Oilers at Devils
The New Jersey Devils have offered little proof that they are capable of going on the type of hot streak needed to catapult them into postseason contention in the Eastern Conference. Sitting in a tie for 12th in the East, the Devils hope to build some momentum entering the Olympic break when they host the Edmonton Oilers on Friday. New Jersey's longest winning streak this season is only three games - that coming in November - and the Devils have lost 10 of 16 contests (6-5-5) in 2014.
The Oilers are buried in last place in the Western Conference and own the second-fewest victories in the league, but they are in the midst of their best stretch of the season. Edmonton snapped the New York Rangers' four-game winning streak by posting a 2-1 victory on Thursday, its fifth win in six games, and will be wrapping up a four-game road trip against the Devils. The Oilers have surrendered a league-high 197 goals, but they have allowed a combined six tallies in their last five wins.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, RSN West (Edmonton), MSG Plus (New Jersey)
ABOUT THE OILERS (20-33-6): Nail Yakupov wasted no time justifying coach Dallas Eakins' decision to move him to Edmonton's top line by scoring the game-winning goal against the Rangers with 1:38 to play. Yakupov is now part of a No. 1 unit that features the top overall picks from three straight drafts along with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Taylor Hall, who registered his 200th career point on Thursday. Hall already has established a career high with 55 points and has recorded six goals and 19 assists in his last 21 games.
ABOUT THE DEVILS (23-21-13): New Jersey coach Peter DeBoer, unhappy with the overall production from the team, is shaking up his lineup by separating Jaromir Jagr and Travis Zajac - a move that did not sit well with leading scorer Jagr. “It makes sense. Me and Travis didn’t score many,” Jagr said in a sarcastic tone. "I don’t know what to say. I don’t understand a lot of things.” The soon-to-be 42-year-old Jagr, who tops the team in goals (17) and assists (31), needs two tallies to become the seventh player in league history to reach 700.
OVERTIME
1. Devils G Cory Schneider is 4-2 with a 1.98 goals-against average and one shutout versus Edmonton.
2. The Oilers scored four third-period goals in a 5-4 shootout win over visiting New Jersey on Oct. 7.
3. Jagr is two assists shy of tying Hall-of-Famer Marcel Dionne (1,040) for ninth place on the all-time list.