Devils at Oilers
The New Jersey Devils hope to avoid a losing three-game road trip to Western Canada when they visit the Edmonton Oilers on Friday night. The Devils, who play at Vancouver on Sunday, had won four of five contests before recording only 20 shots on net in Tuesday’s 3-2 loss at Calgary as Cory Schneider allowed at least three goals for the first time in eight games.
“We just weren’t as sharp as we needed to be,” New Jersey forward Lee Stempniak told reporters Tuesday. “. … There’s no moral victories for us at this point. We need to pick up points.” The Devils hope to take advantage of the Oilers, who have dropped three straight and own the league’s fewest points (13). However, Edmonton took defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago to overtime Wednesday and is not a team to look past with the offensive talent it possesses. Former first-overall pick Taylor Hall boasts eight goals and 21 points while 2014 third-overall selection Leon Draisaitl has 14 points (six goals) in nine games since being recalled from the minors.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, MSG Plus 2 (New Jersey), SNET-Oilers (Edmonton)
ABOUT THE DEVILS (10-7-1): Mike Cammalleri is off to a strong start in his second season with the Devils, recording 18 points in 18 games to lead the team – four in the past two contests. Adam Henrique tops the team in goals (eight) while Stempniak is proving to be a smart late free-agent signing as the veteran has compiled 11 assists and 15 points. Center Travis Zajac (team-best plus-7 rating) has gone four games without a point, but right wing Bobby Farnham owns three goals in eight contests since being claimed off waivers.
ABOUT THE OILERS (6-12-1): Draisaitl has burst on the scene after standout rookie Connor McDavid went down with an injury, including a four-game point streak and a plus-7 rating overall. The Oilers are 1-4-1 since McDavid suffered a broken clavicle and Nail Yakupov, who was prospering while playing on the wing with the 18-year-old center, has one point in those six games. Cam Talbot (11 starts) and Anders Nilsson (eight) have shared the goaltending duties and both own save percentages less than .900 and goals-against averages greater than 3.00.
OVERTIME
1. New Jersey has killed off 23-of-24 power-play opportunities in November to move into the top 10 in the league overall (83.3 percent) through Wednesday.
2. Edmonton LW Benoit Pouliot scored a goal Wednesday, bringing him within one of 100 for his career.
3. The teams split a pair of games last season with each winning on the road in a low-scoring battle.