Devils Visit Mile High City | PREVIEW
The Devils continue a five-game road trip with a stop in Colorado to face the Avalanche
NEW JERSEY DEVILS (32-21-6) vs. COLORADO AVALANCHE (33-24-2)
New Jersey continues their road swing in Colorado to visit the Avalanche at Ball Arena.
You can watch on MSGSN or listen on the Devils Hockey Network.
Read below for your game preview and pre-game story below. Tonight’s game is presented by Skyview Golf Club.
• TV: MSGSN
• RADIO: Devils Hockey Network
The road trip continues in Colorado to face the Avalanche
DENVER, CO. – The Devils held a morning skate on Wednesday at Colorado’s Ball Arena ahead of facing the Avalanche.
The Devils had their full compliment of players on the ice for morning skate. Goaltender Jacob Markstrom also joined the group as he continues to recover from his MCL injury. He worked the entire skate and put in an extra 20 minutes after the skate concluded.
The Devils lineup looks like it will be the same as
Palat – Hughes – Bratt
Tatar – Hischier – Noesen
Meier – Dowling – Mercer
Cotter – Haula – Bastian
Dillon – Hamilton
Pesce – Kovacevic
Hughes – Casey
Jake Allen manned the starter’s end.
Off-Side
With Devils defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler out for the next few weeks with an undisclosed injury, blueliner Brett Pesce has been forced to slide over to the left side. As a right-handed defenseman, playing on your off-side always provides a unique challenge.
“It’s a different game. You’re on your backhand a lot,” he said. “You’re in more uncomfortable situations. But the more you play it, the more you get used to it. I’m starting to feel pretty normal on that side.”
Luke on PK
With Siegenthaler out, the team has had to make several adjustments to fill his minutes. One area of need has been on the PK, and that’s where the club has looked to getting Luke Hughes more involved.
“He should be able to take on that,” head coach Sheldon Keefe said of Hughes on the PK. “He’s a young guy. He should be able to learn and grow with every day that comes his way, every opportunity that comes his way. He’s everything you want in a penalty killer, he’s big, he’s got a long stick, he’s fast, can close space quickly. I like the job that he’s done there. I like that he’s embraced it.
“With (Siegenthaler) out, there will be continued opportunity for him and others to take on a little bit more and he’s done a nice job.”
Scouting the Avs
Jesper Bratt on the Avalanche: “Very strong skating team. Really good through the neutral zone and defending. When you make your mistakes in the neutral zone, they’re really good at capitalizing on that with some star players … They’re good at transporting pucks and creating space for each other. That line with Necas and MacKinnon and the D jumping the rush, Makar, Toews, players we need to be aware of when they’re on the ice. It’s a good test for us to play a really good road game.”
–Sam Kasan
THE SCOOP
The New Jersey Devils continue their five-game road trip with a stop in Denver on Wednesday night, coming off a big 5-0 win in Nashville to begin the trip. The game was the second half of a back-to-back coming out of the 4 Nations break, with Jake Allen starting against Dallas and Daws picking up the shutout victory, his first in the NHL, in Nashville.
Jack Hughes took a day off from practice on Tuesday, his first day off the ice since his return from the 4 Nations Face-Off. Curtis Lazar skated in his spot in the lineup during line rushes. No other changes were made at practice, likely indicating the same lineup that won in Nashville will play in Colorado. Goaltender Jacob Markstrom joined the team for this current road trip and, on Tuesday, took part in the whole length of practice. He shared a net with Daws, but this was the first time since his injury that he had stayed out for the entire practice as he inches closer to full health.
The Avalanche are coming off a 3-1 loss to the Blues in St. Louis. With 68 points, they are in the first Wild Card spot in the West, four points behind Minnesota, which currently holds the third spot in the Central Division.
The Avs are led by two of hockey’s most dynamic players: forward Nathan MacKinnon and defenseman Cale Makar. Both players were held off the ice on Tuesday, receiving extra rest time after their appearances at the Four Nations Face-Off.
Val Nichushkin could make his return to the lineup for the Avalanche, having not played since Dec. 31. He was on the ice for practice today and is considered an option to return to the lineup against the Devils. He has appeared in just 21 games this season but adds an offensive punch to the Colorado Top-6. He has 17 points (11g-6a) in 21 games played this year.
WHO’S HOT
Devils: Dougie Hamilton has come out of the nearly two-week break of games with four points (1g-3a) in two games. He had a goal and an assist in Nashville and two assists against Dallas. In his last three games, Hamilton has five points.
