The New Jersey Devils and head coach Sheldon Keefe take on his former team, the Toronto Maple Leafs, in the home opener Thursday night at 7 p.m. ET.
Head coach Keefe coached the Maple Leafs for five seasons before being let go after consistently struggling in the playoffs. Keefe had 212 wins in 349 games for Toronto, an impressive .665 win percentage.
The Devils opened up their season in an impressive fashion with two wins in Prague against the Buffalo Sabres. The Devils looked fresh and energized in the first two games compared to the underwhelming last season.
The new goalie tandem of Jacob Markstrom and Jake Allen stood on their heads as Markstrom ended the first game with a save percentage of .968% and Allen ended the second with a .944%. Devils fans saw high danger saves, highlight reel saves and even a save-of-the-year candidate.
The Devils would like to get their power play going as they have only scored one goal on six man advantages. Their penalty kill has remained perfect through two games.
Finding the back of the net for the top two lines is crucial. While the chances have been there, the spotlight has been on the third and fourth line as they have three out of the seven goals scored so far this season. Two goals have been added by defensemen, including rookie defender Seamus Casey’s first NHL goal.
The Devils are 3-7-0 against the Maple Leafs in the past 10 games played. With a healthy roster, the Devils should line up better than ever against the dangerous Toronto Maple Leafs.
Toronto will be coming off the first half of a back-to-back as they open up their season against the Montreal Canadiens. Meanwhile, the Devils have not played in a game since Saturday morning due to travel back to the United States and adjusting back to the time zones.
Festivities for the home opener begin at 4 p.m. ET at Championship Plaza in front of the Prudential Center. The players will take part in the Red Carpet Arrivals then shortly after Fan Fest will begin to celebrate the beginning of a new season.
Puck drop will be at 7 p.m. ET.
