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Here are five things to watch when the New Jersey Devils take on the Philadelphia Flyers:
1. A quick start
The Flyers haven’t seen game action since Friday. That’s a five-day break and they had to fly across the world during that period. The juices that come with a home opener might help the cause but it wouldn’t be surprising if they are a little sloppy and slow out of the gate. The Devils, meanwhile, will no doubt be looking to hit the ground running after chewing on a 7-2 loss for a few days. I expect they’ll come out gunning in this one.
2. Jack Hughes showing a pulse
Hughes was not good in the first couple of games. He just wasn’t. He didn’t create much offensively and his play without the puck left a lot to be desired. It’s not a big deal, though. Two games is two games and he’s 18-years-old. He’s ultra talented, he’ll figure it out. John Hynes has made a couple of moves to try and help him do so sooner than later, surrounding Hughes with the key elements he’s currently lacking such as defensive prowess (hello, Blake Coleman) and physical play (few mix it up like Wayne Simmonds). They may not be ideal linemates for Hughes’ offensive ceiling but I think this could help him get on the right track.
3. Wayne Simmonds’ return
Simmonds was an absolute boss during his time with the Flyers. He was a consistent goal scorer, elite net front presence on the power play, and he’d never back down from anyone physically. The fans loved him and he loved them. I think he’ll get a warm reception tonight. Being the player that he is, Simmonds will go 110% and hold nothing back against his former teammates. It’ll be fun to watch.
4. A quality start
I know the defense didn’t exactly hold up well against Winnipeg or Buffalo but the Devils own the league’s worst save percentage through a pair of games. Cory Schneider was off to a pretty good start against the Jets before exiting with cramps so it’d be nice to see him pick up where he left off. If the Devils are going to concede every time they make a mistake, they’re not going to have much success this season.
5. The Goose is on the loose
Nikita Gusev his his faults – defense, speed, etc. – but he is a wizard with the puck and tonight he’ll skate alongside a pair of former 1st overall picks. I think they could make a ton of noise together, although they’ll have a stiff test tonight seeing steady ice against Sean Couturier. That’s going to be a very important matchup.
Here are the projected lineups:
New Jersey
Taylor Hall - Nico Hischier - Nikita Gusev
Jesper Bratt - Travis Zajac - Kyle Palmieri
Blake Coleman - Jack Hughes - Wayne Simmonds
Miles Wood - Kevin Rooney - John Hayden
Sami Vatanen - P.K. Subban
Andy Greene - Damon Severson
Will Butcher - Connor Carrick
Cory Schneider
Philadelphia
Claude Giroux - Kevin Hayes - Jakub Voracek
Oskar Lindblom - Sean Couturier - Travis Konecny
James van Riemsdyk - Scott Laughton - Twarysnki
Michael Raffl - Connor Bunnaman - Tyler Pitlick
Ivan Provorov - Justin Braun
Shayne Gostisbehere - Robert Hagg
Travis Sanheim - Matt Niskanen
Carter Hart
Puck drop is just after 7:30 p.m. and can be seen on NBCSN and TVAS.
numbers via NaturalStatTrick.com
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