Devils at Hurricanes
A pair of teams that might have to run the table in order to reach the postseason will clash when the Carolina Hurricanes host the New Jersey Devils on Sunday. New Jersey holds a one-point lead over the Hurricanes for 10th place in the Eastern Conference but faces an uphill climb to make the playoffs as it trails Philadelphia by five for the second wild-card spot with seven games remaining.
Despite the continued brilliance of rookie goaltender Scott Wedgewood, the Devils absorbed a hard-luck 1-0 overtime loss to NHL-leading Washington on Friday to fall to 5-2-1 over their last eight games. "All points are valuable," New Jersey forward Kyle Palmieri said. "I have to say it's disappointing not to get the second one, but it's tough to get points this time of year, so you'll take whatever you can get." The Hurricanes have failed to make the playoffs in each of the last six seasons, and their inability to win close games will be the reason should they come up short again. Carolina has dropped six of its last seven (1-2-4) while nine of its past 10 games have been decided by one goal - a span in which it is 3-2-5.
TV: 5 p.m. ET, MSG Plus (New Jersey), FSN Carolinas
ABOUT THE DEVILS (36-31-8): With Cory Schneider sidelined by injury and backup Keith Kinkaid slumping, New Jersey turned to Wedgewood and has been rewarded beyond its wildest dreams. Wedgewood has turned aside 91-of-93 shots in his first three NHL starts, including a 39-save performance in a shutout at Pittsburgh on Thursday. “When you see him play, there's a poise in the net,” coach John Hynes said. "He doesn't overreact to shots or he doesn't overreact to situations. You can see that and you can see his rebound control is very good."
ABOUT THE HURRICANES (32-28-15): Carolina was able to dig out of a two-goal hole at Columbus on Thursday by scoring three times in a 98-second span of the third period and also rallied from two goals down with three second-period tallies before enduring a 4-3 overtime loss to the New York Islanders on Saturday. Chris Terry notched an assist Saturday to extend his point streak to a career-high five games. The Hurricanes have come up empty on all 13 power-play chances over their last six games, but they have successfully killed 19 straight penalties in the last seven contests.
OVERTIME
1. Devils C Adam Henrique has scored five times in his last five games overall and netted 10 goals in 18 contests against Carolina.
2. Hurricanes F Jeff Skinner, who scored his 26th goal Saturday, has netted 10 tallies in 22 games versus New Jersey.
3. The Devils are 9-2 in games decided in overtime.