New Jersey has an all-time record of 61-32-7-9 against Tampa.
The New Jersey Devils will face the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday night at Amalie Arena. It is the team's final game before the Bye-Week and NHL All-Star break. New Jersey did not hold a morning skate and will have a 5:00 P.M. media availability.
Head coach Lindy Ruff was not on the bench for the third period of his team's game against the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday after getting hit in the head with a puck. As the team reported, the veteran coach was not on the ice for Friday's practice. He was kept off as a precaution.
The team additionally announced that Erik Haula was absent from the team's practice for personal reasons and recently claimed defenseman Nick DeSimone had not arrived in Tampa.
Devils @ Lightning - Amalie Arena
The Devils have earned a 0-0-1 record against the Lightning this season. In their last meeting, the Lightning beat the Devils 4-3 in overtime. Dawson Mercer, Jesper Bratt, and Nathan Bastian found their names on the scoresheet for New Jersey. Darren Raddysh scored the overtime winner for Tampa.
The Lightning are third in the Atlantic Division (26-18-5). They are coming off a 6-3 win over the Arizona Coyotes. Nikita Kucherov collected three points, and Andrei Vasilevskiy made 17 saves. Mitchell Chaffee scored one goal and added one assist against Arizona for his NHL career's first goal and points.
- New Jersey's injury list includes Dougie Hamilton (out indefinitely), Tomas Nosek (out indefinitely), Jonas Siegenthaler (broken foot), Jack Hughes (upper body), and Brendan Smith (sprained knee).
- Tampa's injury list includes Erik Cernak (upper body), Haydn Fleury (upper body), Tanner Jeannot (lower body), Mikhail Sergachev (lower body), and Austin Watson (lower body).
- The Lightning have a home record of 16-5-3 this season. The Devils have a road record of 14-8-1.
- As of Jan. 26, the Devils are tied with the Dallas Stars for most comeback wins this season (16).
- Entering tonight's game, Curtis Lazar has 16 points (six goals, ten assists). His career-high for points in a single season is 20 (six goals, 14 assists) with the Ottawa Senators in the 2015-16 season.
- Steven Stamkos has points in four of his last five games against New Jersey (three goals, three assists), and Brandon Hagel has picked up seven points in six career games against the Devils (four goals, three assists).
- If in the lineup for New Jersey, Justin Dowling, who made his Devils debut on Thursday, will be skating in his 100th career NHL game.
Projected Lineup
New Jersey:
Last game's lineup:
Timo Meier - Nico Hischier - Jesper Bratt
Ondrej Palat - Dawson Mercer - Tyler Toffoli
Curtis Lazar - Erik Haula - Nathan Bastian
Justin Dowling - Chris Tierney - Alexander Holtz
Kevin Bahl - Simon Nemec
Luke Hughes - John Marino
Santeri Hatakka - Colin Miller
Nico Daws/Vitek Vanecek
**At time of publication, it is unclear if Erik Haula will be in the lineup after missing practice for personal reasons on Friday **
Tampa:
Per THN's Diandra Loux:
Steven Stamkos- Brayden Point - Nikita Kucherov
Brandon Hagel - Anthony Cirelli- Nicholas Paul
Michael Eyssimont - Tyler Motte - Conor Sheary
Mitchell Chaffee- Luke Glendening - Waltteri Merela
Victor Hedman - Darren Raddysh
Calvin de Haan - Nick Perbix
Emil Martinsen Lilleberg- Maxwell Crozier
Andrei Vasilevskiy/Jonas Johansson
Watch & Listen: Tonight's game will be broadcast on MSGSN. Bill Spaulding will handle play-by-play alongside analyst Ken Daneyko and host Erika Wachter. Fans can also listen on the Devils Hockey Network with Matt Loughlin on play-by-play.
Make sure you bookmark THN's New Jersey Devils site for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more.