The Devils are back in action tonight against the Dallas Stars at the American Airlines Center at 8 p.m. ET.
The Devils are coming off a 2-0 loss against the Vegas Golden Knights despite having starting goaltender Jacob Markstrom back in the lineup.
The last time the Devils met the Stars was right after the 4 Nations Face-Off on home ice. The Stars beat the Devils 4-2, the only two Devils goals coming from Jack Hughes.
Unfortunately, the Devils will be without Hughes as he flew back to New Jersey after leaving last game due to injury with just over a minute left. After an accidental tripping from Vegas’s Jack Eichel, Hughes crashed into the boards and stayed down for a moment. When he eventually got back on his feet, it looked like he hurt his shoulder, which is not the first time it’s happened.
Losing Hughes against a top team like the Stars hurts. The Stars have been one of the NHL’s hottest teams at the moment, winning five out of their last six games and are 7-2-1 in their last 10 games.
The Devils need more offensive help from everyone, especially players like Nico Hischier, Dawson Mercer and Timo Meier. Without Hughes’ offensive power, the Devils are going to struggle due to the recent lack of production from other players.
Markstrom will return back in net for the Devils. The Devils have to take advantage of his presence back in the net. He is the type of goaltender who can steal games for his team, and this might be one of those games.
The Devils will face Casey DeSmith, who has been fantastic in net for Dallas. He currently is 7-2-0 in his last nine starts, including one shutout against the St. Louis Blues. He is riding a four-game win streak, but has not played since Feb. 22, the 4-2 win over the Devils.
With other teams in the Metro collecting points, the Devils need as many points as they can get down the stretch.
Will the Devils be able to collect two more points tonight?
Find out for yourself! Puck drop is at 7 p.m. ET.
