Devils at Flyers
The New Jersey Devils' fortunes away from the Garden State haven't been kind this season, with their recent disastrous seven-game trek dropping the team's road record to 1-7-0. The Devils look to change the narrative on Thursday when they make the short trek to Philadelphia for the second time this season to face the Flyers, who saw their six-game point streak (5-0-1) halted in their last contest.
Coach John Hynes was quick to credit Taylor Hall's defensive play after the reigning Hart Trophy recipient collected two goals and two assists on Tuesday as New Jersey snapped a three-game skid with Tuesday's 4-2 win over Pittsburgh. "When you look at how many shots he blocked, I think he blocked three or four shots," Hynes said, per NJ.com. "That's what you need to do when you're coming out of the funk and you're conceding some goals the way that we did on the road." Philadelphia saw its three-game winning streak halted on Tuesday as it fell to 2-1-0 on its five-game homestand with a 2-1 setback to Florida. Jakub Voracek scored his team's lone goal and had a tally and two assists in the Flyers' 5-2 triumph over the Devils on Oct. 20.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, MSG-Plus (New Jersey), NBCS Philadelphia
ABOUT THE DEVILS (7-8-1): Nico Hischier sustained an upper-body injury in Sunday's 5-2 setback to Winnipeg, causing the top overall pick of the 2017 NHL Draft to miss the tilt against the Penguins -- his first of his NHL career -- as well as Wednesday's practice. The 19-year-old Hischier could draw back into the lineup on Thursday versus Philadelphia, against which he has four points (two goals, two assists) in five career meetings. Travis Zajac, who took Hischier's place on the top line with Hall and Kyle Palmieri, has recorded 11 points (five goals, six assists) in his last 12 contests.
ABOUT THE FLYERS (9-8-1): New Jersey native James van Riemsdyk is in line to end his 16-game absence on Thursday because of a right knee injury he sustained after he was on the wrong end of a shot against Colorado on Oct. 6. "Obviously, when you're out this long, you get that extra sense of excitement (to return)," said the 29-year-old van Riemsdyk, who scored 36 goals last season with Toronto. The potential return of van Riemsdyk could provide a jolt to a 28th-ranked power play that is just 2-for-28 in the last 10 games.
OVERTIME
1. Philadelphia captain Claude Giroux, who has three goals and five assists in his last four games, resides one point shy of 700 for his career.
2. Devils G Keith Kinkaid fell to 6-2-0 in his career against the Flyers after yielding three goals on 19 shots in last month's encounter.
3. Philadelphia's 30th-ranked penalty kill has permitted a power-play goal in 10 of the last 11 games.