Lightning at Devils
The New Jersey Devils rebounded from their first loss of the season by earning a victory over a big rival and look to build another winning streak when they host the equally hot Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday. The Devils suffered a 5-2 defeat against visiting Washington on Friday and were outshot 14-3 in the first period one day later before recording a 3-2 road triumph over the New York Rangers.
“I think we just had to re-evaluate what kind of team we were and what we were doing out there,” New Jersey coach John Hynes told reporters. “We need to work hard, get on the forecheck and stick to detail. We just got away from that a little bit.” The Lightning won their fourth straight game on Monday as Nikita Kucherov kept his impressive streak going with a pair of goals and captain Steven Stamkos set up two in a 3-2 win at Detroit. Kucherov has scored at least one goal in six straight games to start the season, joining Tampa Bay general manager Steve Yzerman, Mario Lemieux and Keith Tkachuk as the only players in the last 30 years to accomplish that feat. “He didn’t show up to Tampa in September,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper told reporters of Kucherov. “He showed up in July. He was on the ice four or five times a week just working on his game. We’re reaping the benefits of that.”
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN
ABOUT THE LIGHTNING (5-1-0): Kucherov has accumulated seven goals and 10 points in six games while linemate Stamkos has notched a tally and eight assists after missing most of last season due to a knee injury. Tampa Bay has netted at least one power-play goal in each contest (7-for-26) and was perfect in six penalty-killing situations on Monday to improve to 22-for-26 on the season. Andrei Vasilevskiy recorded his fifth win in six games during his first full season as a No. 1 goaltender but likely will be rested on Tuesday in favor of Peter Budaj.
ABOUT THE DEVILS (4-1-0): Nico Hischier has yet to score his first goal after being the first overall pick in the 2017 draft but has notched two assists, and Hynes has been pleased with the overall play of the rookie thus far. “The kid helps you win games,” Hynes told reporters. “He can help you in multiple ways. If he continues to progress and play the way he’s playing, his points, his goals will come.” Pavel Zacha, Marcus Johansson and Jimmy Hayes played sparingly in the second period and were benched for the third against the Rangers as Hynes went with nine forwards to send a message after a slow start to the game.
OVERTIME
1. Tampa Bay C Tyler Johnson registered the sixth short-handed goal of his career on Monday and needs one to tie for fourth place in franchise history.
2. New Jersey D Will Butcher is the first player to post eight assists in his first five NHL games since Calgary's Sergei Makarov in 1989-90.
3. The Lightning have gone 6-1-1 in the last eight meetings, but the Devils won 3-1 at home in the last matchup.