Preview: Devils in the details

The Game : 7:00 p.m. EST on NBCSports Philadelphia, ESPN+/Hulu, and 93.3 WMMR

With Saturday\'s win over the Red Wings, the Philadelphia Flyers moved into sole ownership of second place in the Metropolitan Division--not just in raw standings points, but points percentage as well. They\'re on an eight game point streak, and have an opportunity to win three straight once again this season.

It\'d be really great for their standings position if they clobbered the New Jersey Devils tonight.

Any win over a division rival is important, of course, but the Metropolitan is wicked tight right now--the Flyers are in second with 37 points, and the sixth-place Devils have 33. A win is a major momentum swing for either team tonight.

How are the Devils, with their powerhouse offense and wild talent, so low in the standings? It\'s the same story for several contenders this season: goaltending. The tandem of Vitek Vanecek and Akira Schmid has been nothing short of abysmal, with each posting save percentages of .883 and .897, respectively. Any time the Devils can\'t outscore the mistakes in net, they lose. Running that pair of goalies back this year could cost them a shot at the Stanley Cup or, worse, even making the playoffs. To make matters worse: Vanecek has been out, with Nico Daws backing up Akira Schmid.

Still, the Devils are 7-3-0 in their last ten; underestimate star forwards Jack Hughes, Jesper Bratt, Nico Hischier, and Timo Meier at your own peril. On the back end, Luke Hughes has filled the role of the injured Dougie Hamilton quite well, and could\'ve been the Calder frontrunner if Connor Bedard wasn\'t around. For the Flyers to win tonight, they\'ll have to take extra steps to smother the Devils\' offense, and really hammer away at the weakest link of an otherwise strong Devils team: their goalie.

Players to Watch

Rasmus Ristolainen

When Travis Sanheim was out sick against the Red Wings, Ristolainen stepped into the right-side role on the top pair next to Cam York. He was incredible:

This isn\'t a one-off for Risto, either; the increase in his minutes just made his impact more dramatic. Since he started playing in late November, his defensive impact has been largely positive, and he\'s got a 59.41 xG% so far-- 59.41 xG% ! That\'s insane! His previous career-high is a tie between his 2018-19 season in Buffalo and 2022-23 in Philly with 48.34 xG%. If this is \"the real Risto,\" a player who shuts down opposing offense and kills plays with massive hits, then he might be an actually good player. Look for him to try and turn his offense around, too.

We\'ll leave it with this quote:

Cam Atkinson

It\'s been a tough stretch for Atkinson, who\'s gone 15 games without a goal. He has been quite noticeable in the past few contests, though: 11 shots on goal in three games. It\'s just a matter of time until one of those goes in, and what better time than now?

Carter Hart

It\'s been a few games since we last saw Carter Hart between the pipes. He\'s missed time due to illness and, while the details aren\'t fully clear, it seems like he\'s getting answers about what ails him . With Hart, we\'ve seen that frequent rest turns him into an elite goalie, so he should be locked in when he gets the start tonight.

The Hughes Brothers

Not often you get to write a subheading like that. Jack is a highlight machine, and Luke\'s turning into an elite NHL defenseman before our eyes. Watch for them to connect on a goal at some point.

Projected Lineups

Philadelphia Flyers

Travis Konecny – Sean Couturier – Tyson Foerster Owen Tippett – Morgan Frost – Bobby Brink Joel Farabee – Scott Laughton – Cam Atkinson Nic Deslauriers – Ryan Poehling – Garnet Hathaway

Cam York – Travis Sanheim Nick Seeler – Sean Walker Marc Staal – Rasmus Ristolainen

Carter Hart Sam Ersson

New Jersey Devils

Erik Haula - Jack Hughes - Tyler Toffoli Ondrej Palat - Nico Hischier - Jesper Bratt Timo Meier - Dawson Mercer - Alexander Holtz Curtis Lazar - Michael McLeod - Nate Bastian

Jonas Siegenthaler - Simon Nemec Kevin Bahl - John Marino Brendan Smith - Luke Hughes

Vitek Vanecek Akira Schmid

Gameday Tunes

It\'s hard to pick an album of the year, but this one certainly finishes in the top five--maybe even top three. What a banger.

https://open.spotify.com/track/203bhpOhWluOytYjvwQfl7?si=1aada150c7ce4eb4

Stats via Natural Stat Trick

Talking Points