Avalanche: Cale Makar has six goals and five assists over the past 10 games, including three goals in his past five games.
INJURIES
Devils: Siegenthaler (unknown, IR), Markstrom (MCL, IR)
Avalanche: Mason (day-to-day), Nichushkin (lower-body, IR), Poolman (head, IR)
REGULAR-SEASON RESULTS
–Amanda Stein
GAME NOTES
MORNING SKATE RECAP
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WATCH & LISTEN
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• TV: MSGSN • RADIO: Devils Hockey Network |
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GAME-DAY VIDEO
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Devils Minute: Navigate the Neutral Zone
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Pre-Game Interview with Sheldon Keefe
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BY THE NUMBERS
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STATS LEADERS
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DEVILS
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AVALANCHE
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Goals
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J. Hughes, 26
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Lehkonen, 23
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Assists
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Bratt, 51
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MacKinnon, 66
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Points
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J. Hughes, 68
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MacKinnon, 87
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2024-25 Gamethread #60: New Jersey Devils at Colorado Avalanche
NHL betting preview (Feb. 26): Devils vs. Avalanche odds
Join Daily Faceoff’s Andy MacNeil as he handicaps Wednesday’s matchup between the New Jersey Devils and Colorado Avalanche.
Game odds via Sports Interaction.
New Jersey opened its five-game Western Conference road swing in style, blanking the Nashville Predators 5-0 on Sunday. But given that the Devils haven’t won back-to-back games in a month, it’s tough to say whether they’ll carry any momentum into Wednesday’s matchup in Colorado. They’ve stumbled to an 8-10-3 record since Dec. 28 but are still clinging to third place in the Metropolitan Division.
According to Evolving Hockey, New Jersey ranks 24th in even-strength expected goals percentage since Jan. 1, yet they remain one of the league’s strongest defensive teams. The real issue? Their offense has been stuck in the mud for nearly two months, ranking among the NHL’s bottom 10 over that stretch.
Special teams have been a bright spot—New Jersey sits third overall on both the power play and penalty kill this season. Their penalty kill has been the NHL’s best since the calendar flipped to 2025, but their power play has cooled off considerably.
Getting captain Nico Hischier back should give the Devils a boost at both ends of the ice, but sustaining any kind of run will be a challenge with starting goaltender Jacob Markstrom sidelined.
New Jersey will be an underdog on the road for the sixth time this season, and they’ve held their own in that spot, posting a 3-2 record for a 1.42-unit profit. They’re 11-9 against Western Conference opponents, including 5-4 away from home. But they’ll need to solve Colorado’s defense this time—New Jersey was shut out by the Avalanche on Dec. 8.
Colorado will try to snap a two-game skid as it kicks off a six-game homestand, and the Avalanche will get a major boost with Valeri Nichushkin set to return Wednesday after missing nearly two months with a lower-body injury. Colorado has gone 14-7 with Nichushkin in the lineup this season, and the 29-year-old—who has 11 goals and six assists in 21 games—was skating alongside Jonathan Drouin and Casey Mittelstadt at practice.
The Avalanche have controlled play well this season, ranking fourth in shot attempt percentage at even strength, per Evolving Hockey. But while they sit 10th in expected goals percentage, their even-strength goal share ranks just 18th. Goaltending has stabilized since they acquired Mackenzie Blackwood on Dec. 14, but their 5-on-5 scoring hasn’t looked like that of a top-tier team.
Overall, the Avs have been strong defensively, ranking fourth in goals against per 60 minutes in all situations, while their scoring rates sit just outside the top 10. A dominant penalty kill has played a big role in that success, but surprisingly, their power play has struggled. Since Jan. 1, Colorado has had the league’s fifth-worst power-play conversion rate.
Nathan MacKinnon, fresh off an MVP performance at the 4 Nations Face-Off, hasn’t registered a point in two games since returning, but with 11 shots on goal, he’s clearly generating chances. The real issue is Colorado’s offense has gone ice-cold, managing just one goal in each game since play resumed.
Drouin doesn’t shoot the puck much, as a pass-first type of player, and that has served him well this season. The 29-year-old has put up 23 points in 26 games, with 17 of those points coming from assists. He’s positioned nicely on the team’s top power play unit alongside players like MacKinnon, Cale Makar, and Martin Necas, and with a shooter like Nichushkin back in the lineup, he’ll have an even greater opportunity to set up a goal during five-on-five play.
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