratt (and Jack Hughes) with increased time on the penalty kill in recent games. Bratt and Hughes both had a shift on the PK versus the Oilers with Bratt getting over a minute of ice time (TOI). Although they did not see much TOI, both Bratt and Hughes got a shift on the PK versus the Canadiens as well. I thought both players skated well in the new role. It will be interesting to see if Keefe continues to increase their responsibilities against the Islanders.
Trouble Scoring
Like the Canadiens, the Islanders have had trouble scoring goals and average 2.43 goals for per game (GF/GP), which ranks as one of the worst scoring averages in hockey. The injury to Mathew Barzal is not helping. The Canadiens are only slightly better at 2.71 goals per game, yet the Devils gifted them three goals earlier this week. The Devils need these two points within the Metropolitan Division and cannot afford to hand the Islanders any goals.
Defensive Struggles of Dougie and Dillon
Dougie Hamilton was on the ice for all three Habs goals on Thursday night. Now I am not saying all three goals fall on his shoulders. Jacob Markstrom needs to make the save Alex Newhook’s 40-foot snap shot for Montreal’s first goal. The second goal is the one I take the most umbrage with. A one-timed shot from the right circle that Hamilton drifted too far from the slot to try to block, the shot got through anyway, and nobody was left in front to stop Brendan Gallagher from chipping in the rebound. This is not the first game where the Hamilton – Dillon combination has struggled. Hamilton is now -1 through 16 games. As of the writing of this post on Friday night, per Natural Stat Trick, Dougie is tied for 10th in Scoring Chances Against (SCA) at five-on-five while Brenden Dillon is tied for 12th. Hamilton is tied for 8th in High Danger Scoring Chances Allowed (HDCA) at five-on-five and Dillon is tied for 13th. This is not what Devils fans are looking for in a top duo on their blue line. I recognize the offense that Hamilton can bring and I do not underestimate that value, but defensively Siegenthaler – Kovacevic and Pesce – Hughes are the better pairings. The Devils need better defense from that top pairing.
Your Thoughts
What will you be watching for? What have you thought about the Hamilton – Dillon pairing? Can the Devils shut down the Isles tonight? Post your thoughts and predictions in the comments section below.