Devils at Rangers
The New Jersey Devils attempt to bounce back from their first loss of the season and hand the New York Rangers their third in a row when they visit their Metropolitan Division rivals on Saturday. After scoring a total of 16 goals over its first three games, New Jersey managed only two in Friday's home setback against Washington - including the 100th of Kyle Palmieri's career.
The Devils have been offensive juggernauts on the road thus far, tallying six times in each of their two victories while allowing a total of five goals. Scoring has been a problem for New York in the early going, as it has recorded more than two goals just once in its first five contests and a total of only five in three games at home. The Rangers are coming off a 3-1 loss at Columbus that could have been worse if not for Henrik Lundqvist, who turned aside 40 shots. "We're just coming up short," Lundqvist, who remains one win behind Glenn Hall (407) for ninth place on the all-time list, told the team's website. "It's not enough. We need more. We're not getting the wins. It's not good."
TV: 7 p.m. ET, MSG Plus (New Jersey), MSG (New York)
ABOUT THE DEVILS (3-1-0): Palmieri and Taylor Hall each scored his first goal of the season Friday, giving the team 12 players with at least one tally. Jesper Bratt, a 19-year-old rookie from Sweden, tops New Jersey with three goals and shares the club lead with six points despite being kept off the scoresheet by the Capitals. Defenseman Will Butcher, also a rookie, shares the scoring lead with Bratt as he has collected a team-high six assists.
ABOUT THE RANGERS (1-4-0): Ondrej Pavelec, who likely will be in net Saturday, needs to stop 18 shots to join Dominik Hasek and Tomas Vokoun as the only Czech-born goaltenders to register 10,000 career saves. The setback in Columbus prevented Alain Vigneault from moving closer to 13th place on the all-time wins list among coaches, as he remained two away from tying Jacques Lemaire for the spot. Mika Zibanejad failed to record a goal Friday after scoring in each of the first four games of the season but is one power-play tally away from setting a new career high of five.
OVERTIME
1. The Rangers have recorded at least one point in 11 of their last 12 home meetings with the Devils, including each of the last seven (5-0-2).
2. New Jersey G Keith Kinkaid is expected to make his season debut Saturday after going 8-13-3 with one shutout last campaign.
3. New York is kicking off a season-high six-game homestand as it is in the midst of an opening month during which it plays 10 of its 13 contests at Madison Square Garden.